Abdulateef Oluwafemi Afolabi

AFOLABI, ABDULATEEF OLUWAFEMI Linkedin | - |-Highly skilled lawyer and company secretary with prior experience in growth and 3+ years' cumulative experience representing and advising some of the most valuable companies and startups in Nigeria with a notch for dispute resolution, employment and labour, intellectual property and corporate advisory. Proven ability to manage complex legal issues and deliver successful results for clients in diverse industries. Seeking to grow with a top-tier firm and or organisation. AREAS OF EXPERTISE: Negotiation & Mediation | Drafting | Compliance | Consulting | Trademarks | Copyrights | IP | Dispute Resolution | Tech & Startup | Consumer Protection | Corporate Governance | Criminal litigation EXPERIENCE: Associate, IP Practice and Dispute Resolution Team, B.A LAW LLP Trainee Associate, B.A LAW LLP ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● Advised on settlement and subsequent consent judgement between a major Nigeria oil and gas importer, a major commercial bank and AMCON, by successfully proving through consolidated audit reports by Delloite Nigeria debts owed to our client by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Debt Management Office (DMO) and drafting terms of settlement that enabled DMO to assume liabilities of our client to the bank in multimillion dollars. Advised a state government on the dispute resolution strategy for recovery of illegal deductions in the federation account, and co-drafted all needed processes for commencement of action at the decided court of jurisdiction. Advised a foreign company on intellectual property protection for its business expansion to Nigeria, and provided regulatory guidance for trademark and patent registrations. The transaction involved research into the registration modalities of the IPO office in Nigeria, timeline and cost implications, as well best types of registration for consideration. Providing regular updates to Clients on progress of cases and ongoing transactions while maintaining confidentiality and utmost good faith. Providing leadership and supervision for cohorted interns from the Nigeria Law School through mentorship, tutoring, task assessments, and moot/mock trials. Successfully provided needed experiential support to twenty (20) externs in nearly two years. Conducting legal research, analyzing findings, leveraging resources like Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), Pavillon, Nigeria Weekly Law Report Online in incorporating law and jurisprudence in drafting legal documents, including pleadings, motions, contracts, and other legal instruments, to support the firm's practice areas and clients’ needs. Assisting with case management tasks, including client depositions, discovery, document review, and preparation for trial or other proceedings, for the firm's ongoing case while adequately providing support to practice management in the onboarding and offboarding of clients. Attending meetings, court appearances, or other proceedings as needed to support the firm's cases in these practice areas. Corporate Advisory & Company Secretary, Desk 22 Group ● July. 2024 – Present Mar. 2023 – July 2024 Jun. 2023 – Dec. 2023 As a freelancer, providied expert legal counsel as part of corporate advisory services for Desk 22 Group, navigating complex legal landscapes and ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations. ● ● ● ● ● Executed company secretary duties with precision, managing corporate governance matters, board meetings, and regulatory filings for Desk 22, Lecture Hall Africa, and 22.work brands. Spearheaded talent recruitment processes, screening, interviews, and negotiation of offers and contract of engagement terms for key openings for directors, lead, essential and general staff for the Group and its subsidiaries, providing and implementing key corporate structure. Developed and implemented legal frameworks to mitigate risks, safeguarding the interests of Desk 22 Group and its subsidiaries. Drafted, reviewed, and negotiated a variety of contracts and agreements, including employment contracts, partnership agreements, and licensing arrangements, optimising legal protections for the organisation. Developed a legal due diligence processes for corporate transactions, mergers, and acquisitions, contributing to informed decision-making and successful business transactions. Co-Convener & Communications/Advocacy Lead, Co-ADAV ● ● ● ● ● ● Co-led an initiative that hopes to end violence in Nigeria through policy advocacy and government relations and stakeholder engagement. Led policy reforms campaign that saw to the criminalization of gender-based violence, and domestic violence in Kwara and Kogi State of North Central Nigeria. With laws like VAPP in Kwara and Kogi State coming to force with aid of stakeholder-directed advocacy, reforms came into the jurisprudence rape law, established the sexual offenders' registry, criminalized female genital mutilation, and created safer spaces for women and girls to thrive in communities of these states. Led digital campaigns, seminars, advocacy, and initiation of conversations between stakeholders of the issue in the state and the government authorities. Led a team of ten, to brainstorm, research, draft, curate, create, and design campaign materials, presentation slides, policy