Seniority At The Bar: A Clarion Call On Senior Advocates Of Nigeria (SAN) To Be Humble To Young Lawyers By Hameed Ajibola Jimoh Esq.

By the provisions of Paragraph 1 of the Guidelines for the Conferment of the Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, 2017, ‘the Award of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) is a privilege awarded as a mark of excellence to members of the legal profession who- (a) are in full time legal practice; (b) have distinguished themselves as advocates; and (c) have made significant contribution to the developments of the legal profession in Nigeria’. Also, by Rule 26(1) of the Rules of Professional Conducts for Legal Practitioners, 2007-herein after referred to as RPC-, ‘Lawyers shall treat one another with respect, fairness, consideration and dignity, and shall not allow any ill-feeling between opposing clients to influence their conduct and demeanor towards one another or towards the opposing clients‘. And by the provisions of Rule 27(1) of the RPC, ‘A lawyer shall observe good faith and fairness in dealing with other lawyers’.

This paper is an attempt at most humbly appealing to the Senior Advocates of Nigeria-herein after referred to as SANs- (without mentioning any name) to always be humble to young lawyers.

The writer of this paper has observed the attitudes and disposition of some learned men in silk to young lawyers and was really not impressed by those characters.

Some of them, with due respect, present themselves as unapproachable, especially to young lawyers. For instance, there are at least two (2) different occasions that the writer of this paper had approached some SANs in courts most humbly to ask just some few questions to seek their views and or opinions per their position and expertise on some purely legal issues disturbing him. However, the reactions and or feedbacks he got were not encouraging at all. In fact, upon greetings to them, the way and manner of answering such greetings were very discouraging. How would one feel when one approaches a SAN in a Court and greets him not even being aware of the purpose of greetings, but answers ‘Yes, what do you want?!’. Or what is the problem?! And these greetings were made to the one greeting with a frowning face?! These attitudes are becoming applicable to some of the SANs. In fact, the writer of this paper has as a result, been discouraged from any further approach to any SAN to ask the least of questions. Even the manner of answering and or replying questions is with due respect, suspected to be in an arrogant and proud manner. It will be rather preferable to ask a senior lawyer who is not SAN than to ask any SAN because of the responses one gets from some of them, the writer of this paper most humbly submits. The feelings that one gets is like one is too young to approach the SAN or that the SAN is not approachable!

After a lot of observations on this conduct of some of the SANs, the writer of this paper came across one SAN one day in court and observed his reactions to some lawyers who are not SANs. In fact, when this SAN entered the court, he did not dress as a SAN until when he entered the court. He and the other lawyers who are not SANs, though, they might have been from his office, discussed, laughed, and shared ideas and he (the SAN) listened to them. The writer of this paper was very happy at such humble qualities of that SAN. It was then that the writer of this paper got the impression that to be humble is personal and individual.

Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to admonish all SANs, with utmost humility, to always make themselves available for young lawyers to be proud and confident of asking them some few questions and this raises their profile before those young lawyers. In fact, there is nothing wrong if SANs are humble to the extent of giving a lift to young lawyers in their vehicle where there is no fear of insecurity. And there is nothing wrong if SANs offer some token amount of money to young lawyers whether known or unknown as a form of gift as they are aware that young lawyers would definitely be in need of finances considering the challenges confronting young lawyers in Nigeria in term of finances.

Furthermore, the writer of this paper seeks the permission of the reader of this paper to utilize the medium and opportunity of this paper to discuss the Nigerian Bar Association’ Branches’ leadership conflicts especially in the Abuja (Unity Bar) Branch.

It is a Yoruba adage that ‘there is peace where there are elders’. If one were to actually inquire who the elders in the Legal Profession in Nigeria are? The answer would definitely be the SANs and Judicial officers! For almost two (2) years to this period, the conflicts surrounding the leadership of the Chairmanship and the Secretary offices have been on-going and seeming rather impossible to resolve. It is observable that there are more than fifty (50) SANs in Nigeria, to under estimate. And the writer of this paper is aware that SANs also have an association. That is why it is submitted by the writer of this paper that the on-going conflicts, despite that there are some of these issues being instituted in courts, amicable settlement is seeming unrealistic.

The effects of these conflicts cannot be over emphasized. Programmes in the Branch NBA are being affected. Lawyers’ relationships too are being affected as some are lawyers in one faction while some are in the other faction and some are neither here nor there as a result of the Branch’s conflicts. Nevertheless, the writer of this paper hopes that the SANs with their distinguished honour, professional expertise and elderly experiences would work towards resolving these disputes in no time.

Therefore, the writer of this paper hereby calls on SANs to put in their utmost best and efforts to prevail upon the current situations in the Conflicts arising in the NBA Abuja Branch for the continuity and preservation of unity and progress in the legal profession. It is also the noble view of the writer of this paper that where SANs all join hands together to call and or invite the concerned persons and the NBA National leadership together to resolve the conflicts, it will definitely be resolved. Or are we saying that SANs cannot talk to the concerned persons as elders in the legal profession or that they cannot resolve and or are not capable of resolving such internal conflicts?! Definitely No!

Finally, it is the belief of the writer of this paper that the highly distinguished personality profile of the SANs in the legal profession if utilized in the interest of unity and progress of the legal profession and without any sense of bias or fear or favour, the whole conflicts will in no time be resolved amicably. And it is hoped that the SANs will create such an everlasting good relationship between them and young lawyers so that there will be no distance existing between them and the young lawyers in the legal profession.

e-mail: hameed_ajibola@yahoo.com