Olufemi Elias has been elected as a member of the International Law Commission.
Elias secured the position on Tuesday during an election held to fill a casual vacancy created by the resignation of Phoebe Okowa.
The election took place during the Commission’s 77th session in Geneva.
The International Law Commission, established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1947, is tasked with the development and codification of international law.
The Commission is responsible for drafting legal frameworks and principles covering areas such as state responsibility, immunity, piracy, international agreements, and dispute resolution.
Elias defeated nominees from Botswana and Ghana to secure the seat.
He previously served as Registrar of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, IRMCT, with the rank of United Nations Assistant Secretary-General.
He has also served as legal adviser and director at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, OPCW, in The Hague; Executive Secretary of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal; and legal adviser at the United Nations Compensation Commission.
Elias currently serves as a judge ad hoc at the International Court of Justice, ICJ, also known as the World Court.
He is also the President of the Administrative Tribunal of the OPEC Fund for International Development and Chairman of the Islamic Development Bank Administrative Tribunal.
He previously served as president and member of the OPEC Appeals Committee.
In December 2024, the Federal Government formally presented Elias to the United Nations diplomatic corps in New York as Nigeria’s candidate for the ICJ for the 2027 to 2036 term.
He, however, lost the ICJ election, which was held in November 2025.
His election to the International Law Commission marks another major international appointment for the Nigerian jurist, whose career has spanned international criminal justice, disarmament law, administrative tribunals and global dispute settlement.
