Professor Ayodele Atsenuwa is a Professor of Public Law with broad teaching and research interests spanning criminal law, criminology and criminal justice as well as human rights, gender and the law, health and migration law. She comes to legal academics from a development-oriented perspective and is focused on both academic and action-oriented research directed at law reform for improving the delivery of justice especially to the poor and other marginalized groups. Among her notable contributions to law and policy development in the field of criminal justice are the Draft Community Service Guidelines of Lagos State, the Draft Sentencing Guidelines of Lagos State and the Draft Guidelines for Bail Bondspersons, all of which have shaped major reforms in criminal justice sector in Lagos State and Nigeria since 2007. She chaired the Criminal Law Reform Committee that produced the Draft Criminal Law of Lagos State, which was enacted into law in 2011. Alongside others, she paced the teaching of Human Rights Law and Gender and the Law within the formal legal education curriculum in Nigeria and her book: Feminist Jurisprudence: An Introduction is a seminal piece for introducing legal scholars and activists to the implications of feminist jurisprudence for developing legal philosophy and social action. She remains deeply committed to translating feminist legal theory to action as is evident in the supportive role she has played in fostering a more responsive legislative and policy environment for gender justice in Nigeria. Specifically, her pioneering work in the field of women’s human rights fostered legislative developments Nigeria such as the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act and recognition of women’s reproductive rights as human rights. Lately (2021- 2022), she served as Gender Expert to the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria producing Gender Equality Bills for the Constitution Review process. She also participated in drafting the Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill (2022) tabled before the Senate in 2022. Her ongoing research focuses on Developing appropriate mechanisms to address sexual harassment in the Nigerian educational sector. She co-drafted the Model Sexual Harassment Policies for Educational Institutions and the Workplace for both the ICPC and ECOWAS Gender Division.

Ayodele Atsenuwa is the current Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development Services), University of Lagos. Prior to her appointment as Deputy Vice-Chancellor, she was, at different times, the Dean of the Faculty of Law and Head of the Department of Public Law, amongst other offices. 
Outside the University system, she has also done much to contribute to sustainable development in Nigeria and Africa through her social activism and leadership engagements. A member of the Institute of Directors (IOD), she has served on the Boards of several international and national institutions and organizations including Mirabel Centre, Legal Research and Resource Development Centre, CLEEN Foundation, Orderly Society Trust, Partnership for Justice, Girls’ Power Initiative, HEDA Resource Centre, SERAP, Open Society Initiative for West Africa, National Agency for the Control of AIDS, Lagos State Office of the Public Defender, Lagos State Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy, National Advisory Committee on APRM-NEPAD and the NBA Task Force on the North-East. She is a consultant to various international bodies including the agencies of the UN, EU, UK-DFID, CIDA, SIDA and USAID.

Professor Atsenuwa is a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.