LPPC

WORLD EXCLUSIVE: LPPC AWARDS SAN RANK TO APPLICANTS WHO FAILED FINAL TEST

When the ceremony for conferment of the coveted rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) holds on November 27, 2023, at least three SAN designates who failed to meet the 90 percent pass mark set by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) would be garbed with the silk robe, CITY LAWYER can authoritatively report.

Unimpeachable sources who are familiar with the screening process told CITY LAWYER that not only did the LPPC lower its cumulative 90 percent benchmark to award the prestigious rank to the three applicants, it may have taken on board the suggestion by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) that all the 57 advocates who went in for the final oral interview should be appointed.

This is coming against the backdrop of strident and prolonged efforts especially by the influential Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) to restore meritocracy and prestige to the SAN awards. The clamour led to reforms which culminated in the “2022 Guidelines for the Conferment of the Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and for Related Matters.”

It is recalled that the LPPC under the chairmanship of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, had at its 159th plenary session held in Abuja appointed 57 advocates and one academic as Senior Advocates of Nigeria.

A high-ranking source, who participated actively in the screening of the applicants by the NBA General Purpose Committee (GPC) prior to the LPPC final oral interview, told CITY LAWYER that the association strongly canvassed in its report to LPPC that all 57 advocates who scaled the second filtration should be awarded the rank.

Confirming this position, another unimpeachable source told CITY LAWYER that the NBA urged that all applicants who scaled the chambers inspection should be given the award irrespective of their performance at the final oral interview.

It was unclear at press time whether NBA’s recommendation swayed the LPPC to lower its benchmark for the below-par SAN designates, even as CITY LAWYER gathered that at least one of the SAN designates may have scored as low as about 80 percent, 10 percentage points off the cumulative 90 percent pass mark.

CITY LAWYER recalls that BOSAN had written to then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad via a letter dated September 21, 2021, and signed by Prof. Ben Nwabueze (SAN), Chief Folake Solanke (SAN), and Mr. Seyi Sowemimo (SAN), expressing its concerns on the declining standards in the SAN awards process. This quest contributed to the issuance of the 2022 SAN Guidelines aimed to reform the awards. The 2023 SAN awards exercise is the first test of the implementation of the 2022 Guidelines.

The 2022 Guidelines provides in Article 1 that “The award of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) is a privilege conferred as a mark of excellence on members of the legal profession ….”

Setting out the “principles” for the award of the rank which place premium on merit, the Guidelines state in Article 2(b) that “applications will be considered with merit as the primary consideration and without regard to ethnic origin, pedigree, physical disability, marital status, age, religious belief, political views or affiliations.”

Article 24 of the Guidelines deals with “Interview of Shortlisted Candidates,” while Article 24(4) sets out 9 items and their corresponding attainable scores, totaling 100 percent. These include comportment, integrity, quality of presentation, general knowledge of law, and contribution to development of law.

The top-ranking NBA-GPC official told CITY LAWYER that the NBA screening exercise “was very successful. All the candidates distinguished themselves and were all recommended. We had recommended the candidates, having scored them highly. The prerogative of award usually lies with the LPPC. We wish them luck at the interview of the LPPC.” 

Speaking after the LPPC announced its final shortlist, the source said: “We were glad the LPPC accepted our recommendations and all the applicants in the advocates category were awarded the rank. We thank God for his mercies.”

When CITY LAWYER contacted Hajo Bello, the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court and Secretary of the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee via a text message, she responded tersely: “I am not privileged to be answering your questions. You may write officially.” Though CITY LAWYER requested an email address to send in an enquiry, the LPPC Secretary had not responded at press time.

Also, efforts to access the LPPC through its official website (https://lppc.gov.ng/) proved abortive as the website is inactive. The website through which the Committee received applications for the awards (https://lppconline.com/) also has no information on its advertised “Contact” link.

It is recalled that controversies have trailed award of the SAN rank over the years, leading BOSAN to canvass that the awards should be paused to allow for reforms. This led to the 2022 Guidelines which sought to tighten the award process and make it more credible and devoid of controversies.

Meanwhile, applicants from the South West Zone dominate this year’s award list, taking the lion’s share of 19 slots. While South East took the second position with 12 slots, it is closely followed by North Central with 10 slots and South South with 8 slots. North West had three slots on the awards list while North East brought the rear with only two SAN designates.

The BOSAN letter to then Chief Justice of Nigeria, who statutorily doubles as Chairman of the influential LPPC, was titled “RE: LEGAL PRACTITIONERS PRIVILEGES COMMITTEE’S LISTING OF 130 LAWYERS AS SHORTLISTED IN THE PROCESS FOR CONFERMENT WITH THE RANK OF SENIOR ADVOCATE OF NIGERIA FOR THE YEAR 2021: REITERATION OF THE BODY OF SENIOR ADVOCATES OF NIGERIA’S (BOSAN) STRONG NOTE OF CONCERN ON THE QUALITY OF THE PROCESS AND PROCEDURE FOR THE CONFERMENT OF THE RANK.” Mr. Abubakar Malami, then Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, was copied on the letter.

The letter reads: “It is not willy-nilly that all candidates that meet the set criteria should be appointed in any given year, as such an approach cannot but result in the degradation of the rank. It is those that prove to be outstanding within the shortlist that should be conferred with the rank. This is the time-honoured rule applied in relation to admissions to all reputable institutions in situations where competition is high and spaces are limited and where it would be inappropriate to accommodate all those persons who appear to have met the criteria.

“There is even a greater need for more stringent approach in cases where appointments are to be made on the basis of academic accomplishments.”

According to BOSAN, “It has now become necessary that we reiterate, respectfully, the concerns raised in the body’s earlier letter. The members of the Inner bar are concerned that the current procedure and criteria for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria would result in a watered-down perception of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria. We are also of the considered opinion that it is imperative that the Committee pauses and reassesses the procedure and criteria for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria as we fear that that (sic) the process could be reduced to a ‘mere compilation and submission of the listed documentation’ in the next few years, with no attention to excellence or distinction in the practice of law.

“In light of this, we write to reiterate our earlier recommendation that the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria be put on hold to enable the Committee to conduct and publish a credible and comprehensive review of the process for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.”

Pledging its support of the review process “in any way possible” and as a “dominant stakeholder” in the entire exercise, the body advised that the review process “should re-evaluate the criteria, guidelines and administrative processes leading to the selection, including the personnel at the SAN/LPPC Administrative Secretariat/Department, proper pre-screening of applicants, competitive processes and independent assessment free of lobbying, all geared towards attaining and sustaining continuous improvements and retaining the dignity, respect and reverence of the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and the legal profession in general.”

It noted the urgency of its Save-Our-Soul letter, adding: “We would like to point out that a comprehensive review of the screening process is an urgent and necessary step to retain the dignity, respect, and reverence of the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and the legal profession in general. The Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria is still committed to providing its expertise and support at every stage of the review process and we are anticipating positive feedback and implementation of the recommendations in this letter.”

