Adeoye Adefulu Assumes Office as NBA SBL Chairman

Mary Nnah

Dr. Adeoye Adefulu, a lead partner in the renowned business law firm Odujinrin and Adefulu, has been chosen to lead the Nigerian Bar Association’s Section on Business Law as its Chairman.

Delivering his acceptance during the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law Annual General Meeting, held on the 25th, he said: “I am grateful to all who nominated me; to the membership of this organisation and the past chairs, council members, committee chairs, and exco & the SBL Secretariat, all of whom have contributed immensely to make us one of the leading membership associations in the Nigerian business community.”

Adefulu also highlighted how the NBA Section on Commercial Law would adapt to the changing business and economic landscape since its founding.

“Our demography has also changed – with Boomers, Gen X, Millennials and Gen Zs and their different cultures practicing law together (sometimes in the same office). Whilst the objectives of the SBL remain broadly the same, we must adapt our tools to reflect the new environment, demography & culture,”, he said.

He also pointed out that, among other things, the pandemic, devaluation, and inflation are all adversely affecting enterprises. To better serve these companies, the NBA-SBL must reevaluate the effectiveness of its advocacy and communication tools.

Adefulu expressed his plans for the new council in a mathematical formula: 2 x IS (two times I divided by S). The first I represents Impact, the second I represents Influence and S represents Sustainability.

He noted the council’s mission to improve members’ professional lives by fostering opportunities for professional growth, which would be assessed through training, mentorship, networking, volunteerism, and giving access to the resources required to provide high-quality legal services.

Regarding influence, the new Chairman stated that the council would strive to increase the SBL’s influence over the business climate. This influence would be assessed based on the quantity and quality of its partnerships with the private sector, advocacy efforts with regulators, national and state assemblies, and the executive.

He also said that these activities would be governed by sustainability principles, with each action being carried out in a way that will sustain the institution’s existence.

He urged the SBL members to participate in voluntary work, adding, “Volunteering is in the SBL DNA. It is a great opportunity to network and develop a variety of skills, useful in your practice and other aspects of life. We will need volunteers to carry out some of the responsibilities you have tasked us with. Please look out for our formal requests for volunteers”.

Additionally, he urged members to share their ideas for how the Section may be improved because the first duty of the new council is to listen.

Adefulu has previously served the NBA Section on Business Law as its vice Chairman under the leadership of Ayuli Jemide. He was also the Chairman of the SBL Training Committee in 2015. Aisha Rimi, Babasola Alokolaro, Ayoyinka Awosedo, Adeleke Alex-Adedipe, and Oyeyemi Aderibigbe were elected with him to serve as vice chairman, secretary, treasurer, assistant secretary and financial secretary respectively in the new council. Other elected Council members are Kehinde Daodu, Chinasa Unaegbunam, Perenami Momodu, Funmilayo Otsemobor & Stella Duru.

The 2022 Annual General Meeting of the NBA SBL also saw the inauguration of six former chairpersons and a past council member as Honorary Life Members of the Section.

Referencing the famous Albert Einstein, the outgoing Chairman Ayuli Jemide urged the Council to carry on the torch: “Life is like riding a bicycle, to preserve your balance, you have to keep moving.”

The Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law (NBA-SBL) is one of the NBA’s specialty sections. It was established primarily to foster the professional growth of Nigerian commercial lawyers and to improve the standard of business law practice in Nigeria.