Charles Osuji

Charles Osuji – CEO & Managing Partner

Charles is a multi-award winning lawyer, and one of the leading young lawyers in Canada. He is the CEO and Managing Partner of Osuji & Smith, one of the fastest growing law firms in Alberta. He has been chosen as one of the Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers in Canada, the Entrepreneur of the Year by Diversity Magazine, the 2020 Immigrant of Distinction (Achievement Under 35) Award by Immigrant Services Calgary, Calgary Top 40 under 40, and repeatedly voted as one of the top 3 Employment, Divorce, Civil Litigation and Business lawyers in Calgary by ThreeBestRated, among other awards and recognitions. He has recently been recognized, and voted by his fellow lawyers across Canada, in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada, 2022, for his outstanding professional excellence in private practice.

Charles joined our firm in 2013 as an articling student and was called to the Alberta Bar in 2014. Charles became a named Partner in 2016, and the sole owner of the firm in 2017. He is now leading one of the fastest growing law firms in Calgary. At an age when most lawyers are busy learning their craft, Charles is doing that plus ensuring he is providing mentoring and leadership for his staff of associate lawyers, legal assistants, and articling students.

Charles is an award winning, passionate, dedicated and knowledgeable lawyer. He takes pride in providing effective and practical legal advice in a thorough and timely manner through responsive communication with his clients. He helps his clients achieve a resolution to their matters in a swift, cost-effective and thoughtful manner, through negotiation, mediation, as well as litigation.

Charles is extremely clear with his advice. Every time he takes on a case, he gives a part of himself and his heart. He is honest and works very hard to add value to his clients’ lives. His client reviews speak for themselves.

Charles obtained a Bachelor of Laws (LLB, magna cum laude) from the Faculty of Law, Imo State University, Nigeria, graduating at the top of his graduating class, before proceeding to the Nigerian Law School where he graduated with a Barrister-at-Law (BL, Honours) in 2010. After he was called to the Nigerian Bar, Charles articled at our firm and was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 2014.

Charles has appeared at all levels of Court in Alberta including the Provincial Court, Court of Queen’s Bench and the Court of Appeal. He has gained valuable experience representing a wide range of individual and corporate clients, with excellent results, in employment law, family law, real estate, personal injury, wills and estates, corporate law, and civil litigation.

Charles pursues his volunteerism with the same enthusiasm he employs in the discharge of his professional duties. He volunteers his time, as a Mentor, for other young professionals through the Calgary Region Immigrant Employment Council (CRIEC), and as a panelist at numerous professional events. He is also on CRIEC’s Board of Directors. Charles has volunteered with Elizabeth Fry Society and the Alberta Civil Liberties Research Centre; he currently volunteers with Alberta Legal Aid, the Alberta Law Society Lawyer Referral Service, Igbo Cultural Association of Calgary, his Church (where he has been the pianist for over 9 years), and the Mustard Seed and Habitat for Humanity through CRIEC. He also runs a free legal clinic, serving primarily a newcomer population, and volunteers his time as a mentor through Calgary Catholic Immigration Society (CCIS). He has recently become an Ambassador with United Way, Calgary.

Charles’ success both as a lawyer and a businessman has been comprehensively profiled through multiple prestigious and national publications. He has been featured by multiple news outlets such as the Lawyers’ Daily, Canadian Lawyer Magazine, The Sprawl, IAF Canada, the CityNews, Afro X TV, the 660 News, OMNI TV and the Global News. Some of his interviews could be found here.

CHARLES HAS WON, OR HAS BEEN NOMINATED FOR, SEVERAL AWARDS INCLUDING THE:

1. 2022 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada (Best Lawyers);
2. 2020 Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers in Canada (Canadian Lawyer);
3. Lexpert, Rising Stars of the legal profession;
4. Canada’s 2020 Top 40 Under 40;
5. Calgary 2020 Top 40 Under 40 (Avenue Calgary);
6. 2020 Canadian Bar Association’s Douglas Miller Rising Star Award;
7. 2020 Employer Awards for Newcomer Employment, given by the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC);
8. 2020 Immigrant of Distinction– Achievement under 35 award (Immigrant Services Calgary);
9. 2020 Entrepreneurship and Innovation award (Immigrant Services Calgary);
10. 2019 Hope Awards by Aspen Family and Community Network Society;
11. 2019 Professional of the Year Award by Diversity Magazine, Alberta;
12. Recipient of the Afro Canadian (AC) 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year Award by Diversity Magazine;
13. 2019 Employer Awards for Newcomer Employment, given by the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC);
14. Recipient of the 2019 CY Ekwulugo Award for Volunteering and Community Service, courtesy of the Igbo Cultural Association of Calgary, Alberta;
15. 2018 Immigrant of Distinction – Achievement under 35 (Immigrant Services Calgary);
16. Rated one of the Top 3 Civil Litigation Lawyers in Calgary, Alberta, for 2029 & 2021 by the ThreeBestRated;
17. Rated one of the Top 3 Employment Lawyers in Calgary, Alberta, for 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 & 2021, by the ThreeBestRated;
18. Rated one of the Top 3 Business Lawyers in Calgary, Alberta, for 2019, 2020 & 2021, by the ThreeBestRated;
19. Rated one of the Top 3 Divorce Lawyers in Calgary, Alberta, for 2020 & 2021, by the ThreeBestRated.
20. Rated one of the Top 3 Estate Planning Lawyers in Calgary, Alberta, for 2020 & 2021, by the ThreeBestRated.
21. The 2016 Professional of the Year by OBSIDIAN, Alberta.

Charles was also recognized as one of the “Outstanding Africans in Canada”.

In his spare time, Charles enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing piano, playing and watching soccer and other sports, and reading.

Education

• Call to Bar, Alberta, 2014
• Legal Education Society of Alberta (Bar Admission Course), 2014
• Bachelor of Laws Equivalency Examinations, Federation of Law Societies of Canada, 2013
• Call to Bar, Nigeria, 2010
• Nigerian Law School, Barrister-at-Law (BL), 2010
• Imo State University, Bachelor of Laws (Hons), 2009

Memberships:

• The Canadian Bar Association
• The Law Society of Alberta
• The Calgary Bar Association
• Calgary Region Immigrant Employment Council
• The Global Lawyers of Canada
• The Nigeria Bar Association
• Calgary Black Chambers
• Association of Black Conservatives
• United Way, Calgary

Practice Areas

• Employment Law
• Family Law
• Real Estate Law
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