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  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • Oct 28, 2022
  • 1
  • Comments Off on EXCLUSIVE: NEW SAN GUIDELINES ‘EMERGE,’ PEG AWARD TO 1 ACADEMIC

EXCLUSIVE: NEW SAN GUIDELINES ‘EMERGE,’ PEG AWARD TO 1 ACADEMIC

• FAR-REACHING REFORMS, TOUGH SANCTIONS IMMINENT

* BOSAN, NALT MAY GET SCREENING ROLES

* N1 MILLION APPLICATION FEE

Only the best applicant in the Academic Category will be conferred with the coveted rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in the 2023 preferment exercise, CITY LAWYER can authoritatively report.

CITY LAWYER gathered that the decision is in line with the intendment of the original drafters of the Guidelines that the award to academics should be made only in “exceptional cases.”

According to documents obtained by CITY LAWYER, aside from showing evidence of full-time teaching and research in a faculty of law in a reputable university duly accredited by both the National Universities Commission and the Council of Legal Education, a recognized legal research institute or the Nigerian Law School for at least 10 years immediately preceding the application, the applicant must be a professor in such institution, and must have been so for at least two years preceding the application, except if applicant is a Director-General of the Nigerian Law School.

Though controversy is trailing a purported ‘gazetted’ copy of the eagerly awaited 2022 Guidelines to be issued by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) of the Body of Benchers, multiple sources told CITY LAWYER that a whopping N1 Million is the new application fee for applicants seeking to be conferred with the rank, up from N300,000 in 2013 and N600,000 in the 2018 Guidelines. This is aside from a N200,000 “processing conferment fee” for successful applicants in the last exercise. Unlike the 2013 and 2018 Guidelines, the new rules may be silent on the exact amount to be paid as application fee.

Meanwhile, there are strong indications that the LPPC has cut the period for which applicants must have attained partnership in their law firms from five to two years preceding the application.

CITY LAWYER gathered that applications may now close on January 31 of every year, even as applicants may be required to provide the exact number of judgments required by the Guidelines and list the judgments in order of significance, unlike previously when applicants were allowed to dump as many cases as possible on the LPPC. The number of “final judgments” to be submitted by each applicant under the Advocates Category however remain unchanged at 20 judgments at the trial court level, five Court of Appeal judgments and four Supreme Court judgments.

However, in a move said to be designed to aid decongestion of court cases and ameliorate lengthy adjournments at the appellate courts, the Guidelines may provide that applicants who have valid pending appeals before the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court of Nigeria in which briefs have been settled prior to the making of the Guidelines and which appeals have been pending before the Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court of Nigeria for a minimum of 7 (seven) years, and who are able to settle such appeals amicably by entering into terms of settlement and by submitting to consent judgments, will be permitted to count a maximum of 2 (two) such consent judgments as part of their cases. Aside from other criteria, this requirement will operate for only five years in the first instance.

The new Guidelines may contain an elaborate sanctions and disciplinary regime which bar provision of false and misleading information as well as lobbying by applicants. Defaulters will be “blacklisted” and barred from applying for the rank for three to 10 years. Accomplices who are already Senior Advocates of Nigeria may have their rank withdrawn aside from possible prosecution.

CITY LAWYER also gathered that the Guidelines may also codify both physical and virtual inspection of applicants’ chambers, even as the LPPC may co-opt Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) and National Association of Law Teachers (NALT) members in the screening of final judgments and articles submitted by the advocates and academics respectively.

CITY LAWYER recalls that the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria & Secretary to LPPC, Hajo Sarki Bello had in a press statement dated 29th September, 2022 noted that “The meeting (of LPPC) further approved a new Guidelines for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and all matters pertaining to the rank to guide future exercises.”

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FEWER SENIOR LAWYERS MAKE 2022 SAN LIST

• 20 ADVOCATES, 47 ACADEMICS DROPPED

* BOSAN WINS, AS LPPC REJIGS SAN GUIDELINES

The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) has unveiled 62 senior lawyers who made the coveted rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria for the 2022 preferment programme.

A breakdown of the list showed that the lawyers comprised 9 academics and 53 advocates.

The number is 10 short of the 72 senior lawyers that were conferred with the new rank last year. Meanwhile, a whopping 67 of the 129 lawyers who made the 2022 shortlist also fell by the way side.

Of the 73 shortlisted advocates, 53 were conferred with the rank while 20 did not make the list. Most of the shortlisted applicants who did not make the final list came from the Academics Category where a whopping 47 were dropped, leaving only nine of the 56 applicants originally shortlisted by the LPPC.

A total of 137 lawyers were shortlisted for the rank in 2020 — with 116 advocate applicants and 21 academic applicants. Just as in 2021, 72 senior lawyers made the list of successful candidates while 65 fell by the way side.

The Committee is also set to unveil new Guidelines for the 2023 application season. The Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) has especially been vocal is canvassing an overhaul of the awards regime in order to restore the rank to its glory days. BOSAN had also urged that the awards should be paused while the review subsisted.

Among the new SAN-designates are three Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecutors, namely Messrs Wahab Shittu, Sylvanus Tahir, and Rotimi Oyedepo.

Others are former United Nations Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons, Prof. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo; former Oyo State Attorney-General, Mr. Mutalubi Ojo Adebayo; University of Lagos scholar, Prof. Gabriel Amokaye, as well as Messrs Andrew Malgwi, Godson Ugochukwu, and Oladipo Akanmu Tolani.

A statement by the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court and Secretary of the LPPC, Hajo Sarki Bello, said the SAN-designates would be inaugurated on 21st November, 2022.

The full text of the statement reads:

29th September, 2022

PRESS RELEASE

The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) under the chairmanship of His Lordship, Hon Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, at its 154th plenary session held today 29th September, 2022, has approved the elevation of 62 legal practitioners to the Inner Bar. The rank of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) is awarded as a mark of excellence to members of the legal profession who have distinguished themselves as advocates and academics.

The swearing – in ceremony of the 62 legal practitioners is scheduled to take place on Monday the 21st day of November 2022.The new appointees for year 2022 exercise are:

ADVOCATE APPOINTEES (IN ORDER OF SENIORITY AT THE BAR)

