Understanding cultural nuances and their influence on alternative dispute resolution (LIDW26 briefs)

Over the course of last week, thousands of delegates and leading figures from the global dispute resolution community gathered in person and online to learn, share, network, and socialise across a huge variety of LIDW26 events, exploring key issues and topics, and helping to drive awareness and best practice globally.

The future of international dispute resolution is being written, and Africa’s voice at the table has never mattered more. With its young, dynamic population, resource riches, and technological leaps, Africa is set to play a growing role in how the world responds to energy transition, climate change, and other pressing challenges. 

Africa Legal was in attendance throughout the week, at the Main Conference, co-hosting a key session spotlighting African voices and UK-African partnerships, meeting delegates and speakers, and spotlighting key conversations relevant to Africa and its legal practice, along with African lawyers in attendance. 

During the week, we were fortunate to grab a few moments offstage with Godson Ugochukwu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Fellow of CIArb who is the Principal Partner and Head of Dispute Resolution at Nigerian firm Fortress Solicitors.

As a Nigerian disputes lawyer, what inspired you to come to London this year for London International Disputes Week (LIDW26)? 

Because of the historical connection between our two countries, and Nigeria being a former colony of the British Empire, we have very similar legal systems, and I like to think that usually what happens here in London eventually happens in Nigeria. Legal decisions from UK courts tend to have quite a lot of influence in Nigerian courts. They are not binding, but quite strongly persuasive. 

LIDW is one of the foremost international legal events in the year, and it tends to be one that anybody who wants to keep abreast of developments and improve their area of practice and meet people - it's very important to do relevant networking - should be interested in attending. So this is why I took the time to come.

Could you tell us a little more about yourself and your firm Fortress Solicitors? 

So, Fortress Solicitors is a full service law firm that is based out of Lagos, Nigeria. We also have a branch in Abuja, which is the capital of Nigeria.

I practice in the space of dispute resolution. I'm a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, so I do a lot of commercial advocacy. I'm also an international arbitrator and mediator, so what happens here in the LIDW falls right up my alley. 

At LIDW25 there was onstage discussion about Africa’s growth and huge potential, and the need for Africa to have a stronger voice globally and with international arbitration. As someone experienced in the field, what are your feelings on the growth of arbitration and mediation in Africa? 

It's actually a point of passionate interest for me. Interestingly, during the same period as last year's LIDW, I had the opportunity of joining a panel at the International Law Summit here in London to speak exactly on this same topic, with a particular focus on outcomes in oil and gas. 

It's very important because you see what people are beginning to realise now, practitioners in arbitration, are the cultural influences in this alternative dispute resolution space. So if you have disputes originating from a particular space, particularly Africa this time around, and you have African arbitrators in the room, they hear both the facts and the nuances of culture, and its influence on the disputes. 

Over several decades, you find that has not always happened for African voices and Nigeria. In fact, you find situations that you might consider ridiculous, where for African originating disputes, African parties enter onto the same flights, the disputing parties, to go to London to arbitrate their disputes, or to New York or Singapore, then they finish and they fly back to Africa. Beyond the expense of the flights, African arbitration is left undeveloped. The benefits of that experience is lost because when you have your arbitral seat in a place like London or Hong Kong or Singapore or New York, the chances are that for most of those cases you have arbitrators from those jurisdictions. Even for our courts, it does not help our courts a lot. 

Now, I can understand why for infrastructural reasons people continue to export their arbitral seats away from Africa, so there’s a role for African governments to play in this, but it’s also very important that we have African voices in the room. 

And the thing is that Africa has extremely qualified arbitrators in every space of arbitration, every space of disputes. We have very qualified persons, so it's no longer a question of skill or expertise. We have people who can represent and adequately handle any disputes. I am on the National Nominations Committee of the ICC on Nigeria, okay, and every time they reach out to us to nominate an African arbitrator or somebody from Nigeria, we're never lacking in expertise. So that’s a very important point, and I'm happy that it's beginning to trend. Last year in Cairo, during the ICC Africa Conference on International Arbitration, that was also one of those points that were made seriously, about African arbitrators, and that practitioners in the space of arbitration should begin to insist that African voices be heard.

Thanks for taking the time to chat today, Godson. Is there anything else you’d like to share with readers about yourself, LIDW, or  Fortress Solicitors?

Yeah, so we like to pride ourselves for efficiency, and our core philosophy is George Bernard Shaw’s quote that the reasonable man tries to adapt himself to his environment, but the unreasonable one tries to insist on adapting the environment to themselves, and therefore all change belongs to the unreasonable man. 

So we believe that in the space of legal practice, you should always push for George Bernard Shaw’s unreasonable man. Do that thing that you think that nobody has done or is impossible to do, and that's where we pride ourselves.

This interview is part of Africa Legal's coverage of London International Disputes Week 2026 (LIDW26). You can read more about other delegates, insights, and events: 

• From trust to transformation: strengthening Africa–UK Dispute Resolution partnerships

• Making businesses work as dispute resolution evolves (LIDW26 briefs)

• Breaking down misconceptions about Africa (LIDW26 briefs)

• The face of international arbitration has changed (LIDW26 briefs)

• Africa’s growing global impact on agenda as LIDW26 kicks off

• African transformation requires building investor trust in its dispute resolution systems

Or view our full suite of LIDW26 coverage here.