Motunrayo “Mo” Esan
Attorney
Motunrayo “Mo” provides litigation, research, appellate, and advisory legal services to clients in the CNMI, the United States, and internationally. Her work focuses on civil litigation, appellate advocacy, immigration, environmental law, and general commercial disputes. Before joining Dotts Law Office, Mo worked in a law firm in Portland, Oregon as a litigation associate. Alongside legal practice, Mo is completing a PhD in Law at the University of Birmingham, where her research focuses on the development of animal law in Africa.
Mo has contributed to successful appellate matters before both the Ninth Circuit and the Commonwealth Supreme Court. In SuperTECH, Inc. v. My Choice Software, LLC, the Ninth Circuit reversed the district court’s dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction, allowing the client’s claims to proceed in the CNMI. In Shon v. Choo, Mo worked on a successful appeal involving quiet title, forged property transfers, and the equitable doctrine of laches. In Island Star International, Inc. v. Yu, Mo worked on an appeal involving a disputed mediated settlement agreement and the scope of appellate jurisdiction over non-final orders. The Commonwealth Supreme Court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, preserving the favourable trial court ruling for the client. The decision was important because it clarified when settlement-related orders may be immediately appealed in the CNMI and reinforced the limited nature of interlocutory appellate review.
Outside the office, Mo collects Bibles, experiments with new recipes, and loves to travel.
TTE Law Group
Litigation Associate | Portland, OR | September 2023–June 2024
Makanjuola Esan & Co Legal Practitioners
Associate Attorney | Ibadan, NGN| December 2022–August 2023
Oladipo Olasope & Co Legal Practitioners
Summer Law Intern | Ibadan, NGN | May 2020–Aug 2020
- Litigation
- Appeals
- Immigration
- Real Estate
- Corporate Formation and Governance
- Environmental Law
- Family Law
Associations and Memberships
- NMI Bar Association
- Oregon State Bar
- Nigerian Bar Association
Admission
- Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Bar (2026)
- Oregon State Bar (2023)
- Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria (2022)
Education
- LLM: Lewis and Clark Law School
- LLM: Babcock University
- LLB/JD: Babcock University
