What are the most significant cases and transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

We have been prioritising compliance; ensuring that my board complies with the statutory regulations and corporate governance requirements, especially when considering the business environment. I have also been working to ensure that Courteville Business Solutions does not run into issues with agreements that have been signed.

As a general counsel, how do you anticipate and prepare for potential legal and regulatory challenges that may arise, particularly in light of emerging technologies and evolving business landscapes?

As an e-business solutions company, we mostly work for the government, and it is a growing space that continues to evolve.

As an in-house counsel, it is important to be watchful; put our ear to the ground, learn from our colleagues; read extensively to stay abreast of developments, and accurately advise management. Lawyers are usually stereotyped as only providing secretarial or filing functions. However, we are also supposed to be able to keep ourselves knowledgeable about what is going on in society and the world at large, to ensure our processes remain informed and compliant.

How have you attempted to bring the legal department closer to your business colleagues?

We try to make sure that we are involved in everything and play a role in every aspect of the organisation, from internal control, audit, and compliance to human resource management, finance, and risk management teams. By doing this, we have been able to transcend the secretariat mindset that people have regarding the legal department, and have boosted the confidence of other teams, such that when they have strategic needs they involve us, knowing we possess a clearer perspective on possible liabilities that may arise from whatever strategy they are putting in place or whatever risks that they are seeing.

Looking forward, what technological advancements do you feel will impact the role of in-house legal teams in the future the most? Which have you found most useful in your legal team?

I think technology that can harness togetherness amongst in-house counsel would be quite useful and would also develop our skills. Technology that can connect me with in-house counsel – from another company, working in an entirely different industry – to facilitate knowledge sharing and information dissemination among in-house counsel while accounting for both the similarities and distinct characteristics of each counsel’s role.

Apart from keeping lawyers informed, these platforms can also help in preparing them to better serve their companies in instances they wish to expand or diversify their operations to other industries. In-house counsel is hired to ensure their companies avoid legal liability at all costs. Consequently, technology that brings them together and encourages learning and knowledge sharing would be a welcome development.

How do you see the general counsel role evolving in Nigeria over the next five to ten years?

I see the role of the general counsel growing into having its agency and developing into being a business partner with the ability to also bring transactions to the table. As in-house counsel, you sit with the mind of the owners; you are with the executive directors and board members, you are involved in their meetings and should understand their mindset and business needs.

As in-house counsel, we must try as much as possible to be involved in everything to provide accurate, actionable advice; I cannot push my board to be compliant by paying taxes if I do not understand the intricacies of tax payments. Likewise, if the business develops a solution to commercialise, the general counsel needs to understand in detail, what this entails; the kind of business being developed; the need for its deployment; how this will impact the workforce; liabilities; and the political or economic condition of the target market.