Open Letter To The New Wigs

By Daniel Kip

My learned friends,

Let me once again congratulate you on your call to the Nigerian Bar, the largest Bar in Africa. It is no small feat to be found worthy in character and learning by a higher institution as well as to be adjudged fit and proper by the Council of Legal Education. You therefore deserve all the accolades bestowed on you at this time.

It has been a couple of weeks since your assumption of the status of Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. With this status comes a lot of expectations. As it is often said, with great power comes great responsibility. I therefore would like to, most humbly, proffer a couple of suggestions to help you navigate through what could possibly be the start of a beautiful legal career.

First of all, if you do not already, you must learn to love the law.  It is the concept around which your thoughts and words revolve. It is the tool with which you think, work and talk, the interpretation and effect of which you are often consulted.

Love of the law, in my humble opinion, is a sine qua non to building a successful legal career. The legal profession is an arduous and demanding one. The pressures are made to feel lighter by the love one has for the profession.

Then you must learn the law. Yes, you’ve spent five years in the university studying substantive law and an additional one year in the law school learning procedural law. This, however, does not serve as sufficient knowledge upon which a successful legal career may be built although it is a good foundation with which to begin. I had a lecturer in the law school who once said that their task was to make us teachable, our task was to go out and learn.

Law, and its practice, is not rigid. It changes with the times and society. It develops as the demands by new technology, relations, interactions and so on require. It is as vast as the earth is wide and the oceans are deep. You must therefore be prepared to widen the scope of your knowledge each and every day. It also does not hurt to identify the particular area of law that captures your interest and to specialize in same.

Allow yourself to be mentored. Experience is the best teacher and often we are urged to learn from experience and/or mistakes. The beautiful thing about this is that mode of learning need not be restricted to your experiences and/or mistakes. You can learn from those of another. As such, never shy away from approaching respected and knowledgeable seniors at the bar for guidance.

You must also learn to develop healthy relationships. I read somewhere that everything a person wants on earth is in the hands of another. It therefore behoves of an individual to relate with another in a manner that makes that other person amenable to providing whatever information, product or service that individual desires. I believe the same is true in legal practice.

Yes, now you are a lawyer but your briefs must come from another, your clients, or sometimes even other lawyers. Or it could just be that the judicial staff are more inclined to assist you when the need arises because of the way you relate with them. Or a friend, colleague or client readily refers you to another when an opportunity comes up. All I am trying to say is you must ensure you have a healthy working relationship with people as this goes a long way in legal practice as well as in life generally.

Ensure you identify with, and participate in, the activities of the Nigerian Bar Association. This is the body of lawyers statutorily responsible for promoting the rule of law and the welfare of its members. A brightly burning piece of wood or coal, when removed from the flaming pile, may burn for a short while but will eventually loose its light and heat. However, once restored to the pile, its flames will be rekindled.

Participation in the projects and programmes of the Nigerian Bar Association helps develop the fellowship and camaraderie amongst lawyers and creates an avenue through which lawyers learn from one another. It is therefore necessary that you lend yourself to the collective efforts to promote the rule of law as well as the advance the ideals of the profession. After all, a rising tide lifts all boats.

I could probably go on and on but I think it only proper to pause at this juncture. It is in human nature to want to explore to discover the potentials and possibilities that exist within any new discovery and I urge you to do so with the legal profession within acceptable limits. I guarantee that, though demanding, it is quite exciting. Let me summarise all I have said above to wit:

Love the Law;

Learn the Law;

Continually innovate & build capacity;

Seek mentorship;

Network & Build healthy relationships;

Be an active Bar man.

Once again, I would like to say congratulations as I wish you success in your legal careers or whatever endeavours you may wish to undertake now and in the future.

Finally Learned friends, Welcome to the Bar.

This is not the end. It is the beginning!

DANIEL KIP