Prof Ephraim Ngwafor

Professor Ephraim Ngwafor is the Founder and Managing Partner of NGWAFOR & Partners Law Firm. He is also the Executive Director of SPOOR & FISHER (Inc. NGWAFOR & PARTNERS SARL) which is the designated Spoor & Fisher office in the OAPI region. Professor Ngwafor started the firm in August 2007 as a solo practice and has overseen its rapid growth and transformation into a multi-specialisation full service firm dedicated to facilitating corporate and commercial business in Cameroon and the wider sub-region across all its practice areas.

Professor Ngwafor has assisted a plethora of foreign investors operating in diverse sectors of the economy to acquire businesses and structure their investments in Cameroon. He collaborates on a frequent basis with international law firms and international counsel to carry out extensive due diligence investigations, facilitate administrative interventions and provide opinions on Compliance and Regulatory issues. His general areas of practice are Energy and Natural Resources, Corporate, Intellectual Property, ADR, Family and Probate.

Prior establishing the firm, Professor Ngwafor had worked in both the public and private sector for a period spanning almost thirty (30) years. His contributions to academia as a Professor of Law and a prolific author, as well as a legal consultant in several public and private sector assignments have earned him far-reaching national and international recognition. As an accredited IP agent with the African Intellectual Property Organisation (OAPI), he has also made enormous contributions to the area of Intellectual Property in this region. He is a member of the International Trademark Association (INTA).

Professor Ngwafor is a member of the Cameroon Bar Association, the International Bar Association and a Fellow of the Cameroon Academy of Sciences. He is also a member of the Users’ Council of the London Court of International Arbitration where his interests turn on Oil and Gas, Mining, Corporate, Maritime and Insurance. Professor Ngwafor is also a Member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague.

Professor Ngwafor served as a member of the technical committee for the revision of the Cameroon Constitution (1993-1996) and held the positions of Dean of Studies and Rector (Vice Chancellor) of the University of Yaoundé II. Also, he held the only Chair in English Law in the Faculty of Laws and Political Science in the University of Yaoundé II until his retirement. Professor Ngwafor has also held the position of Minister of Special Duties at the Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon.

Professor Ngwafor obtained his First Degree in Law, ‘Licence en Droit’, from the University of Yaoundé in Cameroon, where he was drilled in both the Common Law and Civil Law legal systems. He later obtained an LL. M from Dalhousie Law School in Canada and proceeded to the University of London (University College), where he earned a Ph.D. in Law.