Leading Adviser Awards 2020

Acquisition International - Leading Adviser 2020 145 Leading Energy and Natural Resources Law Firm of the Year, Nigeria Acquisitio Intern tional - Is ue 1 2 9 Oct20664 Total Clien Solutions SimmonsCooper Partners (SCP) is a Nigerian law firm that is consistently ranked amongst top tier firms in Nigeria. SCP provides sound legal counsel with services tailored to address the client’s needs and a commitment to the highest ethical standards. We spoke to Managing Partner, Dapo Akinosun, to find out how the firm is achieving this. stablished in 2007, SimmonsCooper Partners is the result of a cross-border fusion between three law firms with a common vision to provide a range of legal services to individuals, businesses, (both small and large) and public sector bodies. SCP’s success in the past number of years is put down to a mix of its internal processes and culture, as Managing Partner, Dapo Akinosun explains. “We are successful because of our core values and the expertise and commitment of our highly-qualified team. We summarise this in the SCP client service mantra: ‘Total Client Solutions’. As a leading law firm in Nigeria, SCP has built a reputation for seeing the bigger picture in its delivery of custom, creative and insightful legal advice and solutions. As a business support service, SCP provides rare insight to grasping the complex socio-political and economic climate relevant to succeeding in a dynamic business environment as Nigeria. Thanks to its team with relevant expertise and experience, SCP provides both substantive and pragmatic solutions to intricate legal questions to get deals done or resolve disputes. Members of the SCP team have been recognised for their contributions and impact in various fields of law. As a result, SCP’s clients, both within Nigeria and globally, are able to benefit from having a team with skills to structure and implement teams and also mitigate and resolve the risks from disputes. SCP’s expertise spans Energy, Competition Law, Project and Public Finance, Dispute Resolution, Capital Market among others. As a recent highlight, SCP and RBB Economics were selected by the World Bank Group to develop the regulatory framework merger review for the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission. This also includes building capacity for what is a relatively nascent area of law. The firm recognises that local and global partnerships with other professional service providers are relevant to enhancing the business environment and reducing clients costs especially given the downturn occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic. There are other more systemic long-term challenges that confront Nigeria’s legal services industry. As Dapo explains: “Just like every other legal service provider in the country, our challenges are of a systemic nature, such as a measure of delayed litigation processes, among others. However, there have been some remedial steps and reform initiatives undertaken by the federal government, subnational governments and the judiciary in ensuring an improved judicial system and seamless litigation processes. We expect the efforts to yield greater efficiency in the near future.” Principally, however, SCP’s growth primarily occurs through its talent attraction and retention processes. SCP’s recruitment and training programmes, including the firm’s flagship, SimmonsCooper Advocacy Development programme, popularly known as SCAD, are recognised as excellent talent platforms that nurture some of the best and brightest in Nigeria to thrive in the legal workspace. By training participants in vital legal skills, SCP is contributing to bettering the quality of legal education, research, awareness and advocacy in Nigeria, whilst young lawyers are afforded the opportunity to aspire and develop a viable legal career. SCP continues to explore how it can exceed its client expectations. As they look to the future, SCP is driving towards improved service delivery, developing new ways in which the firm can enhance Nigeria’s overall business climate. Contact: Dapo Akinosun Company: SimmonsCooper Partners Web Address: www.scp-law.com E