1. MOHAMMED ABDULLAHI ABUBAKAR, ESQ.
2. JOHNSON TARIGHO OMOPHE UGBODUMA, ESQ.
3. LAWRENCE SUNDAY OKO-JAJA, ESQ.
4. CHRISTOPHER AGBOMEIRHE SUNDAY OSHOMEGIE, ESQ.
5. SANUSI OLUGBENGA SAI’D, ESQ.
6. WAHAB KUNLE SHITTU, ESQ.
7. EMMANUEL IDEMUDIA OBOH, ESQ.
8. DIRI SAID MOHAMMED, ESQ.
9. OLADIPO AKANMU TOLANI, ESQ.
10. AYODEJI OYEWOLE OMOTOSO, ESQ
11. CHIJIOKE OGBONNA ERONDU, ESQ.
12. AJOKU KINGSLEY OBINNA, ESQ.
13. YAKUBU MAIKASUWA, ESQ.
14. HENRY ESHIJONAM OMU, ESQ.
15. DAGOGO ISRAEL IBOROMA, ESQ.
16. JOSEPH ADEMU AKUBO, ESQ.
17. GOZIE BERTRAND OBI, ESQ.
18. INAM AKPADIAGHA WILSON ESQ.
19. ABUBAKAR BATURE SULU-GAMBARI, ESQ.
20. ABIOYE ARAOYE OLOYEDE ASANIKE, ESQ.
21. SYLVANUS TAHIRU, ESQ.
22. BOLARINWA ELIJAH AIDI, ESQ.
23. TONYE TOMBERE JENEWARI KRUKRUBO, ESQ.
24. ADEREMI MOSHOOD BASHUA, ESQ.
25. KOLAPO OLUGBENGA KOLADE, ESQ.
26. SAMUEL PETER KARGBO, ESQ.
27. IFEANYICHUKWU SYLVESTER OBIAKOR, ESQ.
28. OLASOJI OLAIYA OLOWOLAFE, ESQ.
29. MUTALUBI OJO ADEBAYO, ESQ.
30. VICTOR ODAFE OGUDE, ESQ.
31. SULAYMAN OLAWALE IBRAHIM, ESQ.
32. MUMINI ISHOLA HANAFI, ESQ.
33. TANKO TANKO ASHANG, ESQ.
34. DAMIAN OHAKWE OKORO, ESQ.
35. ANDREW MWAJIM MALGWI, ESQ.
36. ETUKWU ONAH, ESQ.
37. ADEBORO LATEEF ADAMSON, ESQ.
38. BANKOLE JOEL AKOMOLAFE, ESQ.
39. KELECHI CHINEDUM OBI, ESQ.
40. ANDREW OSEMEDUA ODUM, ESQ.
41. OKORO OKECHUKWU EDWIN, ESQ.
42. GODSON CHUKWUDI UGOCHUKWU, ESQ.
43. STEVEN ONYECHI ONONYE, ESQ.
44. IKANI KANU AGABI, ESQ.
45. MUSTAPHA SHABA IBRAHIM, ESQ.
46. MUIZUDEEN YUNUS ABDULLAHI, ESQ.
47. MAGAJI MATO IBRAHIM, ESQ.
48. SUNUSI MUSA, ESQ.
49. OLADOYIN OLUSEYI AWOYALE, ESQ.
50. ROTIMI ISEOLUWA OYEDEPO, ESQ.
51. CHUKWUDUBEM BONAVENTURE ANYIGBO, ESQ.
52. LUKMAN OYEBANJI FAGBEMI, ESQ.
53. MICHAEL JONATHAN NUMA, ESQ.

ACADEMIC APPOINTEES (IN ORDER OF SENIORITY AT THE BAR)
1. PROF. KATHLEEN EBELECHUKWU OKAFOR
2. PROF. MUHAMMED TAOFEEQ ABDULRAZAQ
3. PROF. AMOKAYE OLUDAYO GABRIEL
4. PROF. ISMAIL ADENIYI OLATUNBOSUN
5. PROF. ABDULLAHI SHEHU ZURU
6. PROF. JOY NGOZI EZEILO
7. ASS/PROF. THEODORE BALA MAIYAKI
8. PROF. OLAIDE ABASS GBADAMOSI
9. ASS/PROF. CHIMEZIE KINGSLEY OKORIE

The meeting further approved a new Guidelines for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and all matters pertaining to the rank to guide future exercises.

Dated at Abuja, Federal Capital Territory this 29th day of September, 2022

HAJO SARKI BELLO, ESQ
CHIEF REGISTRAR OF THE SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA / SECRETARY LPPC

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  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • May 30, 2022
  • 1
  • Comments Off on ‘WHY WE DID NOT DISQUALIFY MAIKYAU’ – ECNBA

‘WHY WE DID NOT DISQUALIFY MAIKYAU’ – ECNBA

The Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA) has given reasons why it did not disqualify one of the leading presidential candidates, Mr. Yakubu Maikyau SAN from contesting the forthcoming NBA Elections.

In a letter obtained by CITY LAWYER and addressed to embattled Bar aspirant, Mr. Kayode Bello who wrote a petition to the electoral committee seeking the disqualification of the senior lawyer, the ECNBA ruled that it “has no jurisdiction over the complaint, as the subject matter of the petition is pending before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (“LPDC”) the competent statutory body for adjudication.”

Dated May 27, 2022 and titled “2022 ELECTIONS OF NATIONAL OFFICERS OF THE NBA – RESOLUTION OF PETITION DATED 2 MAY 2022,” the electoral committee referred to Bello’s petition dated May 2, 2022 “and the response to the petition received from Mr. Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, SAN, FCIArb (“the Respondent”) dated 12 May 2022.”

In the letter which was copied to Maikyau, the electoral umpire noted that Bello had “requested that the ECNBA disqualifies the Respondent from contesting for the office of the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).”

The ECNBA stated that it “has considered the petition and the response to same,” adding that aside from the jurisdictional hurdle which it was unable to surmount, “the power of the ECNBA to disqualify a person who wishes to contest for an office shall only crystallizes (sic) after a conviction of crime by a court of competent jurisdiction or if the candidate is found guilty of misconduct or professional impropriety by the LPDC by virtue of Part VII(e) and (f) Second Schedule of the Constitution.”

Sounding the death knell on Bello’s petition, the electoral committee wrote: “Consequently, your petition fails.”

In a petition addressed to the ECNBA Secretary and copied to CITY LAWYER, Bello had urged the ECNBA “to suspend the candidature of Mr. Y. C. Maikyau as the NBA presidential Aspirant, pending the determination of the disciplinary case against him at the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) for his misconduct.”

Restating his grouse, Bello wrote: “In summary, Mr. Y.C. Maikyau who stands as presidential aspirant for the office of the NBA President in the forthcoming NBA election has lied to the LPPC that I did not show up at the Nigerian Law School for my Bar Final examination and he has used his office and position as the Senior Advocate of Nigeria to frustrate the reconciliation process between the Council of Legal Education and myself (Kayode Bello).

“The fact that Mr. Y.C. Maikyau lied to the LPPC that I did not or refused to show up for my Bar final examination in 2017 is/was tantamount to perverting justice and conspiracy to disobey the order of the Court.”

Maikyau however denied all the allegations in his response to the electoral body.

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  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • May 09, 2022
  • 0
  • Comments Off on KAYODE BELLO’S PETITION: ‘MY HANDS ARE CLEAN,’ SAYS MAIKYAU

KAYODE BELLO’S PETITION: ‘MY HANDS ARE CLEAN,’ SAYS MAIKYAU

One of the leading aspirants for the post of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Presidency, Mr. Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau SAN has said that he is not guilty of any misconduct as alleged by embattled Bar aspirant, Mr. Kayode Bello.

Though Maikyau is yet to respond to the current petition by Bello urging the Electoral Committee of the NBA to bar him from participating in the poll for alleged disobedience of court order among others, an earlier response by Maikyau obtained by CITY LAWYER showed that the fiery litigator had denied any misconduct.

In a detailed response to two petitions by Bello dated 13th April, 2018 and 18th May, 2018 urging the Disciplinary Committee of the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) to among others withdraw the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria from the prominent lawyer, Maikyau had urged “that the petition be dismissed as lacking merit and a mere calculated attempt to smear my reputation as a member of the Inner Bar.”

Addressed to the secretary of the Disciplinary Committee Patricia Orhomuru, Maikyau traced the genesis of his firm’s representation of the Council of Legal Education (CLE) to 2016. He said that it was not until 2017 that Bello’s file was handed to his firm following his filing of a lawsuit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/717/2017 against the Council of Legal Education and the Inspector General of Police. He wrote: “Thus, when the suit which gave rise to these petitions was filed by Kayode Bello, it was forwarded to us and we immediately took steps to put up representation on behalf of the CLE.”

