Legal Profession Is A Vocation In Which Lawyers Are Priests In The Temple Of Justice—Ekezie Kingstonjoe Onumajulu

Tell us about yourself? My Name is Ekezie Kingstonjoe Onumajulu. I’m Legal Practitioner Based in Owerri, Imo State. I am Currently The Secretary of Eastern Bar Forum, Young Lawyers Forum. Academic background? I got My Law degree from the Prestigious Imo State University in 2013 & attended the Nigerian Law School Abuja Campus in April 2014 and i was called to the Nigerian Bar in Oct 2015. Why your choice of law? Because I believed the Legal profession is a Vocation or Call to Service and I was hardwired to serve. More so my parents who are Lawyers too gave me the much desired Motivation. What is your alternative, should law not be the avenue for you? Well… if I was not a Lawyer, I would have probably been an entertainer. I don’t know. What was your solo appearance as a new wig in court? It was a delightful experience. I went to Move an Application For substituted service, I prepared so well for it to be devoid of flaws and yes it was devoid of flaws. What do you like most about legal practice? ‎ I love the seniority thing and also the development of law via judicial precedents. What do you feel are the things that can help a person become successful in practice? A perfect Network. Every Lawyer should have a wide Network to succeed. I believe if as a lawyer you have a lot of allies and good rapport with the society, it helps your practice. The more people you know, the more clientele. The more colleagues with good rapport with you, the more you can tap into their wealth of experience whenever you are briefed on a practice area that is alien to you. Indulge yourself, belong to associations, Rotary Clubs for example, be an active Bar Man etc. Honesty is also Key because the Legal Profession is Not just a profession but a Vocation, in which lawyers are priests in the Temple of Justice. Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night, thinking about a case, wishing you had handled something differently? If so, please describe one situation. Yes I have had such experience. I filed an application for dismissal of an appeal at the Court of Appeal Owerri, I omitted filling the grounds for relief sought in line with Order 6 of the new Court of Appeal Rules. Even though my affidavit in support of the application had serious grounds for the appeal to be dismissed, the justices agreed that they would have dismissed the appeal as applied by me but for the fact that I did not comply fully with the provisions of Order 6 of the Ccourt of Appeal rules. I wish I had not made that omission. In What way do you think the judiciary can improve on dispensation of Justice? Appointment of more judges and limiting the appellate jurisdictions of some courts. Sometimes you see an ordinary case involving a mere issue of child custody being argued up to the supreme court. In a nutshell more trial judges should be appointed because our legal industry is growing, people are now aware of their numerous rights and are suing daily to protect it, and then there should be limits to appeals. Give an example of a time you experienced conflict or disagreement. How did you resolve this? Abraham Lincoln once said ” Discourage Litigation, persuade your Neighbours to compromise whenever you can. As a peacemaker, the lawyer has superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be business enough”. So I believe Arbitration Works. I have once settled a conflict involving our professional fees with a colleague. Is just about parties letting go of somethings for one another. ‎Who has been most influential in your life? My Parents, They are wonderful duo. They are My role models in My Law Practice Career as well. So many other People including Uncles and lawyers have influenced me to be best at what I do. They include, Chief Kanu Agabi SAN, Chief Mike Ahamba SAN, Chief TJO Okpoko SAN, of course The young Kehinde O. Ogunwumiju SAN. Etc What do you have to say about the poor or no salary payment to young lawyer? It is a pitiable thing and I condemn it, but then I have always believed that No Lawyer can in fact pay a Lawyer, so no matter how you increase it, I don’t think it will be enough. Like I said, a young lawyer can have his own way of attracting briefs for himself through networking like I earlier pointed out. There are several survival strategies for a young lawyer which includes creating a Network, Conveyancing, among others, if we can adopt it, then maybe we will even have a competitive practice with our seniors.]]>