Valentine Igbonekwu

Valentine Igbonekwu is a Senior Associate with expertise in dispute resolution and property law. He has extensive experience representing multinational oil and gas companies, indigenous contractors, and other corporate clients in high‑stakes commercial litigation, arbitrations, regulatory disputes, and multi‑billion naira claims across Nigeria's energy sector.

He successfully represented a multinational oil exploration company in a multi‑million dollar claim by an indigenous contractor related to the Forcados Yokri Integrated Project. He has been part of legal teams that advised the National Assembly on amendments to the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, advised on a pending lawsuit affecting a billion‑dollar oil mining lease acquisition, and represented a leading indigenous construction company in high‑stake breach of contract suits. He also represents a US multinational in complex arbitral disputes, defends multinational oil companies against oil spill claims worth billions of naira, and is engaged in global asset tracking for the estate of a pioneer political leader in Nigeria.

Valentine holds an LL.B (Hons) from the University of Ibadan. He is a member of the Lawyers in Energy Network, the International Bar Association, the Nigerian Bar Association (including its Section on Business Law and Young Lawyers' Forum), the International Chamber of Commerce‑Young Arbitrators Forum, and an Associate of the Nigerian Institute of Chartered Arbitrators. He has received the Judemark Scholarship for promising law students and the Justice C.C. Nweze Academic Award.