He stated that the facts leading to the institution of the lawsuit by Bello took place on March 15, 2017 when the petitioner had an altercation with a female Nigerian Law School student over a preferred seat in the lecture hall, adding that “All entreaties by the Auditorium Marshall and Chairman of the Students’ Representative Council for the Petitioner to give up the seat for the initial occupant fell on deaf ears.”

Continuing, Maikyau stated that “Consequently, the CLE issued a query to the Petitioner dated 15th March, 2017. Rather than respond to the query, the Petitioner made allegations against the Staff and threatened in a letter dated 16th March, 2017, to petition the SDA to the CLE to the Public Complaints Commission.”

According to Maikyau, “The Petitioner also petitioned the Head, Control Room to the SDA to the CLE, which petition was widely circulated on the Nigerian Law School, Abuja campus by the Petitioner. The Petitioner thereafter, paraded himself on the campus with T-shirts bearing inciting inscriptions such as “Onadeko Must Go”. This resulted in other queries to the Petitioner.

He stated that while the Students’ Representative Council issued a disclaimer and dissociated itself from the conduct of the Petitioner, Bello was duly invited to defend himself before the Students’ Misconducts Committee. “Premised on the above queries and invitation, all of which the Petitioner refused to respond to, the CLE took a decision to evict the Petitioner from the Students’ hostel in order to avoid further breach of peace by him (the Petitioner),” wrote Maikyau. “The letter requesting the Petitioner to vacate the Hostel and attend lectures from outside the School dated 21st March, 2017 is attached as Annexure 12. Owing to the Petitioner’s unrepentant conduct, the CLE took the decision to expel the Petitioner from the Nigerian Law School by a letter dated 17th July, 2017.” He noted that the Petitioner commenced the lawsuit, apparently aggrieved by his expulsion from the school.

Tracing the history of the lawsuit and the aborted settlement between the parties in his response dated March 14, 2019, Maikyau concluded: “The foregoing are the facts and circumstances of our encounter thus far as an office with the Petitioner. I, as counsel and indeed the lawyers in my Firm in the execution of our instruction, deny conducting ourselves in any way or manner to frustrate the admonition by the Court to pursue an out of Court settlement. My colleagues and I have with all due respect, conducted ourselves with the highest level of professionalism and deference for the ethics of our noble profession. I have not in any way scuttled the reconciliation process in the above-named case and neither did I abuse the privilege conferred on me as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. On the contrary, I have striven to uphold the dignity of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria by insisting on due observance of our Rules of Professional Conduct which behoove Counsel to show respect while dealing with colleagues. We offered professional advice to the CLE and the decision not to settle this matter out of Court was entirely that of the CLE. As would be seen in the petitions and in the proceedings of Court (Annexure 32), I have had no personal interactions with the Petitioner in the course of this matter.”

Maikyau then urged the Disciplinary Committee to dismiss the petitions “as lacking in merit” and a plot to smear his reputation as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

It was unclear at press time whether Bello’s latest petition has been delivered to Maikyau for his response, even as the ECNBA has assured that the petition would be decided on its merit.

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PETITIONER ASKS ECNBA TO BAR MAIKYAU FROM NBA ELECTION

* SAYS HE HAS PENDING PETITION AT LPPC

* ‘I HAVE NO COMMENTS,’ MAIKYAU TELLS CITY LAWYER

An embattled aspirant to the Nigerian Bar and erstwhile student of the Nigerian Law School has urged the Electoral Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (ECNBA) to bar one of the leading presidential aspirants in the forthcoming NBA Elections, Mr. Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau SAN from taking part in the NBA presidential poll.

The petitioner, Mr. Kayode Bello, made the plea in a petition he emailed yesterday to the verified email handle of the ECNBA, info@ecnba.ng and copied to CITY LAWYER. Others copied in the petition include “Mr. Gadzama, NBA Presidential Aspirant;” “Mr. Laidi, NBA presidential Aspirant;” the “press/media;” Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC); “United States Embassy (for rule of law),” and the United Nations Human Rights Council.

His words: “It is hereby prayed that Mr. Y.C. Maikyau, an aspirant for the NBA election, 2022, be screened properly based on the foregoing and his candidacy be suspended based on the doctrine of necessity to ensure sanctity and sanity of the noble legal profession. And that the ECNBA should do that which is appropriate and or necessary to sustain and maintain the nobleness of the legal profession.”

Meanwhile, Maikyau declined comment on the matter when CITY LAWYER contacted him, saying that the petition was not addressed to him. “Why should I respond?” he asked. He however expressed readiness to respond to the petition if asked to do so by the electoral umpire.

Dated May 2, 2022 and addressed to the Secretary, Electoral “Commission” of the Nigerian Bar Association, the petition was titled “PETITON AGAINST Y.C. MAIKYAU AT THE LEGAL PRACTITIONERS’ PRIVILEGES COMMITTEE: NEED FOR PROPER SCRUTINY AND SUSPENSION OF Y.C. MAIKYAU’S CANDIDATURE AS NBA PRESIDENTIAL ASPIRANT.”

The petitioner based the ground of his petition on section 20 (1) (f) of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Constitution 2021 (as amended) which states that “A National Officer may be removed from office where he /she is involved in an act or behavior that brings or is likely to bring the Association into disrepute.‘’

He urged the ECNBA “to suspend the candidature of Mr. Y. C. Maikyau as the NBA presidential Aspirant, pending the determination of the disciplinary case against him at the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) for his misconduct.”

Bello argued that the suspension of the candidature of Mr. Y.C. Maikyau “is necessary as expounded by the 13th century English jurist, Henry de Bracton,” adding that the doctrine of necessity is that ‘’that which is otherwise not lawful is made lawful by necessity.

“The suspension of Mr. Y.C. Maikyau from contesting as the NBA presidential aspirant would bring honour to the highly revered legal profession, and would prevent unnecessary distractions in the conduct of the NBA activities and duties in respect especially of the next administration of NBA and National Executive Committee of the NBA.”

Delving into the kernel of his grouse against the senior lawyer, Bello wrote: “The petition against Mr. Y.C. Maikyau at the LPPC is based on disobedience of Court Order obtained by me (Kayode Bello) permitting me to write my Bar Final examination at the Nigerian Law School after I was unlawfully expelled by the Nigerian Law School over reservation of seat by my colleague, Miss Chidinma Akam (who has been called to the Nigerian Bar), due to poor state of facilities at the Nigerian Law School.”

He alleged that he has not completed his Law School programme, blaming it “mainly to acts and lies” of a plethora of persons including a former Dean of Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan “who kept sending negative reports about me to the Nigerian Law School that led to my expulsion at the Nigerian Law School, Mr. Obasi Obi, the lawyer working with Mr. Y.C. Maikyau, Late Mr. Akinyemi Julius (of late memory) amongst others.

“Another Law School Application Form I obtained was sent by my Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan, to the Nigerian Law School for admission purpose but the Nigerian Law School has neither admitted me nor given reason it did not admit me. In accordance to the code of conduct of the Nigerian Law School, I was not barred from attending the Nigerian Law School.”

