Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
Kelechi Adiele & Co. is known for the strength of its litigation team. We have successfully handled several high-profile cases on behalf of institutional, corporate, and individual clients at both the trial and appellate courts in Nigeria. In 2015, the Firm was part of a team that won six out of nine cases at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which upturned the decisions of the National and State Houses of Assembly Election Tribunal for Akwa Ibom State in respect of some State Constituencies. The Firm has also won several cases at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria some of which are reported in the Law Reports. A good example is the case of Adeola Akintoye V. Hotel Bon Voyage, where Hon. Justice B.B. Kanyip (PhD) of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (Lagos Division) upheld the argument of our legal team on behalf of the Claimant that an employer cannot suspend an employee without pay in the absence of an express contractual right to do so. (This case is reported in (2014) 42 N.L.L.R (Pt. 131) 354).
The Firm is adept at case management and provides clients with options for quick and timely resolution of disputes. To this end, the Firm undertakes litigation, arbitration as well as other alternative dispute resolution procedures, particularly mediation, on behalf of its clients. Recently, the Firm was part of a team that represented Nigeria’s foremost Payment Platform Infrastructure Service Provider in an arbitration against a leading Multinational Telecommunication Company in Nigeria arising from alleged copyright infringement. The Firm was also part of a team that represented a leading oil and gas company in an arbitration against four other companies in the oil and gas sector over a dispute arising from the failed acquisition of the Nigerian business of a Multi-National Oil and Gas Group.
The Firm’s primary objective is always to ensure that disputes arising from the business and commercial activities of its clients are effectively resolved with minimum expenditure of time and resources by the clients.
Our litigation and dispute resolution practice complements and supports our corporate law practice.