Obafemi is serving his second term as Vice President of IPLAN, and has been active in implementing various initiatives of the organization in the past three years, such as Government agencies liaison and advocacy.
He is a Partner in one of Nigeria’s leading full-service commercial law firm, JACKSON, Etti & Edu, where he heads up the Brand Protection Practice. He is also the Sector Head, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG).
Called to the Nigerian Bar in 2000, Obafemi holds an LL.M in Intellectual Property Law.
Otu holds a law degree from the University of Ibadan, Oyo State Nigeria and was called to the Nigerian bar in 2006. Otu has a passion for intellectual property and is now in charge of OOLLP’s brand protection practice. Otu was elected to the office of General Secretary of the Intellectual Property Law Association of Nigeria at the Annual General Meeting which took place on the 21st of April, 2016. Otu was also returned as General Secretary at the subsequent Annual General Meeting which took place on the 4th of May, 2018, at Colonades Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos.
Tiwalola holds a law degree from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. She was called to the Nigerian bar in 2010.
Tiwa is a Senior Associate in the Intellectual Property and Corporate Commercial practice groups at ǼLEX. She was elected to the office of Social Secretary of the Intellectual Property Law Association of Nigeria at the Annual General Meeting which took place on 4th May, 2018.
Adedoyin is a legal practitioner in the Intellectual Media, Entertainment and Technology (IMET) department of Alliance Law Firm where he handles the concentrated needs in Intellectual Property for organisations.
He is also the Initiator of The People’s Accolade Law Magazine (The PALM), Africa’s most recognised digital legal Magazine for the millennial generation. He is also a recipient of the Director-General’s prize for attaining a First Class at the Nigerian Law School.
Adedoyin was elected to the office of Assistant General Secretary of the IPLAN at the Annual General Meeting which took place on December 18, 2020.
Uju has practical and vast experience in Intellectual Property matters, Brand Protection and Anti-Counterfeiting. She has represented and has advised blue-chip companies for over a decade, on areas of I.P Advisory, I.P Litigation/ prosecution matters, Brand Protection, Trademark Opposition proceedings, market intelligence on Counterfeiting activities.
She holds the WIPO Worldwide Academy Certificate in Intellectual Property and a Certificate on Copyright from Harvard Law School. She is a dedicated member of Anti-Counterfeiting Collaboration (ACC) Nigeria.
In view of her committed contributions to Intellectual Property, Uju was nominated in 2017 by the International Trademark Association (INTA) as a committee member of the UnReal Campaign (a public awareness initiative designed to educate teenagers (ages 14-19) about the importance of Trademarks, Intellectual Property, and dangers of Counterfeit products).
Uju is also an International contributor for Nigeria and Ghana for INTA Opposition Guidelines and has participated in trainings and seminars organized by ACC for Nigerian Customs and the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON). She was also a speaker at the CWAG/APP Interagency Forum on Countering Counterfeiting Drugs in Ghana and Rwanda.
Currently Uju is a Manager of Intellectual Property and Technology Law at MTN Nigeria Communications PLC, a part of the MTN Group of companies (which is Africa’s leading telecommunications provider) and she won the IPR Gorilla Top Emerging IP Player Award 2020 for Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Middle East.
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIP
Uzo is a Senior Associate in the Corporate and Commercial Practice Group of the Firm of Adepetun Caxton-Martins Agbor and Segun (“ACAS-LAW”) and has about 16 years legal experience having garnered experience in company secretarial law, civil litigation, regulatory law and compliance, corporate and commercial law, media, sports and entertainment law and particularly excellent experience on every aspect of Intellectual Property law.
She leads the Intellectual Property (IP) Group of ACAS-Law, constantly educating IP owners, creatives, individuals, small, medium, and large businesses on the strategies to put in place to better protect their creative works, brands, innovative products and processes, trade secrets; and proffer solutions to meet their growing needs across key Industry Sectors within and outside Nigeria. Her practice spans providing legal support on diverse local and multi-jurisdictional transactions ranging from providing advisory on securing protection, management, prosecution, enforcement, acquisition, transfer, and exploitation of all types of intellectual property rights.
Uzo holds a law degree from the Lagos State University, Nigeria and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2003. She obtained a Masters degree in Law from the University of Lagos and received the Harvard Law School Copyright X Certificate of Proficiency in 2017.
She is a member of the Africa Global Advisory Council (GAC) of the International Trademarks Association.
Recognitions/Awards:
Chinasa Uwanna is a Senior Associate in the Intellectual Property (“IP”) Law, Technology, Media & Entertainment practice group of the Nigerian law firm, Banwo & Ighodalo. She has excellent experience in the field and has advised in numerous local, as well as cross-border and multi-jurisdictional transactions involving brand registration, transfer, commercialization, protection and enforcement particularly in Nigeria and other African jurisdictions. She also advises business owners on regulatory issues with particular reference to their IP rights. In addition, her experience cuts across corporate and commercial law transactions.
Chinasa holds a Master’s Degree in IP Law from the University of Turin/ WIPO and has over 12 years’ experience in the field of IP. She has been consistently ranked by the Chambers Global Guide (2018; 2019 and 2020) in the field of IP in Nigeria and was recommended as an expert by the 2020 World Trademark Review (WTR 1000) rankings. She has also been ranked as a Rising Star by the Managing Intellectual Property IP Stars ranking 2020.
An author and regular speaker on IP and ancillary issues, Chinasa engages more and more in teaching/ mentoring Nigerian university students and fresh graduates on the importance of IP and Technology in national development. She has presented several papers on IP both locally and internationally. She also regularly facilitates the IP sessions of the Fate Foundation NutriPitch Accelerator Programme dedicated to nutrition and food safety focused businesses in Nigeria, and the Start Up School organised by The Bulb Africa.
Chinasa served as one of the Judges in the 2nd Edition of the Babalola Law Dictionary Competition for Young Lawyers in Nigeria and is a contributor to the Future Africa Forum on Development and Industrialization issues, as well as a contributor to the International Trademarks Association (INTA) 2018, 2019 and 2020 Country Guides on Trademarks (for Nigerian Law & Practice). She also co-authored the Nigerian Chapter of the International Comparative Legal Guides to Trademarks (2012 and 2013).
She is an active member of many local and international IP associations including the Pharmaceutical Trade Marks Group; International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI); the Anti-Counterfeiting Collaboration, (ACC) Nigeria; Intellectual Property Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law, amongst others. A serving member of the INTA Middle East and Africa Anti-Counterfeiting Sub-Committee, Chinasa has also served for 2 previous terms on that committee as well as the INTA Trade Marks Reporter Committee.
She is married, and makes her home with her husband and daughter, in Lagos, Nigeria.