bills, memoirs, critiques,s and whitepaper on the campaign. Took part in key decision-making, policy dialogues, negotiations, stakeholders meeting, roundtables, etc. Legal Research and Editorial Assistant, Williams Nwaokoro & Co ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● Mar. 2019 - Nov. 2019 Researched and wrote well-curated articles on property law, administration of an estate, family law, ADR, human rights, and tort for educational purposes and PR. Proofed and edited written articles and manuals from a pool of freelance writers for blogs, pamphlets, and law magazine features. Growth and Community, Healthtracka (Techstars Toronto ‘22) ● Feb. 2021 - June 2023 Oct. 2021 - May. 2022 Created, developed, and piloted the implementation of email and WhatsApp community-building strategies to drive digital brand loyalty. Successfully took implementation to 70% before exit. Grew Instagram to over 2,000 real followers from 650 followers, Twitter to over 1,000 from 350, and LinkedIn page to over 800 followers from less than 200 with regular content and great customer relations. Successfully ranked 8 blog posts on Google's top page for searches on specific keywords in Nigeria leading to an average of over 500 monthly reads. Managed all social media platforms of the company including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Curated social media calendars and collaborated with the marketing and design team to create and develop contents including texts, visuals, and audiovisuals to drive marketing goals. Directly interfaced with customers across social media, answer and resolve inquiries or complaints and escalate technical concerns to customer operations, business operations, or engineering teams. Actively nurture customers from interest to closing, onboarding new customers unto the test ordering platform, and significantly driving sales and customer retention. ● Wrote well-optimized articles for blogs from time to time to drive SEO objectives and improve content marketing goals. Content and Community Associate, UPtain.ng ● ● ● ● ● Oct. 2020 - Jun. 2021 Created email copies and cold pitches for the UPtain pilot program to guide and influence potential users to sign up for analog implementation and testing of UPtain concepts ahead of the beta launch of the app. Created an email sequence for early access users to onboard them and provide periodic updates. Onboarded and offboarded multiple cohorts of users into closed Slack communities, engaging with customers and answering day-to-day inquiries. Developed and managed community programs to engage users and keep them active on the career pathways selected. Acted as a first point of contact for complaints and escalate to appropriate quarters. OTHER EXPERIENCES & VOLUNTEER ● PR & Media Associate (Consultancy), Kwara State Social Investment Program(KWASSIP) Mar. 2021 till Sep. 2021 ● DUFIL (A Kellogs and Tolaram Group Company), Indomie Campus Ambassador​ Sep. 2019 till July. 2021 ● Head, Event Marketing & PR, TEDx UNILORIN Sep. 2019 till July 2021 ● Dugun.com, Copywriter Feb. 2021 till Mar. 2021 ● Ecom Capital (Formerly LADD Agency), Copywriter May. 2020 till Jan. 2021 EDUCATION & CERTIFICATIONS: ● ● ● ● Nassarawa State University, Keffi Master of Laws (LL.M) Intellectual Property Law and Policy (in view) Nigeria Law School, Abuja Campus Barrister at Law, (B.L) University of Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria Bachelor of Laws, (LL. B) Common and Islamic Law National Youth Service Corp. Certificate of National Service June 2024 - Date Dec. 2021 - Nov. 2022 Sep. 2015 – Aug. 2021 Aug. 2023 - July 2024 ASSOCIATIONS, CLUBS AND SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP ● ● ● ● ● Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Nigerian Law Society (NLS) Data and Privacy Club (Ilorin, Nigeria) CybAfriqué (Data Privacy and Cybersecurity in Africa) Medbase Africa (Sustainable Healthcare Policies for Africa) SKILLS AND COURSES: ● ● ● Soft Skills: Excellent Communication and Presentation skill, Leadership and Team management skills, Problem solving and analytical thinking, Project Planning and Management, Strategic Planning, Stakeholder Management, Writing and Documentation Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) – ​​Accredited Agent Duolingo – ​​Certificate, English Language Proficiency. ● ● ● ● ● ● Young Africa Leaders Initiative, Regional Leadership Centre, Accra, Ghana – ​Fellow, Emerging Leaders Program. Accelerate by Slatecube – ​​SEO for Beginners Accelerate by Slatecube – ​​Comprehensive Digital Marketing Boot Camp X – Leadership, Career Development, Writing Incendiary Writers’ Workshop – Certificate, Creative Writing Designed by Soal - Canva Mobile Designing for small businesses AWARDS AND LEADERSHIP ● ● ● ● ● ● ● Shortlist, Adamawa Youth Hack Crisis Challenge – North East Innovation Hub + British Council + European Union sponsored Hackathon Award of Excellence (Social Development category) – Leadership Roundtable Summit 100 Most Exceptional African Students – Campus Torch Magazine Shortlist, Prize for Writing (Poetry) – Zango Literary Review Meritorious Service Award – Law Students’ Society, University of Ilorin Deputy Speaker – Law Students’ Society, University of Ilorin Chair, Students Ethics and Privilges Committee – Law Students’ Society, University of Ilorin