BAR LEADERS PROFFER ROADMAP FOR LAW SCHOOL, LEGAL PROFESSION

Bar leaders and academics at the weekend stressed the need to leverage alumni networks for the development of legal education and law practice.

Speaking on the theme, “Alumni Networks and the Development of the Legal Profession in Nigeria” at a virtual conference hosted by the Nigeria Law School Class of 1989, a leading presidential candidate in the forthcoming Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) National Elections, Dr. Babatunde Ajibade SAN, made a strong case for the transformation of the Nigerian Law School Alumni Network into a world class framework.

Citing Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford university alumni as examples, Ajibade observed that alumni networks have been able to deploy huge human and material resources to boost the development of their alma mater, adding that “the situation should not be different for the Nigerian Law School that has produced distinguished personalities rendering invaluable services to humanity across the globe.”

The Chairman of the Counsel of Legal Education (CLE), Chief Emeka Ngige SAN, commended the management of the Nigerian Law School for deploying e-learning facilities to avoid interruption of lectures despite the COVID-19 pandemic. He also applauded the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989 for the e-learning platform donated to the school, adding that it would “go a long way to enhance remote learning for Nigerian Law School students.”

The Secretary to the Council of Legal Education & Director of Administration, Nigerian Law School, Mrs. Elizabeth Max-Uba enumerated the needs of the campuses of the school and appealed to the different alumni classes to help reposition the Law School campuses as befitting academic environments for the training of lawyers.

Speaking in the same vein, the Director General of the Nigerian Law School, Professor Isa Chiroma SAN urged alumni classes to “come to the aid of the Nigerian Law School in order to restore its lost glory.”

Contributing to the discourse, Mr. A. U. Mustapha SAN advised the coalescing of all Law School alumni classes into a single and formidable alumni association to enable better management and communication. He stated that this would spur the growth of the institution.

The Chairman of the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989, Mr. Emeka Albert explained that the soon-to-be-rolled-out multi-dimensional e-platform built by the Class includes an Alumni module that enables alumni members to engage and interact.

According to the leading justice sector reform consultant, “Lawyers need only to register with their call year and the system will group members according to year of call, making it possible for members to engage with their classmates and organise themselves into alumni associations just like the Class of ’89 and a few other Classes have done.”

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YOUNG LAWYERS: AJIBADE, OWONIKOKO, ETIABA, OTHERS SPEAK ON e-MENTORING SATURDAY

Prominent senior lawyers will on Saturday x-ray the emerging issue of online mentoring as it relates to Nigeria’s young lawyers. The webinar is scheduled for 1 pm and hosted by the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989.

Among the speakers at the webinar are leading Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) presidential aspirant, Dr. Babatunde Ajibade SAN. Ajibade is the Managing Partner of S. P. A. Ajibade & Co and the first member of the class to take silk.

Other discussants are leading litigators, Mr. Jelili Owonikoko SAN and Mr. Emeka Etiaba SAN, as well as Mrs. Morenike Obi-Farinde, Founder of Online Dispute Resolution Africa Network.

The moderator of the webinar is leading justice sector consultant and Chairman of the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989, Mr. Emeka Albert who is also the Chief Editor of LEGALPEDIA.

To register for this webinar, click on
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYodu6ppz8oHNYJjCzFHXIPqi6Met06zPBg. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

It is recalled that the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989 donated an e-platform to its alma mater as part of its 30th anniversary celebrations. The facility is aimed to support quality training and retraining of Law School students and especially young lawyers. The e-platform is reputed as a first in Africa aimed at transforming legal education and legal practice. The webinar will among others x-ray the e-mentoring module of the platform especially as it relates to young lawyers.

 

According to a statement by Albert, “This is the second in a series of webinars aimed at opening up vital conversations among lawyers on mentoring, CLE and support to the Nigerian Law School. Dr. Ajibade, being a strong supporter of the cause of our Class, is expected to provide uncommon insights on the subject consistent with his experience and track record.”

Ajibade has gained renown as a cerebral lawyer and leading facilitator of continuing legal education in the legal industry. He was called to the Nigerian Bar in December 1989 and elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria in December 2007.

He obtained a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in 1988. He obtained a Master of Laws degree in Corporate and Commercial Law from King’s College, University of London in 1990 and a Doctorate Degree in Private International Law from the same university in 1996.

Ajibade is a Fellow of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies in London, an International Practice Fellow of the International Bar Association (IBA) and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, United Kingdom. He combines the roles of advocate, a corporate/commercial solicitor, an administrator and a reformer and is reputed to have excelled in each of these areas.

On his part, Albert is a renowned justice sector reform consultant and Lead at LEGALPEDIA, a foremost software company. He has presented several papers on technology and disruption in the legal industry. Speaking on the impact of technology in law practice, he said: “both Law and Technology are dynamic. But often we, as lawyers, are slow to changing our process. We tend to treat our process as our changeless precedents. That is where we have the conflict with transformative technologies. But technological disruptions are inevitable and unstoppable.”

