A shared vision to become the leading integrated legal service provider across a continent that’s nonhomogeneous, changing rapidly and full of challenges helped spur Nigerian firm Aluko & Oyebode to join ALN, says the firm’s chair, Kofo Dosekun.
“The pursuit of excellence by both ALN and Aluko & Oyebode is captured by the expectation of delivering legal services with the highest ethical standards, underpinned by an ambitious entrepreneurial spirit. ALN creates the one stop shop for African transactions,” Dosekun explained. A corporate and banking expert, she won the Women in Business Law Award at the IFLR Africa Awards 2020, and is a member of The Legal 500 Hall of Fame.
While ALN, with the addition of the premier legal services provider in Africa’s largest economy, may be creating a one-stop shop, Africa itself is no one-size-fits-all.
“Contrary to what a lot of people outside Africa think, the continent is not a single homogenous market or legal system,” Dosekun noted. “The challenges faced by businesses in Africa are therefore multi-faceted, depending on the country they are operating in or seeking to invest into, and the legal systems they need to engage with. These issues range from barriers to trade (tariff and non-tariff) and deteriorating macro-economic conditions, to insecurity, wider political challenges, different legal systems and laws.”
Recently, regulatory uncertainty and policy inconsistency in certain regions have contributed to further business disruption. The alliance between Aluko & Oyebode, with its in-depth knowledge of the legal and economic environment in Nigeria and beyond, and ALN with its pan-African expertise, will greatly benefit clients and lawyers.
“ALN prides itself on the fact that its lawyers are abreast of the trends and events shaping what is happening on the continent and are deeply connected and respected in their business communities,” said Dosekun. She noted that, since it was founded in 1993, Aluko & Oyebode has likewise built a “thorough understanding of the operating and regulatory environment” in Nigeria and beyond, and will be able to bring a unique perspective that will help “greatly strengthen” ALN’s ability to service clients wherever they are operating.
“Based on their in-depth knowledge of the legal and economic environment, ALN is therefore able to provide relevant market intelligence to clients to assist them in making business and investment decisions,” she said, “as well as best-in-class legal advice and support that is in the context of current trends, developments and opportunities in the various markets in Africa.”
Looking ahead, Dosekun believes that change will continue, from technological innovation in service delivery to a shift in major practice areas, and millennials and Gen-Z will continue to be welcomed to the corporate environment.
To sustain their leading status, Aluko & Oyebode and ALN will continue to invest in new growth areas such as fintech and ESG practices. “To better equip our lawyers to meet client demands in these sectors, we are increasingly investing in the latest legal tech tools to enable our people to provide innovative services to our clients in a changing world,” she explained.
This article was first published by Africa Legal.
