*Says Only SAN Title Is Officially Recognized in Nigeria, Dismisses ‘Senior Counsel of Nigeria’ Claim
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In a detailed public statement titled “A Necessary Disclaimer and Clarification to the General Public”, renowned legal practitioner Chief Joe Kyari Gadzama, SAN, OFR, MFR, has firmly disclaimed and clarified issues surrounding a letter dated December 30, 2025, purportedly from a self-styled “Executive Council” of the Nigerian Law Society (NLS).
Chief Gadzama stated: “For ease of reference, a copy of the spurious letter dated December 30, 2025, addressed to me is attached hereto, being in respect of a matter presently before the Court of Appeal where the CAC and the NBA are Appellants.”
He noted that his attention had been drawn to the letter, purportedly emanating from an “Executive Council of the Nigerian Law Society (NLS),” signed by one Ambassador Dahiru Aliyu, who styles himself as the “President, Nigerian Law Society (NLS)” and, most curiously, a “Senior Counsel of Nigeria (SCN).” The letter, circulated to him and others, issues a “SEVEN (7) DAYS ULTIMATUM TO DISCONTINUE THE LAWSUIT AGAINST THE NIGERIAN BAR ASSOCIATION (NBA)” and threatens disciplinary action upon non-compliance.
Describing the document as containing “audacity and misapprehension of law and fact,” Chief Gadzama said the rejoinder “seeks to establish the true legal and factual position of the matter and to unequivocally distance myself and my law firm from the authors of this patently spurious correspondence.”
To highlight the absurdity of the ultimatum, he explained the background: “The matter… is primarily a challenge to the administrative refusal of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to register the Nigerian Law Society.” The suit was instituted by the legitimate promoters of the NLS against the CAC. After a rigorous legal battle, the trial court delivered a judgment in favour of the promoters, compelling the CAC to proceed with registration.
Following the judgment, the CAC appealed, and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), claiming to be an interested party, obtained leave to appeal. The matter is now pending before the Court of Appeal, Abuja Judicial Division, with the CAC and NBA as Appellants. Chief Gadzama emphasized: “It must be clearly stated that the NLS is not the Appellant in this matter, and there is nothing for the NLS promoters to withdraw.”
The letter demands that “your good self and your associates named as promoters of the NLS are to withdraw the above-named litigation.” Chief Gadzama clarified: “To set the records straight, my law firm, J-K Gadzama LLP, is retained as counsel only to the 1st Respondent, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde, SAN, in the pending appeal. Our role is strictly to defend the judgment of the trial court and uphold the right of the NLS to be registered.”
He added that the demand is misdirected, as “any request for the withdrawal or discontinuance of the appeal must, by elementary principles of law, be addressed to the CAC and/or the NBA.” He advised the author to “redirect his misguided ultimatum to the appropriate parties.”
Chief Gadzama also addressed the author’s self-designation as “Senior Counsel of Nigeria (SCN),” stating: “It is a matter of public record and elementary knowledge within the legal profession that the only recognized rank of Senior Counsel in Nigeria is that of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), a prestigious title conferred by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee. The title ‘Senior Counsel of Nigeria’ is entirely unknown to our laws, statutes, and professional hierarchy.”
He noted that the fictitious rank and errors in the letter “raise serious questions about the author’s grasp of reality and his fitness to comment on, let alone intervene in, such a complex legal matter.” Describing it as “a spectacle of self-delusion that borders on the tragically comic,” he warned: “The public should beware and discountenance any such publication from any set of people who exhibit such a tenuous relationship with the established norms of the legal profession.”
NLS letter to Chief JK GADZAMA SAN and othersChief Gadzama urged the public to “treat the letter and any other publication on this subject from Ambassador Dahiru Aliyu and his self-proclaimed executive with the contempt they deserve,” attributing them to “desperation and a desire to fraudulently capitalize on the success of the legitimate NLS.”
He concluded: “Let the public be guided accordingly.”
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