Funke Abimbola

Last updated

Funke Abimbola
MBE
Born
Nigeria
NationalityNigerian
Alma mater Newcastle University
Known forGeneral Counsel, Legal Work and Public Service
Website funkeabimbola.com

Funke Abimbola MBE is a Nigerian businesswoman and lawyer. She advocates for diversity across UK society with a specific focus on the legal profession [1] .

Contents

Abimbola attended Newcastle University to study law. [2] Funke Abimbola is a mother of a 19 year old who is presently at Newcastle University studying Software Engineering. [3]

Early life and education

Abimbola comes from a family of medical doctors. [4] She was educated at Burgess Hill Girls. [5] She did not study medicine because of her fear for "pains and blood" (algophobia and hemophobia). [6] She obtained her law degree from Newcastle University and returned to Nigeria to sit for the Nigerian Bar examination.Abimbola became a mother at the age of 28 years while working with Campbell Hooper. [7] In the year 2000, she qualified as an in-house solicitor. [8] Her father died in 2012 after being diagnosed with cancer. [9] [10]

Career

Abimbola became the most senior black solicitor for Roche's pharmaceutical operations in the UK, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta. [11] She qualified as a solicitor in-house in 2000. [8]

She went to Nigeria for the preparation for the Nigerian Bar examination. While there, she worked with F. O. Akinrele & Co. [10]

After her return to the UK from Nigeria in the mid-1990s, she worked with Wembley Plc where she qualified as a corporate/commercial lawyer. She later moved to Campbell Hooper where she became a solicitor. [10] In 2012, she joined Roche UK with the position of Managing Counsel (UK and Ireland). She also served as UK Data Protection Officer. In December 2015, she became the general counsel and company secretary of the same organisation and was promoted to general counsel and head of financial compliance in January 2017.

She encountered challenges securing an entry-level job in the UK. According to First 100 Years, "I found it extremely difficult to secure an entry-level position when I finished the QLTT (now QLTS) transfer test and needed to gain experience before qualification. To get my foot in the door, I drew up a list of the top 100 law firms specialising in corporate law and did the same with the top 50 in-house teams. I then proceeded to cold-call the heads of department at all 150 organisations. This led to several interviews, including one with a major, fully listed PLC. At that interview, the head of legal (who is English but whose partner is of Asian descent) asked me if I thought my race had been a factor in me not getting interviews with other organisations. That was, honestly, the first time I had even considered race as being something that could inhibit my progress. Thankfully, I was offered a role by her and was able to qualify as a solicitor in-house."

Abimbola is a strong advocate of corporate and social diversity. [12] As a public speaker and legal practitioner, she was recognised and won many awards for her work. In 2013 she was featured in Diversity League Table publication as one of the Black Solicitors. In 2014, she was nominated for a National Diversity Award, and in the same year she was nominated for the Law Society Excellence Awards. In 2015, she won a Positive Role Model Award. [13] In 2010, she was appointed governor of Uxbridge College, London, on a four-year term. [14]

She received a 'Point of Light' award from the UK Prime Minister in October 2016, recognising the impact of her voluntary diversity work in the UK. In June 2017, she was awarded the M.B.E. (Member of the Order of the British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth II for services to diversity in the legal profession and to young people. [15]

She received an honorary doctor of laws from the University of Hertfordshire in September 2019, recognising her contributions to social and corporate diversity. [16]

