Ernest Ojukwu


Professor Ernest Maduabuchi Ojukwu (born 23 September 1960), is Partner at the Law firm of Ojukwu Faotu & Yusuf(OFY-lawyers)-www.ofy-lawyers.com. He has deep experience in litigation practice, including finance law, energy law, tax law, access to justice, risk and compliance, mediational and international commercial arbitration. He was Deputy Director-General and Head of Campus of the Nigerian Law School, Augustine Nnamani Campus, Agbani Enugu (February 2001 - March 2013).[1] Before his appointment, he was Associate Professor(1998) and Dean Faculty of Law, Abia State University, Uturu from 1995- 2001.[2] He is also the President of the Network of University Legal Aid Institutions (NULAI Nigeria), the platform through which he has continued to achieve his dreams of promoting clinical legal, justice education and reform of legal education in Nigeria. On Monday 22 September 2014, Ernest Ojukwu was conferred with the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria at the Supreme Court of Nigeria. He was appointed Professor of Law Madonna University, 2014, and Baze University 2016. Ojukwu teaches as Adjunct at Nasarawa State University LLM International Commercial Arbitration and was External Examiner Kenyatta University Nairobi 2013-2017.

Background

Ernest Ojukwu hails from Ahaba Imenyi in Isuikwuato Local Government of Abia State in southeast Nigeria. He attended the Methodist College Uzuakoli and Government College Umuahia. Professor Ojukwu is a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife where he received the Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws Degrees in 1983 and 1987 respectively.

Career

Ernest Ojukwu began his career in 1985 when he simultaneously joined the services of Abia State University as an Assistant Lecturer and began to practice Law in the chambers of Chief G. N. Atulomah.[2] In 1988, he left to establish with his friends, a Law firm named Eleuthera Chambers. He rose to the position of Dean of the Faculty of Law in Abia State University where he served from 1995-2001.[2]

Ernest Ojukwu has also been a very active member of the Nigerian Bar Association, with a tremendous record of service at the local, regional and national levels, and has at one time or the other held the following positions: Secretary, NBA Aba Branch (1992-1993); Chairman, NBA Aba Branch (1997-1999); Sole Member NBA Sub Committee to Investigate Complaints Against Legal Practitioners, 1999; Chairman, NBA Law Reform Committee (2002-2004); Founder, President, NBA Eastern Bar Forum (2004-2011); Chairman, NBA Legal Education Committee (2006-2008); Co-Chair, NBA Editorial Committee (2002-2004); Chairman NBA Editorial Committee (2006-2008); Chairman, NBA Academic Forum (2003-2004; 2006-2008 & 2012-2014); Co-Chairman, NBA Conference Planning Committee 2003; Alternative Chairman, NBA Summit on the Future of Legal Education in Nigeria 2006; and Chairman NBA Strategic Plan Working Group 2012.[3]

He has also been member of many other NBA Committees since 1999 and in the various positions he held and committees he served, he has exciting achievements to present. As Chairman of NBA Law Reform Committee he produced a new Legal Practitioners Act in 2004 under President Wole Olanipekun, SAN. In 2006, the NBA under President Olisa Agbakoba SAN requested an amendment in place of a completely new Act and Ernest Ojukwu submitted an amended Legal Practitioners Act which then was submitted to the National Assembly. In 2011, the NBA under President Daudu SAN set up a new Committee to draft a new Legal Practitioners Act. Ojukwu produced a new draft for the Committee and that draft is currently pending before the National Assembly today. In addition to the Legal Practitioners Act, Ojukwu also submitted to the Bar draft bills on Legal Education and Legal Services Commission. This is also presently before the National Assembly.

