A Paper Presentation by Prof. Abiodun
Amuda-Kannike, SAN, Provost, College Of
Law, Kwara State University, Malete Via Ilorin, Kwara State, at the seminar organized
by the Nigerian Bar Association, Kano Branch, Young Lawyers Forum, on Thursday
13th day of December, 2018.
Presenter
Tel No: 08033256756
PPresenter
E-Mail address: amudakannikeabiodun@gmail.com
INTRODUCTION
The
topic in this presentation is a unique one, as it has to do with career in the
legal profession which most Lawyers generally and most especially the young
Lawyers will be interested to benefit from.
It
is however important to understand that the legal profession is not just any
profession but an important profession with its own special uniqueness such as
language, attitudes, dress code, and other activities which makes it the first
and best profession among all the professions in the world.[1]
It
is not out of place to define this two key words which forms the pillars of
this presentation and they are;
i. Career
ii. Legal Profession.
The
word “Career” has been defined as; an occupation undertaken for a significant
period of a person’s life and with opportunities for progress. This definition
is in noun and the synonyms are; profession, occupation and vocation.[2]
The
word “career” has also been described by virtue of being a “verb” and connoting
“to move swiftly and in an uncontrolled way” such as saying “the coach careered
across the road and net through a hedge”.[3]
The
word “career” as described by virtue of being “a noun” is our concern for the
purpose of this presentation.[4]
The
word “Legal-Profession” on the other hand in its own case, means, an occupation
where a person has gone through some form of training in learning the Law and
he act for members of the society by way of enforcing the Law or defending the
person he represents against the enforcement of such Law including Legal
documentation, advice vis-à-vis impacting knowledge of the Law. The term legal
profession however is a relative concept with no universal acceptance.
BUILDING A
CAREER IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION
The
Law or Legal Profession no doubt has gone through a systematic rise in terms of
successes and also at a point in time started declining, which led some persons
to leave the Legal profession for other
jobs, in order to be successful.
However,
we have equally seen other members of the Legal Profession who made up their
minds to attain success in this profession and ultimately, they became
successful to the admiration of lots of people who were pessimistic about their
success.
There
are so many other services that a Legal practitioner can render to the society
but for the purpose of our presentation, we are concerned with the one that has
to do with the practice of Law by a Lawyer who has made up his or her mind to
be successful in the chosen field of legal profession either in private or
public service. The ultimate is to have a successful career which is a
combination of so many issues and not only to be rich alone in terms of wealth[5]
In
dealing with the issues relevant for this presentation, there are lots of
advice which will make a Legal-practitioner to build a good career in the Legal
practice. The advice shall be dealt with one after the other.
1. DETERMINATION TO LOVE THE LEGAL
PROFESSION
A Legal
practitioner who wants to build a career in the Legal profession must make up
his or her mind that he loves the profession.
It is not a question of being forced to be a Lawyer by your father, your
mother or your Lover/wife or husband. The Legal-Practitioner on his or her own
must be interested in the profession and it is your love for the profession,
that will propel you to succeed regardless of any bottle-neck that may be
encountered in the profession.[6]
A person who
loves a lady or who loves a man go all out to succeed in wooing the man or lady
at very great risk and concentration. A legal-practitioner who loves the
profession would also be ready to go all out to succeed at very great risk and
this determination is what a Legal-practitioner requires in order to build up a
career in the Legal-profession.
In every given
profession, you must be in love with the profession otherwise, there is bound
to be failure.
There are
however some situations, where a person just managed to find himself in the
Legal Profession, he doesn’t like the profession but circumstances made him to
become a legal practitioner. He has decided to opt-out of the Legal-profession.
However, after several unfruitful years, he started doing well in court and
other engagement, lots of commendationsare coming his ways, he then decides to
continue to build his career in the Legal profession by working harder.
Therefore,
whether the legal practitioner makes up his or her mind from the beginning of
his career or later on in life, the bottom line is that there must be the
determination to love the legal-profession in order to attain a successful
career in the Legal-profession. This determination to love the Legal profession
will definitely be supported by hard work.
2. HARDWORK
The Legal
practitioner process of building a career in the Legal Profession must be
coupled with real hardwork because the legal profession is tasking and requires
a lot researches, consultation of Law reports, statutes and Logical reasoning.
Every Legal-practitioner must work hard and with dedication to duties in order
to succeed. Please you don’t know all, ask question and you will get direction.
The truth
about it is that it is not easy going through a lot a statutes, case Laws and
using Logic to interprete same to suit a particular case. The
Legal-practitioner will also need to do a lot of pre-trial conferences with his
or her clients before going for the case either a day or two days before the
case takes place.
It is
important to state that in the Legal-profession, there exists a lot of
competitiveness and each Lawyer must be ready to standout among the best[7].
The Job of a
Lawyer or legal Practitioner among others includes being an advocate, an
adviser, and counselor especially as it concerns the clients he represents. The
counseling in this regard also has to do with counseling the clients about
legal options which are available to him, vis-à-vis representing such clients
in both criminal and civil proceedings before any court of law.