Awards and recognition

YearClassCategoryAwarding body
2015WinnerPositive Role Model (Gender) AwardNational Diversity Awards 2015
2015WinnerCareer Woman of the Year AwardWomen4Africa
2015WinnerOutstanding Woman in Professional ServicesPrecious Award
2015WinnerInspiring Member of the YearInclusive Network Awards
2015Certificate of MeritBritish Citizen Awards 2015
2016WinnerOutstanding Diva of the yearDivas of Colour
2016WinnerInternational Diva of the YearDivas of Colour
2016WinnerBest Public SpeakerCA Awards by C. Hub Magazine
2016WinnerBest Non-fictionCA Awards by C. Hub Magazine
2016RecognitionRecognition award for outstanding achievements and contributionsWomen4Africa
2016Point of LightVolunteers AwardUK Prime Minister 2016
2017M.B.E. (Member of the Order of the British Empire)For services to diversity in the legal profession and to young peopleQueen Elizabeth II
2019L.L.D. (Honorary Doctor of Laws)For contributions to social and corporate diversityThe University of Hertfordshire

Sources: [11] [13] [17]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King's Counsel</span> Honorific for lawyers in some Commonwealth realms

A King's Counsel is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Queen's Counsel (QC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Lagos</span> Public research university in Lagos, Nigeria

The University of Lagos (UNILAG) is a public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria, which was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the first generation universities in Nigeria and is ranked among the top universities in Africa in major education publications. The university presently has three campuses in the mainland of Lagos. Whereas two of its campuses are located at Yaba, it's college of medicine is located at Idi-Araba, Surulere. Its main campus is largely surrounded by the Lagos Lagoon and has 802 acres of land. As at 2024, the University of Lagos admits around 8,500 undergraduate students annually and enrolls over 57,000 students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burgess Hill Girls</span> Independent day and boarding school in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, England

Burgess Hill Girls is an independent, girls-only day and boarding school for girls aged between 2½ and 18 years, founded in 1906 by Miss Beatrice Goode. The school is located in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, having moved to its present location in 1928. The school also has boys attending the nursery.

Ile Oluji is a Local Government Area in Ondo State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Ile Oluji.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nwabueze Nwokolo</span> Nigerian-born United Kingdom lawyer

Nwabueze Jaja Wachuku Nwokolo, a royal princess of Ngwaland, is a Nigerian United Kingdom based lawyer who is council member at Law Society of England and Wales; including being a director and board chair of Great Britain's BSN: Black Solicitors Network, the largest membership organisation of its kind in Europe. Nwokolo is a member of the Law Society of England and Wales' Minority Ethnic Concerns Group. Also, she sits on the RAB: Regulatory Affairs Board of the Law Society.

Chief Christopher Oladipo Ogunbanjo was a Nigerian corporate lawyer and philanthropist from Ogun State. He was an early advocate of domiciliary accounts in Nigeria which later came to existence through the promulgation of the Foreign Currency Decree 18 of 1985. In the late 1960s, he was among the group of businessmen who supported local equity participation in foreign firms operating in Nigeria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olufunke Baruwa</span> Nigeria gender activist

Olufunke Baruwa is a Nigerian gender and development practitioner, feminist and public speaker with a focus on gender, public policy and governance. For more than two decades, she has been at the forefront of social policies and reforms in Nigeria working with government, civil society, and international development partners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ifeoma Malo</span> Nigerian lawyer

Ifeoma Malo is a Nigerian lawyer working in international development. Her work focuses on clean energy technologies, and energy access and climate change mitigation and adaptation across Africa.

Sandie Okoro OBE is a British lawyer who serves as general counsel of Standard Chartered Bank, and Chancellor of the University of Birmingham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede</span> Nigerian economist and banker

Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede FCIB, is a Nigerian businessman, banker, investor and philanthropist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adaku Ufere-Awoonor</span> Nigerian energy professional and lawyer (born 1985)

Adaku Ufere is a Nigerian energy professional and an international oil and gas, gender and development lawyer. She is the current Chief of Party of the USAID-funded Power Africa West Africa Energy Program in Accra, Ghana. She also founded Energy & Gender consulting firm DAX Consult

Bisi Akin-Alabi is a Nigerian education expert, social worker, administrator, technocrat, education consultant and former special adviser on education, science and technology to Senator Abiola Ajimobi, the former governor of Oyo state, Nigeria.