Ernest Ojukwu has published extensively. He is co-author of "Introduction to Civil Procedure", a quality and leading material on Civil Litigation for Law School Students in Nigeria as well Legal Practitioners, Editor-in-Chief of the "African Journal of Clinical Legal Education and Access to Justice", "Abia State University Law Journal" (1995-2000), Nigerian Law and Practice Journal (2006-2013), & Editor-In-Chief "Nigerian Bar Journal" (2002-2004 & 2006-2008). He is also a leading vanguard in pioneering the development of clinical legal education in Nigeria and is the President of the Network of University Legal Aid Institutions (NULAI Nigeria) which serves to promote clinical legal education and reform of legal education in Nigeria.[4] He is Principal Co-Author of the following clinical Legal Education books: "Clinical Legal Education: Curriculum Lessons & Materials", "Handbook on Prison Pre-Trial Detainee Law Clinic", "Manual on Prison Pre-Trial Detainee Law Clinic", "Impact Assessment of Clinical Legal Education in Nigeria", "Externship Students Handbook", and "Externship Handbook for Supervisors". Ojukwu is also a contributor to the following International books on clinical legal education: David McQuoid-Mason, Ernest Ojukwu, and George Mukundi Wachira, “Clinical Legal Education in Africa: Legal Education and Community Service”, in Bloch Frank (ed), The Global Clinical Movement: Educating Lawyers for Social Justice, Chapter 2, New York, Oxford University Press, 2011; “Making a real change; legal Education in Nigeria- partly re-imagined, Grimes, R, ed, Rethinking Legal Education Under the Civil and Common Law: A Road Map for Constructive Change, Routledge, pages 192-201. He is the National Representative of Nigeria in the Brown-Morsten International Client Consultation Competition.[5]

Ernest Ojukwu was conferred with the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the highest title available for legal practitioners in Nigeria in 2014.

Interests/Activities

Prof. Ernest Ojukwu’s interest as a scholar includes the subjects of Continuing Legal Education, Civil Litigation and Access to Justice.[6] He drafted the Nigerian Bar Association CLE Rules and set up the Institute of Continuing Legal education in 2007. He has also continued to play a very active role in the professional activities of the Nigerian Bar Association where he once served as the Chairman, Aba Branch of the Association, Chair of the Law Reform Committee, the Academic Forum and Legal Education Committee.[7] Prof. Ojukwu has conducted many training programs and workshops for the practicing bar, law teachers and law students. He has attended and presented papers at several international conferences on legal education such as the Global Alliance for Justice Education (GAJE) [8] conferences at Cordoba Argentina 2006, Philippines 2008, Valencia Spain 2011 and New Delhi India 2013; speaker at the IBA’s (International Bar Association) [9] conference at Chicago 2006 and Boston 2013; the Journal of Clinical Legal Education (IJCLE) conference Perth Australia 2009 and Griffiths 2013; Externship 6 Conference Boston 2012; Harvard Law School Global Legal Education Forum 2012; and Association of American Law Schools (AALS) Clinical Legal Education Conference Puerto Rico 2013. He was Keynote Speaker at the 11th International Journal of Clinical Legal Education/12th Australian Clinical Legal Education Conference at Griffith University Brisbane Australia in July 2013 and Keynote Speaker at the Conference of Legal Academics Kwame Nkrumah University Kumasi Ghana 20–22 October 2017.

Family Life

Prof. Ojukwu is married to Hon Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court and the marriage is blessed with five children.

References
  1. "Legal Education". International Centre for Nigerian Law. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  2. Nwauche, E.S. A Citation on Ernest Maduabuchi Ojukwu' in Chukwumaeze, U. U. and Erugo, S (eds) In Search of Legal Education (Essays in Honour of Ernest Ojukwu) Uturu. Abia State University Law Centre. pp. x–xi.
  3. "Sam Erugo: Ernest Ojukwu SAN - Aloma Mukhtar's Legacy of Merit". Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  4. "NETWORK OF UNIVERSITY LEGAL AID INSTITUTIONS". Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  5. "The Louis M. Brown and Forrest S. Mosten International Client Consultation Competition". Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  6. "Prof. Ernest Ojukwu". Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Programme. Institute of Continuing Legal Education. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  7. Innocent Anaba (13 February 2004). "How to Improve Standard of Legal Practice -- Professor Ernest Ojukwu". Vanguard Newspaper. Archived from the original on 5 May 2004. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  8. http://www.gaje.org
  9. IBA
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