LPPC Guidelines Does Not Contemplate Conferring SAN Title On Academics — Okutepa SAN Replies Prof. Ojukwu SAN

*Argues That LPPC Rules Do Not Contemplate Conferring Silk On Law Teachers

There may be no end in sight to the recently initiated debate on the propriety of conferring the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria to academics who are not courtroom advocates or engaged in legal practice beyond the classrooms as one of the proponents of a review of the current practice, J.S. Okutepa SAN has responded to a query by a renowned law professor, Ernest Ojukwu SAN, who yesterday wondered why Okutepa and a few others were worried about the conferment of Silk on law teachers.

Recall that Ojukwu who is a Former Deputy Director-General of the Nigerian Law School in a tweet yesterday asked, “SAN: Why are few SANs angry that their teachers are made SAN?LPA says SAN is for lawyer who “has achieved distinction in the legal profession in such manner as the committee may from time to time determine. ”Where did we derive the argument from that it is only for litigation counsel?”

In a response to Prof. Ojukwu’s enquiry, Okutepa SAN in a statement made available to TheNigeriaLawyer explained his position as concurred by Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa SAN that by a clear interpretation of the extant guidelines regulating the award of SAN title by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee, law teachers do not qualify as active legal practitioners within the conditions and requirements contained in the guidelines.

Mr. Okutepa in his piece painstakingly argued that the LPPC Guidelines have the force of law, and therefore binds the award process.

He said, “The erudite Prof Ojukwu was not satisfied with my answer which was that we derived our opinion from the guidelines issued by LPPC. He queried that the guideline does not define the objective of the law. With profound respect to the erudite professor of law and the learned Senior Advocate, the guideline defines the objectives it has the force of law as it derived its legal efficacy from LPA. The Legal Practitioners Act provides in section 5 (1) thereof that: Subject to subsection (2) of this section, the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee established under subsection (3) of this section may by instrument confer on a legal practitioner the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.”

According to the Learned Silk, the Legal Practitioners Act empowers the LPPC to make rules governing the application, screening and conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate to lawyers and submitted that such rules are prevailing over the process.

“In section 5(2) of the Act, it provides that: A person shall not be conferred with the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria unless he has been qualified to practise 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. The Legal practitioners Act confers on the LPPC, the power to make rules subject to approval of the Body of Benchers.

It is expressly provided in section 5(7) of the LPA that: The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee may, with the approval of the Body of Benchers, make rules as to the privileges to be accorded to Senior Advocates of Nigeria, as to the functions of a legal practitioner, which are not to be performed by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, as to the mode of appearance before courts by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, and generally, but without prejudice to the foregoing, for ensuring the dignity of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.”

Okutepa further elaborated on the extant rules published by the LPPC in 2018 relying on an analysis of the instrument provided by TheNigeriaLawyer in same year.

He wrote, “Writing on the 2018 LPPC Rules, Chioma Unini Esq on the 23rd of September 2018, undertook a thorough review of the Rules in her blog, TheNigeriaLawyer. Because of the controversies and or reactions of some eminent professors of law to my write up in support of Ebun Olu Adegboruwa SAN, it has become imperative for me to quote in extensio the well written work of Chioma Unini Esq, on the 2018 LPPC Rules which Rules is clear on the arguments Ebun-Adegboruwa SAN and my humble self relied upon to make the suggestion for the review of the award of SAN to law teachers.”

He thereafter proceeded to reproduce the review of the 2018 rules. Accordingly, he wrote, “In the exercise of powers conferred on the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) by Section 5 of the Legal Practitioners’ Act of Cap. L11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and of all other powers enabling it in that behalf, the LPPC has made new Guidelines for Conferment, Discipline and Sanctions with All Related Matters Pertaining to the Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

The guidelines were made on the 31st day of August, 2018 and commenced the same day. The law basically has two parts. The first is the part for the objectives, principles and procedure for the appointment of senior advocate of Nigeria which has twenty one sections, while the second part which is the part for the additional criteria for the conferment of the rank of senior advocate of Nigeria and sanctions/withdrawal of the rank of senior advocate of Nigeria, has eight sections in total. This makes the guidelines to have a total of twenty nine sections.

The 2018 Guidelines for the Conferment of the Rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and All Matters Pertaining to the Rank which was published in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, official gazette No. 112, Vol. 105, maintains almost all provisions of the previous guidelines.

According to Section 1 of the Guidelines, The guidelines provide that call for applications will be made not later than 1st November each legal year or such other date as the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee may direct by publications in the media. Application in the prescribed form must be returned not later than 31st January of the year of the application or such other date as the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee may direct to the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee Secretariat at the Supreme Court of Nigeria. Every candidate is expected to pay a non-refundable processing fee in the sum of N600,000.00 (Six hundred thousand naira only) or such other sum as may be determined by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee.

Also, every successful candidate shall pay a processing conferment fee of N200,000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira only) or such other sum as may be determined by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee. After the first application, there is a first filter by the Secretariat after which a second filter follows.

