Region Area

Lawyers

Anthony Idigbe, SAN

Anthony Idigbe, SAN

Work Department

Dispute Resolution

Position

Anthony Idigbe is the firm’s Senior Partner, who chairs the Board of Partners. He deals primarily with litigation (commercial, especially in capital market, mergers and acquisition, property and construction, intellectual property, elections, banking and finance, insolvency, constitutional and administrative law); insolvency (business restructuring, receivership, debt recovery, insolvency litigation including cross-border insolvency matters); capital market (private placement, initial public offers, bonds and debentures, mergers and acquisition, special placing, de-mergers and restructuring, dealings with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and appearance before the Investment and Securities Tribunal) and arbitration (claimant’s counsel, respondent’s counsel, presiding arbitrator). He has also been involved as lead counsel in many ‘big ticket’ briefs in litigation in Nigeria such as the Kano Trovan Clinical Trial Cases involving the world’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturing company. Other significant transactions involve banking, capital markets, oil and gas, construction/public-private partnerships; advisory/regulatory matters for government institutions, amongst others. He also has extensive experience in insolvency litigation and has acted for several institutions, including multinational companies and state enterprises, creditors and debtors alike. His involvement includes engagement in most of the litigation, both civil and criminal, arising from the 2008-2009 bank crisis in Nigeria. He was appointed in 2013 as the National Coordinator for Nigeria, World Bank Global Forum of Law, Justice and Development Project on Treatment of Shareholders’ Rights in Insolvency of Companies (2013-2014). Anthony Idigbe also has extensive experience in arbitration, particularly in oil and gas, and has been involved in various commercial arbitrations (including ICC arbitrations), in the capacity of chairman, member, counsel or party representative. He is a member of ICC Nigeria National Committee on Arbitration and was chairman of the ICC Nigeria Mediation Rules Launch Sub-committee in 2014. His appointments as arbitrator has extended to disputes between venture partners over oil mining licenses and asset acquisition disputes. He has been appointed by various parties including national oil company, independent oil companies and arbitral institutions. He was appointed in 2013 as a member of the Presidential Special Committee on Oil Revenue, to review the nation’s oil revenue challenges.

Career

PUNUKA Attorneys & Solicitors [1990 till date] R.I. Kuku & Associates [1989-1990] H.A. Lardner SAN Chambers [1984-1989] Year made partner in present firm: 1990 CURRENT DIRECTORSHIPS: Director, Royal Exchange Plc Chairman, Royal Exchange Prudential Life Plc

Languages

English, Igbo

Memberships

Nigerian Bar Association;; Institute of Directors; International Insolvency Institute; International Trademark Association; London Court of International Arbitration; Lagos Court of Arbitration; Fellow, INSOL International; Fellow, International Bar Association; Fellow, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, UK; Fellow, Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria; Fellow, Business Recovery and Insolvency Practitioners Association of Nigeria

Education

University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada (GPLLM, 2015) Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, UK (LLM, 2012) Enugu State University of Science and Technology (MBA, 1997) University of Lagos, Akoka, Yaba, Lagos (LL.M, 1988) Nigerian Law School (Barrister at Law, 1983) University of Ife, Ile-Ife, Osun State (LL.B (Hons), 1982) St Patrick’s College, Asaba, Delta State (1977)

Leisure

Enjoys gym workout, golf and reading; He is a member of Ikoyi Club 1938, Metropolitan Club and IBB Golf and Country Club