Stating that Maikyau “elected” to be the counsel to the Council of Legal Education, the beleaguered Bar aspirant alleged that “It is also untruthful, unfair and unbecoming of Mr. Y.C. Maikyau in his response to the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) to have LIED that:

‘’ …. Notwithstanding the matters stated above, the Petitioner [myself] failed and or refused to show up to write the examination’’ (paragraph 12 of Mr. Y.C Maikyau’s reply to the Disciplinary Committee of the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC), Supreme Court of Nigeria, dated 14th March 2019, whereas on August 15th, 2017 I was at the Nigerian Law School gate to enter for the Bar Final Examination, but I was not
allowed to enter.”

Bello alleged that while he proceeded to court to levy contempt proceedings against Maikyau among others, the NBA presidential aspirant “used his position as the Senior Advocate of Nigeria to scuttle the reconciliation efforts as advised by Justice B.O. Quadri on 8th of September, 2017, that we (parties) should reconcile.”

Restating his grouse, Bello wrote: “In summary, Mr. Y.C. Maikyau who stands as presidential aspirant for the office of the NBA President in the forthcoming NBA election has lied to the LPPC that I did not show up at the Nigerian Law School for my Bar Final examination and he has used his office and position as the Senior Advocate of Nigeria to frustrate the reconciliation process between the Council of Legal Education and myself (Kayode Bello).

“The fact that Mr. Y.C. Maikyau lied to the LPPC that I did not or refused to show up for my Bar final examination in 2017 is/was tantamount to perverting justice and conspiracy to disobey the order of the Court.”

He alleged that the acts “are against the basic aims, objects and tenets of the Nigerian Bar Association,” and “prayed that Mr. Y.C. Maikyau, an aspirant for the NBA election, 2022, be screened properly based on the foregoing and his candidacy be suspended based on the doctrine of necessity to ensure sanctity and sanity of the noble legal profession.”

The ECNBA is yet to respond to the petition. The NBA Election is scheduled to hold on July 16, 2022 to elect National Officers and NBA representatives at the General Council of the Bar.

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  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • Oct 25, 2021
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  • Comments Off on EXCLUSIVE: DROPPED SAN-DESIGNATE SPEAKS

EXCLUSIVE: DROPPED SAN-DESIGNATE SPEAKS

Mr. Chidi Nworka, the aspirant for the coveted rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) who was sensationally replaced by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) has told CITY LAWYER that he is “taking my time to digest it.”

It is recalled that the LPPC had admitted an error while announcing the list of successful applicants for the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, blaming the incident on a “mix-up.”

Said the committee: “In the press release issued by this office yesterday, 21st October 2021 announcing the list of successful applicants for the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Nworka, Chidi Benjamin Esq. listed as No. 43 was mistakenly included in the list of Advocate Appointees. The actual successful applicant that ought to be in the said list is OSAKA, BENJAMIN NWORA, ESQ.”

Continuing, the LPPC said: “The mix-up is highly regretted and we apologise to all persons affected by it. A corrected version of the list in the order (sic) seniority at the outer Bar is hereby is hereby listed below for record purposes.”

The incident had generated heated reactions in legal circles, with many lawyers expressing shock at the mix-up.

When contacted, the embattled SAN aspirant told CITY LAWYER that he would “prefer” not to speak on the controversial saga. He said that he is “still watching events unfold,” adding that the incident is “still fresh and emotions are still high.”

According to him, “I am taking my time to digest it and let it simmer down. You will recall that as lawyers, when some judgements come, we say, ‘Let’s take our time and digest it.’ That is my attitude presently. I would prefer not to speak about the incident for now. Please bear with me.”

CITY LAWYER gathered that Nworka also went all the way with his last year’s application but was unable to scale the last screening hurdle.

Although the influential Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) had mounted a strident campaign to compel the LPPC to suspend the awards and revamp its guidelines, the committee brushed aside the call to elevate 72 senior lawyers to the coveted rank.

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. To ADVERTISE in CITY LAWYER, please email citylawyermag@gmail.com or call 08138380083. The assertions and opinions expressed in articles, announcements and/or news on this website reflect the views of the author(s) and do not (necessarily) reflect the views of the webmaster, the internet provider or CITY LAWYER. CITY LAWYER can in no way whatsoever be held responsible for the content of such views nor can it be held liable for any direct or indirect damage that may arise from such views. CITY LAWYER neither guarantees nor supports any product or service mentioned on this website, nor does it warrant any assertions made by the manufacturers or promoters of such products or services. Users of this website are always recommended to obtain independent information and/or to perform independent research before using the information acquired via this website.

 

  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • Oct 22, 2021
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  • Comments Off on BREAKING: ANXIETY, AS LPPC PLEADS ‘MIX-UP,’ REPLACES SAN-DESIGNATE

BREAKING: ANXIETY, AS LPPC PLEADS ‘MIX-UP,’ REPLACES SAN-DESIGNATE

There is anxiety within legal circles as the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) today admitted an error in its listing of newly designated Senior Advocates of Nigeria.

In a press release obtained by CITY LAWYER, the committee stated that there was a “mix-up” in the list issued yesterday, saying: “In the press release issued by this office yesterday, 21st October 2021 announcing the list of successful applicants for the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Nworka, Chidi Benjamin Esq. listed as No. 43 was mistakenly included in the list of Advocate Appointees. The actual successful applicant that ought to be in the said list is OSAKA, BENJAMIN NWORA, ESQ.”

Continuing, the LPPC said: “The mix-up is highly regretted and we apologise to all persons affected by it. A corrected version of the list in the order (sic) seniority at the outer Bar is hereby is hereby listed below for record purposes.”

Worried by this development, a senior lawyer-turned-broadcaster wrote: “So the LPPC made one lawyer, his family and friends to celebrate in vain yesterday! I’m still in shock that this error happened.”

However, a leading lawyer who is familiar with the process told CITY LAWYER that it is a “Genuine error,” adding: “They mixed up two names : OSAKA, BENJAMIN NWORA and NWORKA, BENJAMIN CHIDI. The former is the successful candidate. When they were typing out the names they picked the latter. I think it’s a genuine mistake, particularly for people who are not familiar with Igbo names.”

It is recalled that the committee yesterday brushed aside the call by the influential Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) to elevate 72 senior lawyers to the coveted rank. BOSAN had, as exclusively reported by CITY LAWYER, called for a suspension of the awards for three years in order to enable a holistic reform of the award process.

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  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • Oct 21, 2021
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  • Comments Off on HISTORY, AS LPPC SHUNS BOSAN, APPOINTS 72 SANS

HISTORY, AS LPPC SHUNS BOSAN, APPOINTS 72 SANS

• PROMISES TO REFORM SAN RANK

• NEW GUIDELINES FOR 2023 AWARDS

The Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) has brushed aside a strident call by the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) to appoint 72 senior lawyers as Senior Advocates of Nigeria.

History was made today following release of list of newly appointed senior advocates of Nigeria by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC).

The committee bestowed the coveted rank on the first clergy man as well as a serving senior police officer. These are Rev. (Dr.) Edwin Sunday Chukwujekwu Obiora (Anambra State) and Simon Asember Lough (Benue State), a Deputy Commissioner of Police serving at Force Headquarters, Abuja.