To
show the level of the hard work of a Lawyer, it is pertinent to state that on a
daily basis, the duty of interpreting the Laws, rulings and regulations for
individuals and businesses, is that of a Legal-practitioner. It is not out of
tune with reality that administrative and managerial functions related to the
practice of Law are handled[8]
It is however
to be understood that stating that a legal-practitioner should work very hard
does not mean that he should not have time for himself. This is certainly not
the meaning of working very hard. What it meant is that you should devise means
when you take your work as priority and when to relax or be involved in one
form of recreational activities or the other[9]
A lawyer can
decide to play golf, football, Lawn tennis, table tennis, while others such as
my humble-self enjoy watching football, such as Arsenal matches and some
Nigeria League matches.
It is
therefore incumbent on the Legal-practitioner not to be lazy but work hard to
attain success. The reason for saying this is that we should remember that even
while we were in primary, secondary schools, including the university, some of
our colleagues, whatever is said in the classroom, lecture rooms and other
places of learning is enough for them to understand the topic, while others
have to read and read all over again before they can understand, it is
necessary to be careful of thinking that without hard work, success can be
attained. If the success to be attained as defined as “being rich alone, then,
the definition is too fundamentally narrow and it may not be the basis of our
discussion. The basis of our discussion is that ultimately, working hard, will
eventually pay off, even if it does not, from the beginning.
I can
specifically state that working hard eventually paid off for me because, while
I was in the office of the Erudite Learned Senior Advocate, E.C Ukala, SAN, at
42, Aggrey Road in Port Harcourt, Rivers State as a Junior Counsel, we worked
very hard to the extent that until he close for the day, I do not close, I go
through those files we have for the week and do researches on new rules,
statutes and even case Laws. Eventually when I left, it has become part of my
character to work hard because, the man I worked with, is a hard working man,
known to most Lawyers in Nigeria and even internationally, but you need a good
mentor.
3. CHOOSE A GOOD MENTOR
The
Legal-practitioner requires a good Mentor or mentors. Mentoring has been
defined as a process of informal transmission of knowledge, social capital, and
the psychosocial support perceived by the recipient as relevant to work,
career, or professional development. Furthermore, mentoring has to do with
informal communication, usually face-face and during a contineous period of time.[10]
Mentorhas been
further defined as a person with experience in a job who supports and advise
someone with less experience to help them develop in their work. The mentors
act as a business mentor to many young Lawyers in this regards even to many
senior Lawyers as the case may be.[11]
The Legal
practitioner must admire and appreciate certain experience and most probably an
old Lawyer, whether in the place where he works or outside the place of his
work. The mentor would certainly share his life experience and ideas of
practice of law with you. Once you have a good mentor, build a good
relationship with him and he would always be there for you to resolve most of
your problems. There is the possibility of even the mentor referring new client
to you. The mere fact that you choose a senior Lawyer as your mentor make him
to always be ready to assist you.
It is however
very important to warn Legal practitioners that because you have choosen
someone as your Mentor, all the burdens of your life must be solved by him.
Once you start to place your burden on him, he will likely stop mentoring you
and it may affect the possibility of your building a successful career in the
Legal-practice. Allow your Mentor to be the one to be willing to assist you and
not to disturb him to do so. You must remember that he has his own problems
too, including financial problems but solving your problems which has to do
with his experience and guide will not disturb him[12]
The choice of
mentorship should however be carefully done, because if you choose someone as
your mentor just because he is old and rich alone, he may not be able to guide
you to a successful legal career because, it has been said that some “charge
and bail Lawyer” are very rich but can you describe them as “really being
successfully in the Legal-profession”? The answer to my mind is a capital No”
Therefore, in
choosing a good mentor, it is important to look at the characteristics of a
good Mentor which are as follows;
i. A person who is willing to share his
skills, knowledge and expertise.
ii. A person with positive attitude and acts as
a positive role model
iii. A person who takes a personal interest in
mentoring relationship.
iv. A person who exhibits enthusiasm in the
field of Law/Legal profession.
v. A person who value on going learning and
growth in field of Law/Legal Profession.
vi. A person who provides guidance and
constructive feedback.
vii. A person who is respected by colleagues and
employees in all levels of the organization.
viii. A person who sets and meet on going personal
and professional goals [13]
It is
important to state that as a “MENTEE”
there should be no limit to the number of mentors you should have except where
you feel that one is enough. Even if you are not thought by your Mentor to
dress well, you need to do so.
4. DRESSING AND APPEARANCE GENERALLY
The members of
the public have already presumed that as a Legal Practitioner, you are neat,
and smart whether in your professional outfit or even when your are wearing
your personal attires. Because of this, they see you as a true Lawyer that can
be related with and even trusted to handle their affairs.
The above
presumption can however be rebutted when a Lawyer is not properly dressed, the
members of the public are afraid to brief him to handle their cases. They are
not happy when their opponent lawyer is properly dressed and their own Lawyer
is shabbily dressed.
