Government of Nigeria: The $9 Billion Arbitration Case
The Government of Nigeria was fighting a £9 billion contractual dispute involving alleged bribery and fraud committed by a private company at the London Courts of International Arbitration. The claimant, a shell company with no track record in the industry, had been initially granted a highly disputed and controversial award, putting our client at risk of losing billions of taxpayers' money. With the country's fiscal credibility and international reputation on the line, the stakes could hardly have been higher.
Impact
With increased media engagement and decisive messaging, the narrative surrounding the dispute shifted quickly in our client's favour. Positive articles appeared in Bloomberg, the Financial Times and more. This contributed to the successful overturn of the arbitration award and helped restore our client's reputation, which plays a vital role in attracting foreign investment into the country and restoring confidence in Nigeria's institutions on the international stage.
Approach
Our strategy was to engage media and industry experts with our client's side of the story. We established a documented timeline of events supported by proof of fraud and bribery, which we communicated to the press and wider public. We built a detailed messaging and rebuttal strategy and trained all key spokespeople, including the Justice Minister and Central Bank Governor. We arranged an international press tour and met directly with financial and legal journalists at Bloomberg, the Financial Times and Reuters to ensure our client's point of view was always represented.