Meanwhile, the LPPC which has the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Ibrahim Tank Muhammad as its chairman, has set up a sub-committee to review the guidelines for the award of the rank. This may not be unconnected with the damning indictment of the award process by the influential Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) as reported exclusively by CITY LAWYER.

According to the press release issued today by Hajo Sarki Bello Esquire, Acting Chief Registrar of Supreme Court and LPPC Secretary, 72 lawyers were elevated to the new rank, comprising 62 advocates and 10 academics. The appointees would be sworn-in on December 8, 2021 at the Supreme Court premises, Abuja.

The application for the 2022 exercise would open in January, said the committee, adding: “In the meantime, the Legal Practitioners Privileges committee wishes to notify the general public that it has set up a sub-committee to review the 2018 Guidelines for the award of the rank effective from 2023 award year.”

It is recalled that BOSAN had expressed worry over the huge number of applicants recently shortlisted for award of the rank, warning that unless a holistic review of the award process is undertaken by the LPPC, the rank risked losing its prestige and standing among stakeholders.

Saying that it was gladdened by the receipt of a letter from the LPPC to its earlier complaint, BOSAN however expressed disappointment at the recent turn of events, saying: “However, following the recent announcement of the shortlisting of 130 candidates shortlisted in the process for conferment with the rank of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, we are of the considered opinion that the concerns raised in our earlier referenced letter have not been addressed.”

Pledging its support of the reform process “in any way possible” and as a “dominant stakeholder” in the entire exercise, the body advised that the review process “should re-evaluate the criteria, guidelines and administrative processes leading to the selection, including the personnel at the SAN/LPPC Administrative Secretariat/Department, proper pre-screening of applicants, competitive processes and independent assessment free of lobbying, all geared towards attaining and sustaining continuous improvements and retaining the dignity, respect and reverence of the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and the legal profession in general.”

Below is the list of the SANs-designate.

ACADEMIC appointees:

1. Prof Bankole Akintoye Sodipo

2. Prof Christian Chizundu Wigwe

3. Prof Ajagbe Toriola Oyewo

4. Prof Rasheed Jimoh Ijaodola

5. Prof Oluyinka Osayame Omorogbe

6. Dr Josephine Aladi Achor Agbonika

7. Dr Ibrahim Abdullahi

8. Prof Edoba Bright Omoregie

9. Prof Abiola Olaitan Sanni

10. Dr Anthony Ojukwu Okechukwu

ADVOCATES appointees

11. George Audu Anuga

12. Simon Asember Lough

13. Eko Ejembi Eko

14. Ayo Abraham Olorunfemi

15. Reuben Okpanachi Atabo

16. John Ogwu Adele

17. Shaibu Enejoh Aruwa

18. Eyitayo Ayokunle Fatogun

19. Jacob Johnson Usman

20. Tajudeen Olaseni Oladoja

21. Salman Jawando Ayinla

22. Adeola Rasaq Omotunde

23. Mathew Gwar Bukka

24. Mohammed Ndayako

25. Hassan Usman El-Yakub

26. Ishaq Magaji Hussaini

27. Samuel Atung

28. Mohammed Abdulhamid

29. Kabiru Aliyu

30. Mohammed Abdulaziz Sani

31. Uche Sunday Awa

32. Uchenna Chinyere Ihediwa

33. Philip Ndubuisi Umeh

34. Peter Aguigom Afuba

35. Felix Anayo Onuzulike

36. Benjamin Chukwudi Uzuegbu

37. Benjamin Nworah Osaka

38. Ikenna Okoli

39. Edwin Sunday Chukwujekwu Obiora

40. Emeka Jude-Philip Obegolu

41. Clement Onwuenwunor

42. Chijioke Ogugua Precious Emeka

43. Anthony Obinna Mogboh

44. Victor Ugwuezumba Opara

45. Kamasuode Wodu

46. Charles Udoka Ihua-Maduenyi

47. Sammie Abiye Somiari

48. Ogaga Ovrawah

49. Charles Dumbiri Mekwunye

50. Ikeazor Ajovi Akaraiwe

51. Marcellous Eguvwe Oru

52. Mark Okebuinor Mordi

53. Ehiogie West-Idahosa

54. Fredricks Ebos Itula

55. Ibrahim Idris Agbomere

56. Anthony Ademuyiwa Adeniyi

57. Bolarinwa Olotu

58. Adekola Olawale Fapohunda

59. Adekunle Akanbi Ojo

60. Olaotan Olusegun Ajose-Adeogun

61. Rotimi Sheriff Seriki

62. Olukayode Oluwole Adeluola

63. Adeyinka Moyosore Kotoye

64. Oluwasina Olanrewaju Ogungbade 65. Afolabi Fatai Kuti

66. Francis Omotosho

67. Ayodeji Adedipe

68. Adeleke Olaniyi Agbola

69. James Akingbola Akinola

70. Muritala Oladimeji Abdul-Rasheed

71. Dauda Adekola Mustapha

72. Kazeem Adekunle Gbadamosi

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  • EDITOR'S CHOICE
  • Oct 19, 2021
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  • Comments Off on 130 ‘SANS’: AGAIN, BOSAN WRITES CJN, CARPETS LPPC

130 ‘SANS’: AGAIN, BOSAN WRITES CJN, CARPETS LPPC

• WANTS AWARD OF SAN RANK PAUSED
• WORRIES ABOUT DILUTION, LOBBYING
• SEEKS MORE STRINGENT RULES FOR ACADEMICS

The Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) has again expressed worry over the huge number of applicants recently shortlisted for possible award of the rank of senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

In a later obtained by CITY LAWYER and addressed to the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) and to the attention of its Chairman/Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, BOSAN warned that unless a holistic review of the award is undertaken by the LPPC, the rank risks losing its prestige and standing among stakeholders.

Dated September 21, 2021 and signed by Prof. Ben Nwabueze (SAN), Chief Folake Solanke (SAN) and BOSAN’S longstanding Secretary, Mr. Seyi Sowemimo (SAN), the letter is titled “RE: LEGAL PRACTITIONERS PRIVILEGES COMMITTEE’S LISTING OF 130 LAWYERS AS SHORTLISTED IN THE PROCESS FOR CONFERMENT WITH THE RANK OF SENIOR ADVOCATE OF NIGERIA FOR THE YEAR 2021: REITERATION OF THE BODY OF SENIOR ADVOCATES OF NIGERIA’S (BOSAN) STRONG NOTE OF CONCERN ON THE QUALITY OF THE PROCESS AND PROCEDURE FOR THE CONFERMENT OF THE RANK.” It was copied to all LPPC members and the Attorney-General & Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN).

BOSAN referred to the response to its earlier letter signed by LPPC Chairman, Justice Muhammad and noted that “Upon receipt of the letter from the Committee, we were hopeful that necessary changes as conveyed in our letter would be implemented to preserve the dignity of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.”

The body expressed disappointment at the recent turn of events, saying: “However, following the recent announcement of the shortlisting of 130 candidates shortlisted in the process for conferment with the rank of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, we are of the considered opinion that the concerns raised in our earlier referenced letter have not been addressed.”

Lampooning the shortlist, BOSAN said that “It is not willy-nilly that all candidates that meet the set criteria should be appointed in any given year, as such an approach cannot but result in the degradation of the rank. It is those that prove to be outstanding within the shortlist that should be conferred with the rank. This is the time honoured rule applied in relation to admissions to all reputable institutions in situations where competition is high and spaces are limited and where it would be inappropriate to accommodate all those persons who appear to have met the criteria.”

