Okechukwu Orisakwe

Okechukwu is pursuing a PhD in Law at the University of Ottawa. His doctoral research examines the interplay between regulatory attractiveness, sustainable Foreign Direct Investment in Africa’s technology markets, and socioeconomic development.

Graduating at the top of his class with more than 30 distinctions in his undergraduate subjects, Okechukwu achieved a First-Class Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Nigeria, where he was awarded the Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship for three consecutive years for his outstanding academic performance. He also holds a Master of Laws (LLM) degree from the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom. He is a licensed Solicitor of England & Wales. He is also admitted to the Nigerian Bar and has been appointed a Notary Public by the Chief Justice of Nigeria.

Okechukwu provides a wide range of legal services to individual, corporate, and government clients. He began his legal practice in the Lagos office of Aluko & Oyebode, one of West Africa’s leading law firms. At this top-tier, full-service firm, he advised clients on commercial transactions, including capital markets deals, corporate finance, and M&A. He also worked at Perchstone & Graeys in Lagos, Nigeria, where he advised clients on corporate finance, intellectual property, and dispute resolution. Following his LLM graduation, he joined the London office of Pogust Goodhead, an international litigation firm, where he worked with teams litigating several multi-million-pound class actions before the English courts against major car manufacturers involved in the “Dieselgate scandal”. Okechukwu later relocated to Canada and briefly worked at Sabio Law LLP, a Canadian boutique law firm in Ontario, where he represented clients in contractual transactions and commercial litigation.

Outside his academic and professional pursuits, Okechukwu enjoys travelling, exploring natural sites, and experiencing different cultures.

• Open Africa Innovation Research Bursary - Open AIR, Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa
• Squire Fund Grant - Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge
•  Second-best Graduating Student - Faculty of Law, Enugu State University of Science and Technology; 
• Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship for First Class Students - Senate of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology

• Okechukwu Orisakwe, “Rethinking the Legislative Competence over Taxable Goods and Services within the States in Nigeria: Attorney-General of Lagos v. Eko Hotels Limited in Focus” (2018) 3 The Tax Anthology 1. 
• Okechukwu Orisakwe et al, “Historical Narratives of Justice and Human Rights in Legal and Civic Education: Axiological Shifts in Cultural Transmission” (2025) 22(5s) Cultura: International Journal of Philosophy of Culture and Axiology 242.