In this episode of our Q&A series, Demi interviewed the incredibly talented Omolara Adebisi Olabanji!
Having initially trained as a lawyer in Nigeria, Bisi has been with our office since April of 2025 and was called to the bar in Canada in August of the same year.
Having practiced in many different fields across her extensive career, Bisi has been invaluable to our team at Panko Collaborative Law. Whenever one of our lawyers or legal assistants has a question, Bisi normally has an answer.
Let’s dive in to the interview!
Interviewer: So what have you noticed as some key differences between the practice in Nigeria as compared to here in Canada?
Bisi: I would say the culture. That’s the only thing. We have very comparable common law system in Nigeria and here in Canada. But the people are different. There’s a lot of nuance to the way that law is practiced in Canada versus back at home. Back at home, we could be a bit more flexible. Language is not a barrier. And there are many things, but just because in a place where I grew up in and you know, I’m very used to the way that I practice law reflects my culture being you know there. So here I find that there’s a lot of learning you know just understanding the people that sit across from me when they’re consulting knowing that they have you know different backgrounds and you know different outlook. So while the law is the same back at home like the jurisprudence the legal jurisprudence is the same we actually you know adopted almost of our laws from England, and I know that England is the state here that determines how law is done. So while the law is the same, the people are different.
Interviewer: And what interested you in practicing family law here in Canada?
Bisi: Here I would say my interest was me just stepping out and meeting Charmaine. That’s all I can say. There’s hardly any way I can respond to this question without acknowledging that Charmaine was the first person, you know, who offered me a role in family law and, you know, just got me into it. She’s always an inspiration.
Interviewer: If you could be any animal, what animal would you be and why?
Bisi: Oh, very easy question. That would be a dog. Yeah, because I like dogs, right? I think dogs are very personable. I may come off from my facade as someone who’s very strict and I think I’m quite strict. I think I’ll fall under a type A personality but I’m a very personal person. I like to get my energy from just being around people.
Interviewer: What’s your favorite thing about practicing law?
Bisi: My favorite thing about practicing law is that I get to use my voice to advocate for people. Not just my voice, I get to use my words, whether in a written form or just my heart. I get to use my being to help people. I know law is quite a technical profession to practice, and my ability to take the technical part of it and merge with my person and then be an advocate for another person is what really, yeah, it empowers me in the practice of law. Yeah, that’s how in summary format I would describe what my heart is for.
Interviewer: What’s the most challenging thing you’ve had to navigate on a file so far?
Bisi: I think every file challenges me. I’m not sure I’ve ever sat here feeling like I have it all figured out. So there’s been quite some challenges. Some are very notable, significant. Others are just, you know, the challenge of knowing that area of law, you know, acquiring knowledge and seeing how that knowledge plays out in that specific fact and circumstance for the client. So it’s a hard pick for me. But I would say that the current one that I’m grappling with, which is very fascinating, is one about business evaluation.
Interviewer: So you’re the chair of the Internationally Trained Lawyers section with the Canadian Bar Association. What are some of the initiatives that that section has taken on?
Bisi: Oh, we’ve done several. One of it will be that on the go we’re doing programs for members of the bar who are internationally trained. One of the initiatives that we have right now is working with the University of Saskatchewan College of Law to see what program that can be offered to ITLs as a pathway to qualifying as lawyers here in Canada. And the Law Society reached out to us for the sections impute on remuneration for international trade lawyers. Just as a way of reflecting either their prior experience and how that will land when they’re negotiating salaries here.
Interviewer: If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would that meal be?.
Bisi: Amala, and I know you don’t know what that means. Amala is, gosh, how do I, you know what, I should have done some rehearsals to be able to tell people about my local food. Amala is a Nigerian food that is eaten with your hands. It’s like you break them into molds, it’s made from yam flour. So yeah, we put our hands into it, they’re super neat, you know, and then you, yeah, so yeah, amala is it. No brainer.
Interviewer: You have a very busy legal practice and a full personal life. What’s some advice you have for somebody trying to achieve work-life balance?
Bisi: There are tricks here and there. We found people, people like Charmaine as well, we’ve been able to put it all together with so many children and grandchildren to deal with. So yes, without the illusion that something like that exists, we do know that having a support system, at least for me, is how I think I’m able to manage my practice and my very full personal life. Actually, I think my life outside of work is fuller than what happens here nine hours a day. And so my husband is a major support system for me. And so for those who are looking to, oh, how am I able to manage family life and manage work life and all of those other volunteer that I do and everything. I think if you had a partner who supports you, who understands you, who can tell, who can see the signs that your world is about to break down, yeah, would really help.
Interviewer: What’s one thing that everyone who is hiring a lawyer should know?
Bisi: What I’ll tell them is lawyers are just people like you who just have, you know, legal knowledge. They have legal information that you may not, you know, know how to use. You might have it. And this days with ChatGPT and all the GPTs of this world, you know, people often think that what they read is what it is, but not entirely so. I would say for a client who is looking for a lawyer, you know that first, that just as human as you are, they have their own problems too. And in fact, that’s what they bring. I think that’s what I bring to the table, my ability to understand that what you’re going through, I personally might be going through that as well. Just that I have, you know, I have tools that I may be able to use to respond to my own situation. And of course, the compassion. So for clients looking to hire a lawyer, look for a lawyer who has experience, but I’ll say that with an inverted comma. They may not have experience, but if they are teachable people, we can learn these things. So legal knowledge with or without experience, compassion, someone who can demonstrate that what you’re going through, they have an understanding of where it pinches and how they can help you through that.
Interviewer: Yeah, so compassion, collaboration, curiosity is what I’m hearing.
Bisi: Oh, wow, I like the way you have them all in C’s.
Interviewer: Why should somebody choose Panko Collaborative Law to help them through their family law matter?
Bisi: The three C’s that Dimi just echoed right now. Compassion, collaboration, I think that ability to sit around a file, you know, and hear people share their own thoughts about it, because again, we all might be lawyers, but we all, you know, seeing different angles of the file. So the more people on the spoil, this is one broth that many cooks can cook. Because there’s always that, oh, well, too many cooks spoiled a broth. No, not quite so. In family law or well, any area of law that Panko offers, we get the benefits of working with other lawyers or even assistants too. Because again, there are many things that I don’t know that my assistant might be the one to leverage.
We hope you have enjoyed this spotlight on Omolara Adebisi Olabanji. Bisi is available for new client consultations, if you would like to work with Bisi, contact our office today to book a consultation:
Give us a call! or Email us!
If you want to learn more about Bisi make sure to visit her profile page!