Kenna Partners

Kenna Partners, typically shortened to Kenna is one of Nigeria's leading law firms headquartered in Lagos, with offices in Abuja and Enugu. The firm is known for its work in dispute resolution and specialized transactions in energy, telecommunications, and financial services. The firm is regulated by the General Council of the Bar.

History
Founded in 1993 as Kenna & Associates and registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, the firm underwent a restructuring to become Kenna Partners in 2011.

In the year 2013, the firm celebrated its 20th anniversary with the presentation of a book titled ‘Law & Society’ authored by Fabian Ajogwu SAN (Senior Partner in the firm) and presented by Dr Christopher Kolade  CON. The firm marked its 25th anniversary in 2018 with the presentation of the book Brief Insights: A Selection of Milestone Cases, authored by the firm.

In 2023, the firm announced a leadership change with the appointment of a Managing Partner and Deputy Managing Partner, with a Practice Director at the helm of its administration. It also celebrated its 30th anniversary with a colloquium of national importance which featured Professor Mervyn King SC in the same year, and presented the second volume of its book Brief Insights: A Selection of Milestone Cases.

The firm's client list includes public and privately held commercial businesses and financial institutions, multinational firms, as well as governments and state-owned entities.

Practice Areas
Kenna Partners is fully registered with the Africa Finance Corporation. The firm is structured into three main Groups – Commercial Law (corporate & investment dealings) Group, Energy & Natural Resources Practice Group, and Civil Litigation and Dispute Management Group. The firm’s practice areas include:


 * Alternative Dispute Resolution & Litigation
 * Banking Law, Investments & Corporate Finance
 * Communications, Media and Technology
 * Corporate & Commercial Law
 * Criminal Law
 * Energy & Natural Resources
 * Environmental Law
 * Intellectual Property
 * Labour & Employment
 * Privatization & Regulatory Law
 * Non Profit & Charitable Organisations
 * Trustee & Estate
 * Real Estate
 * Intermodal Carriage
 * Maritime

Publications
The firm continues to contribute immensely to legal development practice in Nigeria through the authoring of notable books that were published by Center for Commercial Law Development (CCLD). Some of which are:


 * Kenna Partners (2023), Brief Insights: A Selection of Milestone Cases – Volume II, Commercial Law Development Services (CLDS), 434 pages, ISBN 978-978-799-583-9
 * King, Mervyn and Ajogwu, Fabian (2020), Outcomes-Based Governance: A Modern Approach to Corporate Governance, Juta and Company (Pty) Ltd, ISBN 978-1-48513-568-5, Cape Town, South Africa, 207 pages
 * Kenna Partners (2018), Brief Insights: A Selection of Milestone Cases, Commercial Law Development Services (CLDS), ISBN 978-978-969-193-7, Lagos, Nigeria, 362 pages
 * Ajogwu, Fabian (2017), Ship Acquisition & Finance: Law & Practice, Commercial Law Development Services (CLDS), Lagos, Nigeria, 255 pages, ISBN 978-978-952-388-7
 * Solanke, Folake and Ajogwu, Fabian (2016), Oral & Written Advocacy: Law & Practice, Commercial Law Development Services (CLDS), ISBN 978-978-952-389-4, Lagos, Nigeria, 302 pages
 * Ajogwu, Fabian and Kenna Partners (2015), Trade & Investments in Nigeria: Legal & Regulatory Aspects, Commercial Law Development Services (CLDS), ISBN 978-978-948-236-8, Lagos, Nigeria, 436 pages
 * Ajogwu, et al, (2015), Company Secretary’s Guide on Corporate Governance, Commercial Law Development Services (CLDS), ISBN 978-978-946-691-7, Lagos, Nigeria, 329 pages
 * Ajogwu, Fabian and Oscar Nliam (2014): Petroleum Law and Sustainable Development, Eds. Center for Commercial Law Development (CCLD), Lagos, Nigeria
 * Ajogwu, Fabian (2010), Fair Hearing, Centre for Commercial Law Development (CCLD), Lagos, Nigeria, 166 pages, ISBN 978-978-912-804-4
 * Ajogwu, Fabian and Kenna & Associates (2007), Legal & Regulatory Aspects of Business (Issues in doing business in Nigeria) Eds. Center for Commercial Law Development (CCLD), Lagos, Nigeria
 * Ajogwu, Fabian (2007), Corporate Governance in Nigeria: Law and Practice, Eds. Center for Commercial Law Development (CCLD), Lagos, Nigeria
 * Ajogwu Fabian (2013), Law & Society Eds. Center for Commercial Law Development (CCLD), Lagos, Nigeria (Published to marked 20th Anniversary of the firm)

Contributions to Legal Jurisprudence
The firm continues to represent Nigerian Government on some notable cases and has made other key contributions to the legal jurisprudence, among which includes:


 * BPE Opposes motion to stop power station privatization.
 * Sanusi vs President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (suspended Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria)
 * ECOWAS Court Dismisses N84 Billion Suit Against the Federal Govt
 * Served as Principal Consultants to Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on drafting Nigeria’s pioneer Code of Corporate Governance.
 * Contributed to the development of the pioneer Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Code of Corporate Governance for the telecommunications sector.
 * Contributed to the development of the National Code of Corporate Governance issued by the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN).
 * Supported the establishment of the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria (SCGN)


 * National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency vs ExxonMobil (Landmark) - A Regulatory Agency cannot impose fines without the Courts.
 * Industrial Training Fund v PAN Atlantic University (Landmark) - The Industrial Training Fund levies do not apply to universities
 * Hensmor Nigeria v Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (Landmark) - The Maritime regulator has the power to arrest vessels for non-seaworthiness

Social Responsibility
Kenna has a history of supporting charitable causes in the arts and education. In 2015, the firm supported the establishment of the AIFA Reading Society, a non-profit organisation committed to promoting literacy and a reading culture among children and adults in Nigeria and continues to support the causes of the organization.

The firm also played a key role in the founding of the Society for Art Collection (SARTCOL), a charitable organization providing a platform for educated collection and promotion of the arts, in 2015. The firm was also involved in the founding of the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria in 2005.

The firm also supports various student-driven initiatives and periodically awards scholarships to recipients, through the Kenna Foundation and Fabian Ajogwu Foundation. The firm is pro-green and actively promotes green practices.

The firm was involved in the establishment of corporate governance forum, The Governance Platform in 2023. Kenna has shown support to the Lagos Business School over the years with firm members hosting sessions on business law, governance, negotiation & ethics.