Principal/Managing Partner

Dr. Chinedu Obienu

PhD (Law) · MCIArb (UK) · FICMC

Abuja office

20+

Years in practice

PhD

Law, University of Abuja

MCIArb

Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK)

LACON

Governing Council member, 2026

Overview

Dr. Chinedu Obienu is the Principal/Managing Partner of Zest Partners. He holds a PhD in law, and his practice spans corporate and commercial law, energy, taxation and general government compliance in Nigeria. He has practised law for more than two decades.

He is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb) (UK) and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators (FICMC). He is an alumnus of the Haggai Leadership Institute, Hawaii, USA, and an accredited management trainer and consultant verified by the Nigeria Council for Management Development (NCMD). He is a consummate litigator and an experienced settler of disputes.

An author, he has written and presented papers at conferences in Nigeria and abroad, and he facilitates workshops, seminars and training across diverse areas of law. He is a member of the Nigerian Bar Association and the African Bar Association.

On Wednesday, 5 August 2026, he was inaugurated by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice as a Member of the Governing Council of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria (LACON).

Practice areas

Credentials & memberships

Member, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb) (UK)
Fellow, Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators (FICMC)
Member, Nigerian Bar Association
Member, African Bar Association
Accredited Management Trainer and Consultant, Nigeria Council for Management Development (NCMD)
Alumnus, Haggai Leadership Institute, Hawaii, USA

Appointments

Current

Member, Governing Council · Legal Aid Council of Nigeria (LACON)
2026 – present
Chairman · NBA Abuja Branch 2026 Law Week Planning Committee
2026
Trustee · Guiding Light Assembly, Abuja Worship Center
2024 – present
Secretary · NBA Legal Practitioners Rules Watch Committee
2024 – 2026

Past

Member, National Executive Committee · Nigerian Bar Association
2016 – 2018
Secretary · Nigerian Bar Association, Abuja Branch
2016 – 2017
Appointment Secretary · Christian Lawyers Fellowship of Nigeria (CLASFON)
2014 – 2017
Welfare Secretary · Nigerian Bar Association, Abuja
2014 – 2016
Member (NBA Representative) · National Steering Committee on Community Policing
2008
President · Law Students Association of Nigeria, University of Abuja Chapter
2000 – 2001
President · Christian Law Students Fellowship of Nigeria, University of Abuja Chapter
2000 – 2001

Publications

Books

The Bar, Bench and Good Governance in Africa: Legal Essays in Honour of Afam Osigwe, SAN
Akinola O.B. and Obienu C. (eds) (IHCDCE, Port Harcourt, Nigeria, 2025)
Nigeria’s Legal Giant: The First Federal Director of Public Prosecutions, G.C. Nonyelu QC
Obienu C. and Stone A. (Anna Stone Publishing, United Kingdom, 2017)

Journal articles & chapters

Building a Trans-Generational Law Practice: The Pros and Cons
In Obienu C. and Akinola O.B. (eds), The Bar, Bench and Good Governance in Africa (IHCDCE, Port Harcourt, 2025) 36–45
An Appraisal of Tax Regime in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry
A.M. Kontogora and Chinedu Obienu, Journal of Law Policy, Faculty of Law, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt (2023) 3(4)

Selected speaking

2025

“Navigating Customs, Excise and Taxation Bottlenecks Towards Improving Trade in Africa”
2025 Annual Conference of the African Bar Association, Accra, Ghana · 19–23 October 2025
Taxation
“Appraising the Trade and Workplace Dispute Resolution Mechanism in Nigeria”
Two-day training for staff of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) on conflict and dispute resolution in labour, trade, human resources and industrial relations, facilitated by Zest Partners, FAAN Training School, Ikeja, Lagos · 6–7 October 2025
Dispute Resolution
“Negotiation Strategies and Practical Skills for Labour and Industrial Dispute Resolution”
Two-day training for staff of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) on conflict and dispute resolution in labour, trade, human resources and industrial relations, facilitated by Zest Partners, FAAN Training School, Ikeja, Lagos · 6–7 October 2025
Dispute Resolution
“Arbitration as an Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanism”
Two-day training for staff of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) on conflict and dispute resolution in labour, trade, human resources and industrial relations, facilitated by Zest Partners, FAAN Training School, Ikeja, Lagos · 6–7 October 2025
Dispute Resolution
“Building a Trans-Generational Law Practice”
CLASFON Regional Conference, Makurdi, Benue State · August 2025
The Legal Profession
“Appraisal of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021: Progress, Challenges and the Way Forward”
Retreat for members and management staff of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Uyo, Akwa Ibom State · 29 April 2025
TaxationEnergy & Petroleum

All 24 papers

Legislative work

Consultant to WaterAid
Enugu State Water Sector Bill, 2019
Sub-consultant
Drafting of “A Bill for a Law to Establish the Anambra State Small Town Water Supply and Sanitation Agency and for Other Matters Connected Therewith”, to regulate and secure sustainable provision of safe water in Anambra State
Member, drafting team
Fundamental Human Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, now used in courts across Nigeria, 2007–2008
Consultant
Drafting and stakeholder engagement for the Plateau State Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2018
Bills and agreements
Work on several bills, and drafting of agreements including public–private partnership (PPP) agreements

Education & research

Legal Analysis of the Tax Regime in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry
PhD thesis, Faculty of Law, University of Abuja, 2023
Taxation: A Tool for Sustainable Economic Development in Nigeria
LL.M dissertation, Faculty of Law, University of Jos, 2008
A Critical Appraisal of Copyright Laws in Nigeria
Undergraduate long essay, Faculty of Law, University of Abuja, 2002

In the news

Contact

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