Fortuna & Charis is one of Nigeria's leading corporate and commercial law firm. Our Practice Areas include;

EMPLOYMENT
Fortuna & Charis has enormous competence and vast experience in formulating labour policies, advising and preparing various legal documents and contracts on diverse labour issues. Example of such documents and contracts include handbook, staff privacy and confidentiality contract, restrictive covenant, partnership documents, independent contractor agreement, severance agreement, protected conversations and settlement agreement.

CORPORATE AND SECRETARIAL SERVICES
Our corporate lawyers support our clients with comprehensive business contracts that aligns with the legal framework and which reflects the relationship between our client and its partner, supplier, distributor or customer. We invest in understanding the dynamics of our client’s business and proffer innovative and clear commercial options that best achieves our client's interest.
We also provide company secretarial services and help our clients to comply with necessary extant company laws and fulfill the mandatory compliances under any other applicable regulatory framework.

FINTECH
Our Fintech team are very competent to facilitate the disruptive changes in the use of technology in our global economy. We advise and negotiate Fintech related contracts, including cloud-computing agreements, blockchain, software design and development and licencing, and contracts for the creation and maintenance of online applications. .
We advise clients on the implications of existing and emerging legal framework on Fintech in Nigeria and keep them abreast of the regulatory development in the industry.

REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION
Fortuna & Charis supports various real estate players, including financiers, purchasers, vendors and property development companies. We possess immense experience in facilitating complex property deals ranging from land search and pre-acquisition diligence, acquisition, development, leasing, joint venturing, securitization and financing till completion and closure. F&C also advise on the drafting and negotiation of construction contracts and provide ongoing guidance to the project team throughout the construction and marketing phase.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Fortuna & Charis has immense experience in a wide range of intellectual property protection, which includes registration of patent, trademark and Designs.
In terms of trademark, Fortuna & Charis offers an excellent service on preliminary registrability advice, searches, application for registration, amendment and recordal of changes in the case of assignment, portfolio management and trademark watch.
Nigeria follows the International Classification of Goods and Services. The applicant of the trademark provides its name, nationality and address, the name and class of the trademark or Device mark, the class in which it is to be registered and each class is filed separately. Upon filing, mark is examined for possible objection and then listed in the Trademark Journal if cleared. If no Notice of Objection is received within two ( 2) months of publication in the Trademark Journal, the mark matures for registration and issuance of certificate. Trademark protection is valid for Seven (7) years and registration can be renewed indefinitely for further periods of Fourteen (14) years each at the end of each term of protection.

PRIVATE CLIENTS

a) Trust and Wealth Management
Fortuna & Charis provides expert advice to high net worth individuals and families on a wide range of issues pertaining to the accumulation, management, transfer and protection of personal wealth, including trust creation for those who want to pass wealth to future generations and to also protect such legacy accumulated over a lifetime from the extravagance and recklessness of individual members of the family by not dividing up amongst the beneficiaries after one has passed on but retaining as one fund to accumulate more wealth for succeeding generations. We also advise on succession planning for closely held businesses. F & C also advise on how the trust can be used as part of a tax planning strategy to mitigate estate tax liability.

b) Wills & Succession
Fortuna & Charis advises entrepreneurs and prepare bespoke will that is tailored to their station in life and lifestage of their businesses and theirl shareholding, which reflects their intention and enhance their wealth preservation options. In the event of separation or divorce, our team is able to advise on how joints ownership and existing financial obligations may impact the will and what changes may be expedient.

TAX ADVISORY
Fortuna & Charis advises taxpayers on how to effectively arrange their affairs and manage local and foreign taxes in a way that aligns with overall business objectives. We advise on a broad range of domestic tax matters in our extant legal framework, tax planning, tax implications of business re-structuring and on proposed laws and regulations.

THE STARTUP SHOWROOM
We are startup focused firm determined to help realize the next big dream because we understand the peculiar challenges of startup businesses in Nigeria. We are there from the beginning of the idea till exit. We are seated on the table to advise on pre-incorporation contracts, incorporation, financing options, joint venture, equity, vesting, Intellectual Property, expatriate quota, product sale, due diligence, secretarial services, corporate record regularization.

ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES

Our Energy and Natural Resources team is focused on providing our clients with top notch advice and transaction support services across the various components of the energy industry in Nigeria cutting across oil & gas, electricity, mining and general project advisory on infrastructure related to the abovementioned service areas. Our team is well versed in the Nigerian law and has the relevant practical experience to assist you in all the elements of your project from documentation until installation and commissioning. In this regard, we have a sustained relationship with the relevant regulators in the areas and provide stakeholder engagement feedback to these regulators which means we can see through the spectrum of legal and regulatory issues which bestride the energy sector in Nigeria. As a strategy, our focus is to support our clients through the provision of practical solutions to enable our clients mitigate obstacles and loss. With our experience, we have in the recent transactions, supported our clients in acquisition, divestments and farm in/outs in relation to the oil and gas acreages in Nigeria.


FINANCE

We are well positioned to help your financing aspirations. We have the requisite capacity to provide advisory to client who have corporate, asset and project financing requirements. Our experience bestrides transactions which cut across the real estate, FMCG, shipping, infrastructure and manufacturing sectors etc. We understand that financing often cuts across borders and in this regard, we have forged partnerships with international firms in typical financial jurisdictions such as London, China and the USA. By this approach, we ensure that our clients are adequately protected in the structuring of their debt or lending obligations.

SHIPPING

Our Shipping Team advises clients on all aspects of maritime law and practice in Nigeria including as it pertains to fluvial and cabotage transportation. We have considerable experience advising local and international clients on issues relating to ship management, charters, vessel registration and enforcement of maritime claims. We are enabled to lead our clients through the complex maze of regulatory considerations pertaining to shipping and maritime transactions in Nigeria to adequately position our clients to take advantage of benefits accruing to local content compliant vessels in Nigeria.

ENTERTAINMENT
Fortuna & Charis advises record labels, artiste and producers and other entertainment sector players on their strategic legal options and help clients to structure commercial relationships in accordance with their commercial objectives. This could require documentation such as Artiste Busines Manager Agreement, Artiste Management Agreement, Artiste Management Agreement (With Master Rights ), Demo Recording Shopping Agreement, Music Video Production Service Agreement, Live Performance Agreement, Producer and Artiste Production Agreement, Producer and Artiste Development Agreement, Producer Management Agreement, Song Plugger Agreement, Release Agreement, Parental Consent and Guarantees, Song Writer Copyright Split Sheet Agreement etc.

IMMIGRATION
The Immigration practice group has a detailed understanding of the legal framework that governs the Nigerian immigration system. We offer a full range of immigration services which are executed in a manner that achieves the utmost interest of the client. We advise and process applications for Expatriate Quota, Subject to Regularization (STR) Visa, Citizenship and Naturalization, Residence Permit - Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card (CERPAC).