At the Legal Business Conference 2025, held on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Victoria Island, top legal and real estate professionals converged to examine the theme “Real Estate as a Catalyst for Economic Development.” The session on “Legal and Regulatory Frameworks for a Thriving Real Estate Market” featured insightful contributions from key industry stakeholders who emphasized the urgent need for better implementation of existing laws, stronger collaboration, and enhanced transparency to restore confidence in Nigeria’s real estate sector.
Speaking during the panel session moderated by Ifeoma Ben, Founding Partner of Law Suite and Founder of the Legal Business Network, Lateef Akangbe, SAN, Managing Partner at Sofunde, Osakwe, Ogundipe & Belgore, decried the inadequacy of record keeping in land registries and the recurring cases of fraudulent sales and ownership disputes. He stressed that legal practitioners must take a proactive role in sanitizing the sector by monitoring relevant laws across state assemblies and advocating for policies that promote accountability and effective regulation.
In her remarks, Mrs. Adeyinka Shomorin, Chief Estate Officer and Head of the E-Care Unit at LASRERA, highlighted the agency’s ongoing efforts to strengthen partnerships with legal practitioners and other stakeholders. She noted that LASRERA has made registration compulsory for all players in the real estate value chain, developed an online verification system, and established a robust complaints reporting platform to enhance transparency and ethical compliance.
Mr. Ibrahim Bakare, Associate Partner and Head of the Real Estate and Taxation Department at Adeniji Kazeem & Co., observed that while Nigeria has a fairly robust set of real estate laws, poor implementation remains a key challenge. He called for a simplified tax regime, innovative compliance mechanisms, and the integration of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) clauses in property contracts to ensure faster and fairer outcomes in land-related disputes.
On his part, Ituah Imhanze, Managing Partner of Kenna, identified court delays, document forgery, and the opaque nature of land registries as persistent barriers to growth in the sector. He urged stakeholders to embrace technology and institutional reforms that would promote efficiency and trust in real estate transactions.
The conference underscored a shared vision among industry leaders: that with effective enforcement, digital transformation, and strengthened legal collaboration, Nigeria’s real estate market can become a powerful driver of economic development.
