Mr. Femi Falana, SAN, a Nigerian Lawyer and human rights activist; called to the Nigerian Bar in July 1982, has been in active legal practice majoring in human rights and international humanitarian law – in the forefront of the struggle for the defence and promotion of human rights, democracy and rule of the law in Africa. Apart from his regular appearances in Nigerian courts, Mr. Femi Falana has successfully represented victims of human rights abuses across Africa at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Community Court of Justice, and African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Further, Mr. Falana has ensured the recognition and protection of the socio-economic rights of the Nigerian people by local and international tribunals, and on account of his outstanding human rights work Mr. Falana is one of the four African lawyers who have been honoured with the prestigious Bernard Simons by the International Bar Association (IBA).
He has gotten several recognitions and awards including without limitation, “Knight Outstanding Leadership” by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State; “Knight of Freedom Award” by the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria; the “Gani Fawehinmi Life Time Award on Human Rights” from the Hallmark of Labour Foundation, Nigeria, etc.; and through public interest litigation Mr. Falana has contributed to the promotion of human rights and the expansion of the democratic space in Africa. He is a member of the General Bar Council of Nigeria, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Arbitrators of Nigeria and Institute of Chartered Public Administrators of Nigeria and a member of the Nigerian Bar Association [NBA], International Bar Association [IBA] and the Pan African Lawyers Union [PALU].