Biography

Overview

Before joining Makkobilli Law Firm LLP, Dr. Demelash was deeply involved in the legal profession, blending teaching, research, and practical experience across diverse legal domains. He provided strategic advisory and consultancy services to prominent stakeholders, including government entities, intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, and private clients. Dr. Demelash served and actively contributed as a member of various national task forces, working groups, and teams established under the auspices of Ethiopian Ministry of Justice and Ethiopian Federal Supreme Court to drive legal reforms and national policy development initiatives. Key projects he was involved in encompassed the drafting and enhancement of laws such as the Ethiopian Administrative Procedure Law, Ethiopian Freedom of Assembly and Association Law, the Ethiopian Federal Courts’ Bench Book on Gender-Based Violence, and the Ethiopian Transitional Justice Policy.

Dr. Demelash's expertise was also sought by esteemed international bodies like the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID Ethiopia, Feteh Project), and the International Center for Transitional Justice. On top of these, he currently holds the role of Coordinator of Policy and Practice Collaboration and Diffusion at the Center for Human Rights, Addis Ababa University.

As a legal practitioner, Dr. Demelash has represented clients across all levels of the Ethiopian Federal Courts on a wide array of legal issues. His practice extensively focused on contract law – a field where he possesses significant teaching and research knowledge, and has developed the teaching material for Ethiopian Contract Law, which is widely utilized as educational resource in law schools throughout Ethiopia – criminal justice, constitutional & administrative laws, immigration and refugee law, and NGO law.

Bar Admission

Licensed to practice law at all Federal courts of Ethiopia

Education

PhD  in Law, from Warwick University School of Law (2015, United Kingdom);

M.A in Human Rights, from Oslo University Norwegian Institute  of Human Rights (2003, Norway);

LL.B Degree in Law, from Addis Ababa University Faculty of Law (1999, Ethiopia);

Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Institute of Dispute Resolution in Africa (College of Law, University of South Africa, South Africa) (April 2016 –March 2018)

Short Term Courses/Trainings

Brown University (USA), Humanitarian Response and Post-Conflict Reconstruction: Increasing Effectiveness and Accountability in the Age of Complex Emergencies, 03 June- 17 June 2017

Utrecht University (the Netherlands), Human Rights Academy Training, August 15-August 31, 2006.

University of Pretoria (South Africa), International Humanitarian law for African Academics, three weeks training co-sponsored by the ICRC, Nov. 2007

Ghent University (Belgium), Capacity Building Training, 1-15 Sept, 2006

Languages

English

Amharic

Afaan Oromoo

Selected Experience

Provided consultancy services to IGAD on a variety of legal matters affecting the countries in the region including on migration and migrant smuggling, mutual legal assistance and extradition;

Delivered legal consultancy services to USAID (Feteh Project);

Delivered consultancy services to the International Center for Transitional Justice on;

Serving as a Coordinator of Policy and Practice Collaboration and Diffusion (Center for Human Rights, Addis Ababa University);

Took part in the study and development of Ethiopian Transitional Justice Policy as an active member of the Working Group of Experts on Transitional Justice;

Actively engaged in the development of national policy and legal frameworks, including the development of Ethiopian Administrative Procedure Law (adopted & passed into law), Ethiopian Freedom of Assembly and Association Law (currently under review), and Ethiopian Federal Courts’ Bench Book on Gender Based Violence;

Provided advices on a variety of private law matters as a supervisor of AAU’s Legal Aid Center at Lega Tafo, and served as an Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs at Addis Ababa University School of Law;

Designed and implemented various projects as a Director of Human Rights Centre at Mekelle University,

Conducted researches and gained extensive exposure and knowledge about the mechanisms and processes of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Institute of Dispute Resolution in Africa (College of Law, University of South Africa, South Africa) (April 2016 –March 2018);

Represented clients in a diverse range of complex and large litigations;

Areas of Practice

Litigation, Arbitration & Other ADR

NGOs, Charities and Non-Profit Entities

Contract Law

Criminal Law and Criminal Justice

Constitutional & Administrative Laws

Investment

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Reviews & Due Diligence

Mergers & Acquisitions

Employment, Compensation & Benefits

Immigration, Refugee & Citizenship

Business & Human Rights

Antitrust/Trade Competition

Environment & Climate Change

Personal Services (Family Law, Succession, etc)

Bidding and Public Procurement

Land and Natural Resources

Regulatory Compliance

Publications, Dissertation, Conference papers and other Research Outputs:

Truth-seeking processes in Africa: Lessons from the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Ethiopian Red Terror trials, (2017) 17 African Human Rights Law Journal, Center for Human Rights, University of Pretoria [Available online]

Human Rights Approach to Access to Land and dispossession: An evaluation of Ethiopian Laws and Practices, African Journal of Legal Studies, Vol. 9, no. 2, 2016 [Available online]

The Role of University Linked Human Rights Centers for Legal Education and Access to Justice: The Case of Mekelle University Human Rights Center, Mekelle University Law Journal, June 2015 [Available online]

Transitional Justice Narratives, Choices and Implications: Lessons from an East African Experience. Journal of Law, Democracy & Development, Faculty of Law, University of the Western Cape, 2017/09/15 [under review]

National Prosecutions and Transitional Justice: A case study of the Ethiopian Red Terror Trials, Law School, Warwick University, UK (Available Online) [PhD dissertation]

The Role of National Human Rights Institutions: The Case of Ethiopia, Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, Norway, (Available Online) [LL.M thesis]

Pre-trial Publicity of Criminal Cases in Ethiopia: The Law and Practice, 1999 (LL. B thesis, Addis Ababa University, unpublished)

Towards a Harmony Model of Transitional Justice in Ethiopia, a paper presented at Addis Ababa University, 2019

Transitional Justice: the Role of the Ethiopian Peace-Truth Commission. a paper presented to members of the Commission, Bishoftu, 2019

The Harmony Model of Dispute Resolution: Perspectives from Ethiopian transitional justice processes, a paper presented at the Institute for Dispute Resolution in Africa, UNISA, Pretoria, November 2016

Human Rights and Development; an appraisal of Ethiopian Investment Laws, paper presented at Mekelle University, School of Law, 2008

The Evolution of Law and Constitution in Ethiopia, paper presented at Ghent University, Belgium, 2004

The Right of Persons with Disabilities under International and National Laws, paper presented at a workshop organized by Human rights Centre, Mekelle University, 2004

The Rights of Children under International and National Laws, paper presented at a workshop organized by Human rights Centre, Mekelle University, 2005

The Administration of Justice in Mekelle City, a registered Research Project at the University and sponsored by Mekelle Municipality, Submitted to Mekelle University 2006(Team Member).

The referral power of the House of Federation on matters requiring federal legislation: a joint research paper prepared and presented to members of the House of Federation and House of Peoples Representative, Addis Ababa, 2009.

Human rights Approach to Environmental Protection; The Right to Clean and Healthy Environment, output submitted 2012 (Principal Investigator).

Extensive experience in the development of teaching materials commissioned by different organs:

Teaching Material for the Study of International Investment Law & Policy, Mekelle University, School of Law.

Teaching Material for the Study of Human Rights Law (including Child Rights), Ethiopian Justice and Legal Systems Research Institute, 2008

Teaching Material for the Study of International Humanitarian Law, Ethiopian Justice and Legal Systems Research Institute, 2008

Teaching Material for the Study of Contract Law I, Ethiopian Justice and Legal Systems Research Institute, 2008

Teaching Material for the study of Military Law, Mekelle University, 2014/15

Teaching Material for the Study of Human Rights Law (including Child Rights), Mekelle University, Faculty of Law, 2007