Practice area 03
Corporate and commercial
From the day you register the company to the day you sell it, with clean records in between.
We help founders, family businesses, multinationals and investors set up, run and grow companies in Nigeria. A good share register, a clear shareholders’ agreement and annual returns filed on time are not glamorous, but they decide whether an investor says yes.
Our acquisitions team runs due diligence, negotiates share purchase agreements and handles merger approvals with the competition regulator. We are used to deals where the seller is a family, the buyer is foreign and the records live in three different cupboards.
For day-to-day trading we write the contracts that keep money moving: distribution agreements, supply terms, agency agreements and franchise documents, written in plain English and tested against the disputes our litigators see.
The practice
Services, process and example fees
Formation and housekeeping
Registration, share allotments, annual returns, registers and board minutes.
Investment
Term sheets, subscription agreements and investor rights for seed to growth rounds.
Acquisitions
Due diligence, share and asset purchases, and merger control filings.
Joint ventures
Structures and agreements for partners who need to trust each other on paper.
Commercial contracts
Supply, distribution, agency and service terms built for Nigerian trading.
- Day 1
Goals call
We agree what success looks like and the deadline that matters.
- Week 1
Plan and quote
A written scope and fixed or capped fee.
- Weeks 2 to 6
Work
Drafting, diligence and negotiation, with weekly updates.
- Completion
Close and file
Signing, filings and a tidy closing set.
| Service | Scope | Example fee | Typical time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private company registration | Name search, filing and certificate | ₦350,000 | 10 working days |
| Shareholders’ agreement | Up to four shareholders | ₦650,000 | 2 weeks |
| Acquisition due diligence | Small company target | From ₦2,500,000 | 3 to 5 weeks |
| Annual compliance retainer | Returns, registers and minutes | ₦600,000 a year | Ongoing |
Example rates for this demo, plus VAT at 7.5 percent and government fees at cost.
Selected matters
Recent work (examples)
Advised the founders of a logistics company in Kubwa on a ₦4.2bn investment from a regional fund (example matter).
Ran due diligence on 11 subsidiaries for a buyer of a food processing group (example matter).
Rebuilt the share register of a 30 year old family business before its first outside investment (example matter).
Leads acquisitions, joint ventures and private equity investments, and is the partner founders call when shareholders stop agreeing.
The team
Who leads your corporate matter
Partner
Sadiq Lawal
Corporate and commercial
Associate
Uchenna Nwosu
Corporate and commercial
How we staff it
Sadiq leads and signs off every piece of advice. Uchenna runs the matter day to day and is your first call. A pupil or NYSC member supports research and filings, supervised at every step.
If your matter touches other areas, Sadiq brings in the right partner and keeps one fee estimate.
Questions
Asked often
How long does company registration take?
About ten working days after the name is approved, if documents are complete.
Can foreign shareholders own all the shares?
In most sectors yes, with some exceptions and a few extra filings. We check your sector before you apply.
Do I need a shareholders’ agreement if we are friends?
Especially if you are friends. It is the cheapest dispute resolution you will ever buy.
Do you act for start-ups?
Yes, with fixed-fee packages for formation and first funding rounds.
Related
Areas that often work alongside this one
01
Banking and finance
Loans that close on time, security that holds when it is tested, and fintech licences that let you launch.
02
Tax and customs
Planning that stands up to questions, and representation when the tax authority asks them.
03
Technology, data and IP
Data protection, platform terms and trade marks for companies that build, sell or rely on software.
Consultations
Book a consultation with the right partner
Forty-five minutes, in chambers in Gwarinpa or by video, for ₦50,000 (example rate), credited to your first invoice. We run a conflict check before we meet.
