The name Funmi Roberts is synonymous with the legal profession. She is a highly respected and recognised lawyer, and has also established a reputation beyond her specialty. With proven expertise in problem resolutions, she utilizes her excellent analytical skills to achieve defined impactful objectives and develop novel strategically designed solutions to challenges. As an excellent communicator with administrative and organizational capabilities, Funmi has an outstanding track record in mobilising for the corporate and public sectors.
She became a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, having graduated top of her class both at the University of Ife in 1981 and the Nigerian Law School in 1982. While studying at the University of Ife, she earned her Masters of Laws degree, during which she was awarded the University of Ife Alumni Fellowship.
As an astute and tenacious leader, she overcame all forms of obstacles to set up one of the leading female-owned value-driven legal and ADR law firms in Nigeria, Funmi Roberts & Co., registered in 1989. She is also the founder of Funmi Roberts & Co. Nominees Limited, a company that offers cutting edge company secretarial services to several blue-chip companies in Nigeria. The two firms operate from Oyo State and Lagos State, with headquarters in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
With strong affiliations to several organisations such as the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Funmi is at the forefront of the legal profession, and currently serves on the NBA’s National Executive Council, its highest decision making organ. She is a member and former chairperson of the Oyo State Chapter of the Federacion Internacional de Abogadas (FIDA, which in English means International Federation of Women Lawyers).
Funmi is also a member of the International Bar Association, Business Recovery Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Society for Corporate Governance, and Institute of Directors, Nigeria. She is a Chartered Arbitrator of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK), and a member of the Global Panel of Mediators of the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution CEDR (UK), as well as a tutor and assessor in both organisations.
Recently, she was appointed to the Dispute Resolution Panel of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC). A milestone achievement was the global recognition of her dispute resolution expertise as an appointed member of the International Chamber of Commerce Arbitration and ADR Commission in 2017.
Her continuous quest to make an impact earned her an African Union Observer role at the presidential election in Kenya. As the Consultant, she developed the governance documents for the African Union Economic Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC).
Funmi Roberts is well-lettered, and has written several publications and delivered presentations on several platforms. She was the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Women in Management Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ) from 2017 to 2019, and serves as the Vice-Chairman of the not-for-profit organisation, Association for Reproductive and Family Health (ARFH).
She is currently the Honorary Legal Adviser of the Institute of Directors, Nigeria. She also sits on the board of several corporate bodies, including the largest bank in Liberia, Ecobank Liberia, where she serves as the chairman of the board credit committee. She is a member of the board of directors Prudential Mortgage Bank Limited and Qvate Solutions Ltd, among others.
Being a firm believer in youths as leaders of tomorrow, Funmi mentors and invests in young professionals, particularly young lawyers on various platforms including a programme tagged ‘Breakfast with FR’. Her latest project involves offering scholarships to financially-challenged students. She is also a mentor in the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Women’s Forum and WIMBIZ.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, she has an ongoing project called the COVID-19 ADR Initiative, a platform that offers dispute resolution that is cost-friendly and efficient to tackle COVID-related disputes.
Funmi Roberts, who is our Woman Crush Wednesday, has shattered the glass ceiling holding women back from their aspirations. She is an attestation that every woman can grow to the apex of her career and have it all regardless. For being an exemplary leader, we celebrate her and all she stands for.