Turning to the conferment of the rank to academics, BOSAN warned that “There is even a greater need for more stringent approach in cases where appointments are to be made on the basis of academic accomplishments.”

Noting that “It has now become necessary that we reiterate, respectfully, the concerns raised in the body’s earlier letter, BOSAN said: “The members of the Inner bar are concerned that the current procedure and criteria for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria would result in a watered-down perception of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria. We are also of the considered opinion that it is imperative that the Committee pauses and reassesses the procedure and criteria for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria as we fear that that (sic) the process could be reduced to a ‘mere compilation and submission of the listed documentation’ in the next few years, with no attention to excellence or distinction in the practice of law.”

Insisting that the award of the rank should be suspended to allow for a holistic appraisal, BOSAN said: “In light of this, we write to reiterate our earlier recommendation that the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria be put on hold to enable the Committee to conduct and publish a credible and comprehensive review of the process for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.”

Pledging its support of the review process “in any way possible” and as a “dominant stakeholder” in the entire exercise, the body advised that the review process “should re-evaluate the criteria, guidelines and administrative processes leading to the selection, including the personnel at the SAN/LPPC Administrative Secretariat/Department, proper pre-screening of applicants, competitive processes and independent assessment free of lobbying, all geared towards attaining and sustaining continuous improvements and retaining the dignity, respect and reverence of the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and the legal profession in general.”

Noting the urgency of its Save-Our-Soul letter, BOSAN said: “We would like to point out that a comprehensive review of the screening process is an urgent and necessary step to retain the dignity, respect, and reverence of the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and the legal profession in general. The Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria is still committed to providing its expertise and support at every stage of the review process and we are anticipating a positive feedback and implementation of the recommendations in this letter.”

It is recalled that CITY LAWYER had in an exclusive report noted BOSAN’s blistering condemnation of the 2020 award process which threw up 72 senior advocates, saying: “BOSAN struggles to understand the rationale for the over 100% increase from the previous year and a 600% increase from a 45-year average. We are dismayed at this out-stepping from the norms and standards established over nearly five decades of our legal history.”

Delivering its final verdict on the exercise, BOSAN said: “We are of the strong and painful view, and it would appear to many, that the criteria have been whittled down and the bar/benchmark lowered to the extent of defeating the description of excellence as a sine qua non for attaining the prestigious rank.”

This is notwithstanding that Justice Muhammad had in LPPC’s response assured BOSAN that the Committee had considered BOSAN’s concerns “in detail,” adding that a review would be undertaken to strengthen the conferment process.

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‘SANship NO LONGER MARK OF LEGAL EXCELLENCE,’ SAYS ADEGBORUWA

By Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN

In this article, leading human rights activist, EBUN-OLU ADEGBORUWA, SAN argues that while the process leading to award of SAN title is increasingly meritorious, the rank is no longer the ultimate barometer for measuring legal excellence 

On July 4, 2019, the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, LPPC, rolled out the names of thirty-eight legal practitioners deserving to be conferred with the prestigious Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN. How some despise the Rank! Some don’t want it ever mentioned near them at all, for several reasons. I used to be in that class, given my background, as an activist. Not long after setting up my law practice, a friend approached me for what he termed a ‘private chat’. According to him, he had followed me keenly right from my days in Gani Fawehinmi Chambers and he was convinced of my sterling qualities, experience and standing, all of which should qualify me to be admitted into the Inner Bar, as he called it. I laughed so loudly, to the point of his embarrassment. I had just moved my law office to the NIPOST building then, following the fire disaster that I and many others suffered at LAPAL House. I took him round the expansive office, showed him my library to see the books, the litigation office and other facilities. I then asked him to tell me what he thinks that SANs have that I don’t have. All his pleas to me didn’t impress me at all, as I dismissed the process as riddled with mystery and corruption. Perhaps I was right or wrong then, I can’t say exactly, the point being that I didn’t think of such ‘distraction’ for what I considered to be a successful practice. This is the view of many lawyers and indeed many Nigerians, which is why the focus of this piece is in ‘defence’ of the Rank.

Like so many other colleagues, I never read through the aspect of the Legal Practitioner’s Act dealing with the conferment of the Rank of SAN and I didn’t bother to go through the guidelines established by the LPPC, for the Rank. And that indeed should be the starting point here, the issue to resolve being the meaning and definition of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. The life and power of an SAN all start and end with section 5 of the Legal Practitioner’s Act of 1974, wherein it is provided as follows:

“5. (1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, the Legal Practitioner’s Privileges Committee established under subsection (3) of this section may by instrument confer on a legal practitioner the Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
(2) A person shall not be conferred with the Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria unless he has been qualified to practice as a legal practitioner in Nigeria for not less than ten years and has achieved distinction in the legal profession in such manner as the Committee may, from time to time, determine.”

It is stated further that the LPPC shall consist of the Chief Justice of Nigeria as Chairman, the Attorney-General of the Federation, one Justice of the Supreme Court, the President of the Court of Appeal, five of the Chief Judges of the States, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court and five legal practitioners who are Senior Advocates of Nigeria. The LPPC is further empowered to make rules as to the privileges to be accorded to Senior Advocates of Nigeria. Two things should immediately come to mind from the foregoing provisions; first is that the Rank of SAN is conferred as a privilege and second, it is normally the privilege of the LPPC, following its own guidelines. On April 3 1974, the first set of SANs were duly conferred, being Chief F.R.A. Williams, SAN and Dr. N.B. Graham-Douglas, SAN. The conferment has proceeded yearly, since then. The point of this background information is to buttress the fact that the Rank of SAN is established by law. The LPPC has over the years, developed its own structure, by amending its guidelines for the conferment of the Rank, based upon the robust engagements of its own members, stakeholders within the legal profession and indeed members of the public.

As at the time that I applied for the Rank, the guidelines set for the award of the Rank by the LPPC expressed the threesome purpose of the award as a privilege awarded as a mark of excellence to members of the legal profession who are in full time legal practice, who have distinguished themselves as advocates and who have made significant contribution to the development of the legal profession in Nigeria. The process of the award is largely independent, self-financing and strictly confidential. The LPPC is required to fix the number of persons to be conferred with the Rank in order to maintain the highest standard of excellence and prestige of the Rank, to adopt transparency and a feedback mechanism for the assessment of candidates. The award has since been extended to legal practitioners in the academic community. Whereas there may have been some challenges with this process in times past, a lot of efforts have been put in place presently, to ensure that those who qualify for the award of the Rank meet certain minimum conditions, such that in the past five years or more, you could hardly point to anyone awarded the Rank that has not distinguished himself or herself in the legal profession. One of the things that excited me in the course of my own journey is the fact that the LPPC has now adopted a gender-friendly process to encourage female applicants, such that virtually every year, female legal practitioners have been screened successfully.