Grace Ononiwu CBE, is a solicitor and Chief Crown Prosecutor, Director of Legal Services at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loretta Ogboro-Okor</span> Nigerian medical doctor

Loretta Oduware Ogboro-Okor is a Nigerian UK-trained consultant in Obstetrics and gynaecology. She is a medical simulator expert and global goodwill ambassador. She is the president of the University of Benin Alumni Association, UK. She is also an author, women and youth health advocate, educationist and medical simulation trainer.

Amina Abubakar Bello is the First Lady of Niger State, Nigeria and an obstetrician, gynaecologist and human rights activist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chinwe Egwim</span> Nigerian economist

Chinwe Egwim is a Nigerian Economist, Banker, Corporate Executive, Technocrat, and author, who serves as the Chief economist, and Head of Economic Research and Intelligence of Coronation Merchant Bank. She formerly served as the lead economist at FBNQuest Merchant Bank, and was an executive member of WIMBIZ. In 2021, she was elected as an executive member of Association of Professional Women Bankers under the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, and was appointed a member of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee in 2023.

Busola Tejumola is a Nigerian media executive. She is the current Executive Head, Content and West Africa Channels of MultiChoice.

Ofovwe Aig-Imoukhuede is a Nigerian philanthropist, lawyer, and banker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cynthia Umezulike</span> Nigerian lawyer

Cynthia Chisom Umezulike is a British Nigerian human rights lawyer, legal scholar, author and climate sustainability activist. She is the president at the Global Human Rights Centre (GHRC) London, co-chair of the Hon. Justice Innocent Umezulike Foundation and chair and director of the International Conference on Human Rights, Sustainability and Climate Change.

Aku Pauline Odinkemelu is a Nigerian lawyer and corporate entrepreneur.

References

  1. ↑ Nigeria, Guardian (10 February 2024). "Inspiring Inclusion…With Funke Abimbola". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  2. ↑ "Funke Abimbola: The Diversity And Inclusion Queen". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 5 September 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  3. ↑ Ajumobi, Kemi (1 April 2022). "FUNKE ABIMBOLA (MBE), the diversity campaigner who dared and excelled". Businessday NG. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "106 seconds with… Funke Abimbola, Managing Counsel for Roche UK, diversity champion, speaker and proud mother". 6th Sense. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  5. ↑ "Catching Up With 'Old Girl' Funke Abimbola". Burgess Hill Girls. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  6. ↑ "Funke Abimbola: The Diversity And Inclusion Queen". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 5 September 2021. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  7. ↑ "Careers counsel for aspiring lawyers: Roche's Funke Abimbola". Legal Business. 4 July 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  8. 1 2 "Funke Abimbola". First100years. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  9. ↑ "Inspirational Woman: Funke Abimbola. Solicitor for one of the world's largest biotech companies". We are the City. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  10. 1 2 3 Ruxandra Iordache. "Careers counsel for aspiring lawyers: Roche's Funke Abimbola". Legal Business. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  11. 1 2 Women4Africa. "Funke Abimbola: Profile of an achiever". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 June 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ↑ "INTERVIEW: FUNKE ABIMBOLA GENERAL COUNSEL AND COMPANY SECRETARY, ROCHE". Legal 500. Archived from the original on 9 July 2018. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  13. 1 2 "General Counsel & Company Secretary, Roche UK". Speakers4Schools. Archived from the original on 9 July 2018. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  14. ↑ IBB Solicitors. "Funke Abimbola appointed governor of Uxbridge College" . Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  15. ↑ "Nigeria's Funke Abimbola honoured by Uk Prime Minister for championing diversity in the workplace". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 22 October 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  16. ↑ Ajumobi, Kemi (1 April 2022). "FUNKE ABIMBOLA (MBE), the diversity campaigner who dared and excelled". Businessday NG. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  17. ↑ "Profile: Funke Abimbola-Akindolie MBE, a multi-award winning solicitor". Nairametrics. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.