The Nigerian Bar Association has reassured legal practitioners, courts, court registries and the general public that the NBA Stamp and Seal policy remains valid, extant and enforceable, despite reports circulating on social media over a recent judgment of the Federal High Court.
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In a statement dated May 9, 2026, and signed by the General Secretary of the NBA, Dr. Mobolaji Ojibara, FNIM, FCIArb (UK), the association said its attention had been drawn to claims suggesting that the Federal High Court had invalidated the NBA Stamp and Seal regime established under the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners, as well as aspects of the Continuing Professional Development policy.
The NBA, however, clarified that the decision of the Federal High Court cannot be interpreted as overriding or displacing the binding authority of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on the enforceability of the Stamp and Seal requirement.
The association specifically referred to the Supreme Court decision in All Progressives Congress v. General Bello Sarkin Yaki & Anor, Appeal No. SC/722/2015, where the apex court affirmed the legal effect of the Stamp and Seal requirement under the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners, 2007.
According to the NBA, the Supreme Court, in its decision delivered on October 27, 2015, with reasons later given on November 14, 2015, considered the legal implication of filing court processes without affixing the NBA Stamp and Seal as required under Rule 10(1) of the Rules of Professional Conduct.
The association recalled that Justice Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta, JSC, who delivered the lead judgment, held that a process filed without the approved Stamp and Seal is not null and void, but is improperly filed in law because it failed to comply with a condition precedent.
The NBA said the apex court further held that such a defect could be corrected by subsequently affixing the approved Stamp and Seal and obtaining the appropriate orders of court.
Quoting the Supreme Court, the association stated: “The process filed in breach of Rule 10(1) can be saved and its signing and filing regularised by affixing the approved seal and stamp on it. It is a legal document improperly filed and the fixing of the stamp and seal would make the filing proper in law.”
The NBA also relied on the concurring judgment of Justice Clara Bata Ogunbiyi, JSC, in Yaki v. Bagudu (2015) 18 NWLR (Pt. 1491) 288, as well as the Court of Appeal decision in N.B.A. v. Kehinde (2017) 11 NWLR (Pt. 1576) 225.
It maintained that the pronouncements of the Supreme Court remain the binding position of the law by virtue of Section 235 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
The association stressed that decisions of the Supreme Court are binding on all lower courts in Nigeria, including the Federal High Court.
The NBA said although it had not yet received and reviewed the full judgment of the Federal High Court, it was confident that the decision did not and could not have set aside or invalidated the Supreme Court’s position on the Stamp and Seal regime.
The association therefore urged legal practitioners and the public not to be misled by social media interpretations suggesting that the Stamp and Seal requirement had been nullified.
NBA SEAL AND STAMPIt explained that the Stamp and Seal policy was introduced as a professional regulatory mechanism to protect the integrity of legal practice, curb impersonation and prevent quacks from masquerading as legal practitioners.
The NBA added that the policy remains a vital tool for maintaining professional standards and preserving the dignity and integrity of the legal profession in Nigeria.
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