Olabisi Tolu Obamuroh



Senior Fellow – Nigeria

Tolu Obamuroh is an Associate in the International Arbitration Group of White & Case LLP based in Paris. His practice includes international commercial and investment arbitration, and he has experience in highly technical complex cases.

About Olabisi Tolu Obamuroh

Tolu Obamuroh is an Associate in the International Arbitration Group of White & Case LLP based in Paris. His practice includes international commercial and investment arbitration, and he has experience in highly technical complex cases. In 2017, he was elected as the Co-chair of Young International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA), the first African to hold such a role.

Prior to joining White & Case, Mr. Obamuroh was the Associate General Counsel of the Lagos Court of Arbitration (LCA), where he was responsible for case management and dispute resolution of the Court. At the LCA, he oversaw the implementation of various initiatives and programs aimed at helping judicial officials, lawyers and students acquire both mediation skills and knowledge of international arbitration, including:

  • Establishment of the LCA Weekend Arbitration and Mediation Training Program for Beginners
  • LCA Arbitration and Mediation Master Class
  • LCA Young Arbitrators Network as a platform for young practitioners in Africa

Mr. Obamuroh established the programs, designed the curriculum, and invited experienced arbitration and mediation practitioners from inside and outside of Nigeria to participate. The training program continues, following the model that he developed.

As Co-chair of Young ICCA, Mr. Obamuroh has been involved in organizing arbitration skills workshops for young practitioners and students in over twenty-two countries around the world, including: Ghana, Nigeria, Haiti, Morocco, Australia, Egypt, Rwanda and Tanzania, to name a few.

In 2016, Esquire Magazine recognized Mr. Obamuroh as one of the 40 under 40 rising stars in the legal profession in Nigeria, in view of his contributions to the development of the practice of international arbitration and ADR in Nigeria and around the world.

ADR Achievements and Training

  • Elected Co-chair of Young International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA), the first African to hold such a role (2017-2019)
  • Visiting Foreign Associate, White & Case LLP, NY (October 2015)
  • Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship (2015)
  • Visiting Foreign Associate, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, London (May-June 2015)
  • Research Assistant to Prof. Catherine Rogers, Penn State Law, State College (2014-2015)
  • Researcher, International Senior Lawyers Project, New York (2013-2014)
  • Research Assistant to Prof. George Bermann, Columbia Law School, New York (2012-2013)
  • Founder & President, Penn State International Arbitration Group.
  • Associate General Counsel, Lagos Court of Arbitration (2015-2017)

ADR Teaching and Mentoring

  • Addressed the ICCA Governing Board during the Biennial ICCA Congress in Sydney (April 2018)
  • Presented the opening speech at the Biennial ICCA Congress in Sydney (April 2018)
  • Organized, in conjunction with White & Case New York, the Penn State International Arbitration Day 2015, with the theme: “Current Trends in International Arbitration”

Publications and Education

Publications

Doctoral dissertation title: “Pre-Arbitration Procedures and Expanding Arbitral Powers in International Arbitration”

Co-editor of the book, The Law in His Hand: Biography and Landmark Decisions of  Hon. B.O. Babalakin, JSC (2008)

Presented a seminar paper titled: “Nigeria’s Use of International Law in Maritime Matters: An Examination of Article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the extension of the Continental Shelf” (2007)

Educational Qualifications

  • Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD) Penn State University School of Law, State College, PA (in view)
  • LL.M., Columbia Law School, New York, NY (2013)
  • BL, Nigerian Law School, Abuja, Nigeria (2009) (license to practice law in Nigeria)
  • LL.B., Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria (Magna Cum Laude) (2008)

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