Copyright 2020 CITY LAWYER. Please send emails to citylawyermag@gmail.com. Join us on Facebook at https://web.facebook.com/City-Lawyer-Magazine-434937936684320 and on TWITTER at https://twitter.com/CityLawyerMag All materials available on this Website are protected by copyright, trade mark and other proprietary and intellectual property laws. You may not use any of our intellectual property rights without our express written consent or attribution to www.citylawyermag.com. However, you are permitted to print or save to your individual PC, tablet or storage extracts from this Website for your own personal non-commercial use.

AJIBADE SPEAKS ON VIRTUAL CLE, AS ‘CLASS OF ’89’ HOLD WEBINAR

Leading Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) presidential aspirant, Dr. Babatunde Ajibade SAN will be on a familiar turf today as he speaks to his classmates and other stakeholders on the prospects of online mandatory continuing legal education (CLE).

Listed as one of the discussants for the virtual conference slated for 2 pm, Ajibade has gained renown as a cerebral lawyer and leading facilitator of continuing legal education in the legal industry.

Organised by the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989, an accredited NBA CLE Service Provider, the theme of the virtual conference is “Online Continuing Legal Education (e-CLE) in the COVID-19 Era and Beyond: Challenges, Benefits and Prospects.” Prospective participants are required to register for the free virtual conference at https://us04web.zoom.us/meeting/register/upMlc-yspzosH9yXkq67siifyduRZ0HcPaLD After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Other discussants are Mr. Emeka Albert, Chairman of the Nigerian Law School Class of 1989 and acclaimed Toronto, Canada based attorney and Managing Partner of Topmarke Attorney LLP, Oluwakemi Oduwole. She was formerly a Lecturer at the Nigerian Law School.

Moderated by Chief Osuala E. Nwagbara, General Secretary of the Class of 1989 and Managing Partner at Maritime and Commercial Law Partners, the conference is, according to a statement by Albert “the first in a series of webinars aimed at opening up vital conversations among lawyers on mentoring, CLE and support to the Nigerian Law School. Dr. Ajibade, being a strong supporter of the cause of our Class, is expected to provide uncommon insights on the subject consistent with his experience and track record.”

Ajibade is the Managing Partner of S. P. A. Ajibade & Co. He was called to the Nigerian Bar in December 1989 and elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria in December 2007. He was the first member of his Nigerian Law School set of 1989 to take silk.

Ajibade obtained a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in 1988. He obtained a Master of Laws degree in Corporate and Commercial Law from King’s College, University of London in 1990 and a Doctorate Degree in Private International Law from the same university in 1996.

Ajibade is a Fellow of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies in London, an International Practice Fellow of the International Bar Association (IBA) and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, United Kingdom. He combines the role of an advocate, a corporate/commercial solicitor, an administrator and a reformer and is reputed to have excelled in each of these areas.

With over 20 years legal prowess specializing in immigration law, family law, mental health law and legal education, Oduwole has been a partner in Topmarke Attorney LLP since the inception of the firm in 2016. She is reputed for her leadership, teaching and mentorship skills (especially of young lawyers) and ability to navigate difficult and sensitive legal matters.

Oduwole holds a degree in Law and two master’s degrees in law. She is working on her third master’s degree. She also holds a certificate in Higher Education and has been called to the bars of Nigeria and Ontario, Canada. Oduwole practised law extensively in the areas of corporate/commercial law, civil litigation and family law in notable Nigerian law firms. Aside from her practice of law, she taught law in the Nigerian Law School, particularly in the areas of Civil Litigation, Legal Drafting, Professional Ethics and Responsibility, and Real Estate Law. Oduwole is a published author who has published law texts and several journal articles, and has presented research papers in conferences in Asia, Africa and North America.

On his part, Albert is a renowned justice sector reform consultant and Lead at LEGALPEDIA, a foremost software company. He has presented several papers on technology and disruption in the legal industry. Speaking on the impact of technology in law practice, he said: “Law is very dynamic. That is the essence of technology. It enables you to keep pace with developments. Technology helps you to adapt to new changes.”

The Nigerian Law School Class of 1989 donated an e-platform to its alma mater as part of its 30th anniversary celebrations. The facility is aimed to support quality training and retraining of Law School students and especially young lawyers. The e-platform is reputed as a first in Africa aimed at transforming legal education and legal practice.

Copyright 2020 CITY LAWYER. Please send emails to citylawyermag@gmail.com. Join us on Facebook at https://web.facebook.com/City-Lawyer-Magazine-434937936684320 and on TWITTER at https://twitter.com/CityLawyerMag All materials available on this Website are protected by copyright, trade mark and other proprietary and intellectual property laws. You may not use any of our intellectual property rights without our express written consent or attribution to www.citylawyermag.com. However, you are permitted to print or save to your individual PC, tablet or storage extracts from this Website for your own personal non-commercial use.

NGIGE TO CHAIR LAW SCHOOL ALUMNI E-PORTAL LAUNCH

Leading litigator and Chairman of the Council of Legal Education (CLE), Chief Emeka Ngige SAN will hold court tomorrow as the 1989 Class of the Nigerian Law School launches its ground-breaking e-Learning/e-Mentoring/e-Continuing Legal Education (CLE) portal. The event is a part of the activities to mark the 30th anniversary reunion Dinner & Awards of the Nigerian Law School Alumni Class of 1989. Continue Reading