A senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr Emeka Obegolu has advised legal practitioners in the country to specialize particular areas of legal practice, to strategically position themselves and fit properly for the 21st Century Legal Practice.
He gave the advise at a training themed “Demystifying Construction Law”, organized by the Abuja Branch of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) on Wednesday.
Obegolu specialises in Alternative Dispute Resolution (Arbitration and Mediation), Criminal law and Commercial law practice, Petroleum Law, pre and post-election matters, and constitutional law to mention but a few.
According to him, specialization allows a lawyer to show measurable credibility and be of high value for the modern time.
Obegolu moderated the first session of the training, “Introduction to Construction Law in Nigeria and Overview of Construction Contract”, which featured Prof. Agbo Jerry Madaki of Durban University of Technology, South Africa and Prof. Kathleen E. Okafor of Baze University, Abuja.
Participants were called upon to pay special attention to various law governing the construction industry, the Law of Contact, Legal Drafting, Land Law and the Constitution of Nigeria as the basics to understanding the area in focus.
Obegolu has served as Sole Arbitrator in Commercial Arbitration disputes, Counsel in Engineering-Dispute Arbitration and Supply-Chain Contract Arbitration.
He also moderated the last session of the training which focused on “Protecting Your Client’s Construction Project (Dispute Prevention, Avoidance and Resolution).
This featured Reshma Oogorah, a renowned International Arbitrator and Construction Law Expert who delivered her speech virtually.
Other areas covered at the training include, Roles and Obligations of Parties to a Construction Contract, Legal Principles Governing the Terms of a Construction Contract and Understanding the Engineer, Procure and Construct Contact.
In a symbolic gesture to commemorate the International Day of the Girl Child, Chief Obegolu made a presentation of two copies of a book “Construction Law in Nigeria” to two women who were early comers for the training.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Abuja Branch (Unity Bar), Mr. Afam Okeke expressed appreciation to the speakers and participants for attending the event which he notes that his administration plans to make a regular activity to boast the knowledge and capacity of members in for effective legal services to the public.
