Adeoye Adefulu Emerges As New NBA-SBL Chairman

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

In his acceptance speech delivered at the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law Annual General Meeting, he said, “I am grateful to all who nominated me; to the membership of this organization and to the past chairs, council members, committee chairs and exco and the Section on Business Law (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 the ways in which the NBA Section on Commercial Law would adapt to the changing business and economic landscape since its founding.

He said, “Our demography has also changed – with Boomers, Gen X, Millennial 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 and culture.”

He also pointed out that among other things, the pandemic, devaluation, and inflation are all having an adverse effect on enterprises. In order to better serve these companies, the NBA-SBL must reevaluate the effectiveness of its advocacy and communication tools.

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 said.

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

Adefulu urged the SBL members to participate in voluntary work, saying, “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”.

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 6 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.