The good news in this process for every advocate is the place of merit in the basic criteria for eligibility for the award of the Rank, which is meant to encourage core advocates. Under and by virtue of Paragraph 14 of the LPPC guidelines, an applicant must submit the following cases wherein his name is reflected as having duly conducted the said cases in court as lead counsel:

(i) 20 final judgments of the High Court or Superior Court of Records, 12 of which must be trial proceedings substantially conducted by the applicant;
(ii) 5 final judgments of the Court of Appeal; and
(iii) 4 final judgments of the Supreme Court.
(iv) These cases must have been conducted within ten years preceding the application, in order to show that the applicant is currently engaged in full time legal practice and is abreast with current developments in the field of law.
(v) Three of the cases must be pro bono cases conducted for indigent citizens who could not otherwise afford the financial cost of engaging a counsel.

Some additional requirements of these new guidelines is that the candidate must show that he or she was personally involved in the conduct of these cases by signing the originating processes, the written addresses, the notices of appeal, the briefs of argument, the charge/information sheet, no case submission, etc. In the trial proceedings, the applicant must furnish the certified true copies of the record of proceedings to show his or her personal conduct of the trial, furnish a letter of instruction from the client, the recommendation and confirmation of the Judge that handled the case and the recommendation and confirmation of the opposing counsel in the case! The point of my defence of the Rank here is that if the LPPC is able to keep to these guidelines (which it has so far done), then you would hardly see a name on the list of SANs every year that will not merit the Rank. No matter his background or experience, for a lawyer to produce 20 final judgments of the High Court is not a tea party, that is if you know what I know as a practicing lawyer, in Lagos State for instance. Anyone who has successfully conducted twelve trial proceedings up to judgment is not just qualified to be a Senior Advocate of Nigeria but can also be a Judge. Believe me, it is no child’s play to secure five final judgments of the Court of Appeal or four final judgments of the Supreme Court. What the LPPC has done is to stick to these minimum standards, irrespective of your status. This is in addition to a well-equipped library, functional infrastructure in the law office, payment of tax, involvement in and recommendation by the Nigerian Bar Association, Judges, Justices, Body of Senior Advocates, Body of Benchers, the LPDC, etc. This same rigorous process is also entrenched for candidates in the academic category, who go through a very detailed regime of qualification and filtration.

The involvement of the general public in this process has guaranteed some form of transparency, whereby the names of shortlisted candidates are published to the whole world for comments and assessment. Selected members of the LPPC undertake physical inspection of the chambers of all the shortlisted candidates. The final process is the oral interview by the LPPC, comprising panels of eminent Judges and Senior Advocates of Nigeria. For me personally, any legal practitioner who has gone through these rigid procedures to be shortlisted for the oral interview of the LPPC is eminently qualified to be awarded the Rank of SAN, as a mark of distinction and excellence in the legal profession. Emphasis is placed on integrity, opinions of Justices/Judges, general knowledge of law, contribution to the development of law, leadership qualities in the profession and qualities of law office/library, for the award of the Rank. The undisputed fact that an applicant MUST meet the basic guidelines to be shortlisted at all, is a huge credit to the LPPC, headed by the Chief Justice of the Federation. My point is that you cannot buy trial proceedings or forge certified true copies of record of trial proceedings, buy the final judgment and also buy the recommendation of the Judge that delivered the judgment. These are empirical matters that have to be confirmed by the opposing counsel in the case.

I think the general challenge is what advocates do with the Rank after the award. Like never before, a huge responsibility is imposed on SANs, to show distinction, excellence, leadership and to be role models, not just for the legal profession, but also as officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, being a Rank approved by law duly published in the official gazette. I do not think the Rank confers any special advantage on any advocate who has no viable practice. On the other hand, one incurs a huge liability to be conferred with the Rank without a viable means of its propagation. The world has changed tremendously from the days of yore; legal practice has gone digital and except we deceive ourselves, the mark of excellence in legal practice is not a matter of title or Rank, but by dint of hard work, loyalty, fear of God and personal commitment to a better society, whether as Senior Advocate of Nigeria or as counsel.

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EXCLUSIVE: LPPC TO UNVEIL 37 NEW SANs TODAY

  • Solicitor-General, Rhodes-Vivour, Others Make List

Barring any last-minute hitches, the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) will today unveil a list of 37 lawyers who successfully scaled its screening exercise for award of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

The release of the long-awaited list is the climax of the sifting process which saw the LPPC issuing a final shortlist of 80 lawyers last May. In an advertorial heralding the list and signed by the LPPC Secretary/Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, Hadizatu Mustapha, the committee said the shortlisted lawyers had scaled the “first and second advocates’ filtration, academic pre-qualification exercise and the appeal process, preparatory to the award of SAN for the year 2019.” Among those shortlisted were leading human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa and 13 professors.

The committee had also invited complaints against any of the shortlisted candidates, saying: “Any complaint(s) presented to the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee must be accompanied with verifying affidavit deposed to

CITY LAWYER investigation shows that only 37 candidates made the cut this year, with 43 others falling by the way side. This is however higher than the 31 candidates awarded last year. While 20 applicants out of 124 received the rank in 2015, 22 SANs were appointed in 2016 out of 50 applicants. The number shot up to 29 in 2017 from 91 applicants, and peaked at 31 in 2018 from 106 applicants. 64 applicants were finally shortlisted for the rank in 2018 as against 80 this year.

Sources who are familiar with the process told CITY LAWYER that among those who made the sought-after list are Messrs Dayo Apata, Solicitor-General & Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice; Adedokun Matthew Makinde Esq; Daniel Chukwudi Enwelum Esq; Tuduru Uchendu Ede Esq, and John Onuegbulam Asoluka Esq; Others are Abiodun Adediran Olatunji Esq; Olusegun Omoniyi Jolaawo Esq; Olusegun Oyediran Fowowe Esq; Abdul Olajide Ajana Esq; Safiya Umar Badamasi, Katsina State Solicitor General and Permanent Secretary, and Adedoyin Oyinkan Rhodes-Vivour Esq, wife of Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

According to the committee, the rank is a privilege “awarded as a mark of excellence to members of the legal profession who are in full time legal practice, have distinguished themselves as advocates and have made significant contribution to the development of the legal profession.”

The process for the award of Senior Advocate of Nigeria was approved by the body of benchers, the highest judicial body in Nigeria statutorily responsible for the regulation of the legal profession and for admitting persons who desire to become legal practitioners. The guidelines for the award of the rank were first made in 2007 “and have since been reviewed 4 times in a bid to further improve and straighten the process in the light of experience of past exercises. The current guideline is the one of 17th December, 2013.” The committee is headed by the Chairman who is also the Chief Justice of Nigeria with 15 other members, one of whom is the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and Secretary of the Committee.

The committee states that “The guidelines provides for the identification of the very best applicants rigorously and objectively and promotes fairness, excellence and diversity and every effort shall be made to ensure that the conferment of the rank of senior advocate of Nigeria an (sic) applicants who have met the criteria reflect national character by achieving as much geographical spread and gender representation as possible. The exercise is an annual event and we will update the site from time to time to ensure implement (sic) in service delivery.” CITY LAWYER investigations however showed that the website was perhaps last updated in 2017.

Although the committee on one part states that the “current guideline” is the one of 17th December, 2013 it in another post states that “New LPPC Guidelines have been signed into effect by His Lordship, the Hon Chief Justice of Nigeria/Chairman Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee on 12th day of October, 2017. This new set of guidelines now determine the process of receiving applications, screening and selection of new Senior Advocates of Nigeria.”

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