According to the procedure, a list of all such applications shall be forwarded to the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee which shall meet to review the first filter by the Secretariat. Thereafter, all unsuccessful candidates at this stage shall be notified in writing of the decision of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges who shall be requested to comment confidentially on the integrity, competence and repatriation of the candidates.

Among other procedures, the guidelines state that the application form shall require each Applicant to provide a list of at least 10 judges of Superior Courts of Record before whom he had appeared in contested cases of significance. Thereafter, the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee will select three Judges from the list provided by the Applicant from whom it will request a detailed confidential reference. The three Judges will be selected for each short listed Applicant in such a manner as to ensure that a cross section of Judges from different levels of Courts as the Applicant provides is represented. The application form shall require Applicants to identify at least 6 legal practitioners by whom the Applicant has been led or that have led or against whom by whom the Applicant has been led or that have led or against whom they have appeared, in contested cases of significance. The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee will select 3 such legal practitioners’ from the list supplied by the Applicants from whom it will request a detailed written confidential reference about the Applicant.

Section 14 provides for the Particulars of contested cases and documents while section 15 speaks of Tax payment and documents. Section 17 then provides that the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee shall conduct a physical inspection of the chambers of all Candidates that have made the final qualification list. The chambers inspection is geared towards evaluating the level and quality of the facilities provided in the chambers and shall take into account the size and quality of library; quality of office space and other facility equipment available; number of counsel or partners in chambers (with evidence of letters of employment and pension scheme); number and quality of support staff ; and maintenance of proper books of accounts.

As affirmed at the introductory part of this review, the guidelines are divided into two parts. The second part which deals with the additional criteria for the conferment of the rank of senior advocate of Nigeria and sanctions/withdrawal of the rank of senior advocate of Nigeria, having eight sections features among others the provisions for the eligibility and competence of the candidates.

Most important on this part is the concluding part of the application which covers the evaluation criteria for the interview of the candidates. According to the law, the purpose of the interview is to confirm that the Candidate has met the eligibility criteria and to conduct a further evaluation of the Candidate’s professional competence.

As stated, the evaluation of the Candidate’s competence shall be weighed with Integrity, Opinion of Justices/Judges and the Strength of references received by candidates, General knowledge of Law, Contribution to development of Law, Leadership qualities in the profession, Qualities of Law Office/Library, and they carry 20 per cent, 20 per cent, 25 per cent, 10 per cent, 10 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively.

It is also provided that each member of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee shall receive copies of application forms, copies of references, and a list of particulars of reported cases or copies of unreported judgments and reports of chambers inspection in respect of all Candidates at least one week before the final selection interview date. The list of Candidates for interview due to appear before the subcommittees shall be compiled randomly by the Secretariat in such manner that the members of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee shall have no prior notice of which Candidates shall be appearing before them. The Candidates shall be graded according to the stipulated criteria and shall also be scored by each member of the panel after which a weighted average shall be compiled at a joint session of all sub committees for the final sitting of the panel of the LPPC. The full panel shall then meet to consider a review of the reports of each committee after which a list of successful candidates will be drawn up taking into consideration, merit, gender representation and geographical spread.”

According to Okutepa, a careful review of the 2018 Rules which is the extant Rules showed clearly its import. It is that the Rank is conferred on legal practitioners as a privilege and 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 in Nigeria.

He argued, “The award of the Rank of SAN according to the Rules made by LPPC pursuant to its powers to make the Rules was deliberate on the point that the Rank is to be awarded to legal practitioners who have achieved distinction in the legal profession in such manner as the Committee may, from time to time, determine.

The Committee has by Rules 2018 made the Rules that 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 development of the legal in Nigeria.”

He further decribed it as unfair to say that either Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa SAN or himself or anyone interrogating the propriety of conferring the Rank on law teachers are angry.

He said, “No far from it. We are not angry. We are asking questions and suggesting a review due to the fact that the name of the Rank is Senior Advocate of Nigeria awarded to lawyers in full legal practice who have distinguished themselves as Advocates.”

Okutepa continued, “I have tremendous respect for law teachers. As I said earlier, Professor is a Rank of distinction for those who are legal practitioners or in the academics. It is submitted with respect that a lawyer cannot be awarded the prestigious rank of professor of law simply because he or she is an advocate who has made significant contributions to the development of law in the nature of raw materials used by law professors in teaching. No doubt lawyers who argue causes and matters have their works duly documented in the form of case laws or law reports which the professors of law use in teaching their students.”

He then asked, “Does this entitle such advocates to be conferred with the prestigious Rank of professors. I do not think so. It is not that anyone is angry. We are indeed interrogating the appropriateness of awarding the Rank of SAN to law teachers who are not in full time legal practice and have distinguished themselves as advocates.

This is the point Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa SAN and I are interrogating. No-one is angry as Prof Ojukwu SAN posited” He concluded.