It is also not
in doubt that an improperly dressed legal practitioner can be embarrassed in
Court by Judges or by some Senior Lawyers in the presence of their clients
which may culminate into the Legal Practitioner loosing such brief as the
client may decide to withdraw his file from such a lawyer.[14]Even
the FCT high court has to come out with a dress code for lawyers appearing in
court [15]
where it was stated that “it is imperative for Legal Practitioners to dress
appropriately in a manner that promotes respect for the Legal Profession as
well as enhance the dignity of Nigerian Courts. It is against this backdrop
that the Honourable Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory, Honourable
Justice I U. Bello view with great concern, increasing cases of improper
dressing by Lawyers appearing before the Court in recent times”.
No wonder, the
Learned Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Yusuf Ali, SAN stated on this issue
againwith respect to the need for Legal Practitioners dressing appropriately;
“Whether
we like it or not, people judge us by the way we dress. Our sartorial image is
the packaging of our personal brand. Do you always wear what you have always
done, instead of thinking about client, their expectations, the environment and
the objectives from your meeting? Sometimes, a sharp business-casual look is
more appropriate than a suited and booted look for example. How you present
yourself says a lot to others about how you feel about yourself, so if you
think you are slick and city –confident, look the part consistently. Oh and remember,
shoes always get noticed. Your shirts, cuff-links, tie, hairdo or haircut, your
mien and so on, add to your personality. Please resist the temptation to wear
shredded jeans and T-shirts to a meeting with a new client, especially,
corporate clients.”[16]
Also,
Honourable Justice L.H Gumi, Chief Judge Rtd stated that it is necessary for a
Legal-practitioner to be decently dressed and not to dress in an abnormal
indecent or unbearable way[17]
It is our
submission that for a successful Legal practitioner to cap his success, his
dressing must not only be neat but must be decent to the society, the Judge and
fellow Lawyers that must relate with him.
We thereby
agree entirely with both Yusuf O. Ali SAN and Hon. Justice Gumi, Chief Judge
retired that it is not just an advice to say that a Legal-Practitioner should
dress well, it is mandatory that the Legal Practitioner must dress well and be
neat at all time. It is even professional misconduct to be dirty and not to
dress well. Dressing well need to be supported by professional ethics which are
numerous.
5. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
A Legal
Practitioner who crave for success in the Legal profession must not only imbibe
the ethics of the Legal profession, he must be well grounded in the ethics of
the Legal Profession.
It is a fact
that all the Lawyers who have been called to the Bar have learnt in one way or
the other, the rules of our professional conduct, legal ethics or professional
ethics whichever way it is called.
It is
incumbent that every legal practitioner must exhibit the best ethical conduct
which, no other professional could exhibit in accordance with the rules of
professional conduct for Legal practitioner [18]
It is
important to state that most Lawyers as soon as they are successful from Law
school and are called to Bar, do not go through the rules any longer and when
they breach this rules, they are petitioned to the disciplinary committee, the
Lawyer who aspired to succeed in the Legal profession finds himself in the
following situations;
i. The name being struck off the roll as a
Legal practitioner or;
ii. He is being suspended for a period of time
or
iii. He is given other punishment in addition to
the above which could involve being referredto the Law enforcement agencies for
prosecution.
It is therefore
important to study the “rules of professional conduct for legal practitioner
which are summarized as follows;[19]
i. Rules 1-13, covers “practice as a
Legal-practitioner”
ii. Rules 14-25 covers the relationship of
legal-practitioner with clients
iii. Rules 26-29 covers the relationship of the
Legal practitioner with the other Lawyers
iv. Rules 30-38 covers the relationship of the
Legal practitioner with the court
v. Rules 39-47 covers improper attraction of
Business
vi. Rules 48-54 covers remuneration and fees
vii. Rules 55-57 covers Miscellaneous matters such
as, enforcement of the rules, interpretation and citation.
It
is part of the rules mentioned above that a legal-practitioner should use
decent language in even attacking the judgment of the court where you are going
on appeal. In the case of MENA KAYA
VS MENAKAYA (1996) 9 NWLR (PART 472) pages 256 at pages 304-305 Paras G-D Ratio
29 Hon. Justice Niki Tobi JCA (as he then was) now of blessed memory
stated;
“The Language that I detest is “so called
Judgment.” The Language is not only rude to the Learned Trial Judge but also to
this court and indeed to any Court for Law. Court of Law in any civilized
jurisprudence operating the adversary system such as ours are used to same
traditional decent appellate language to the following effect;
The learned
trial judge erred in law
The Learned
trial Judge misconceived the Law.
The Learned
Trial Judge Misdirected himself on the Law
The Learned
Trial Judge misdirected himself on the facts”.
ON PRINCIPLE GUIDING
THE EXTENT OF COUNSEL AUTHORITY OVER THE CONDUCT OF HIS CLIENT’S CASE.
1. The apparent authority with which a counsel
is clothed when he appears to conduct a case is to do everything which in the
exercise of his discretion, he may think best for the interest of his client in
the conduct of his case and if, within the limits of these apparent authority,
he enters into an agreement with the opposite counsel as to the case on every
principle, the agreement would hold binding.
2. Where the counsel is in control of the
conduct of a case his authority extends, when not expressly limited to the
action and all matters incidental to it and to the conduct of the trial to its
finality, in what in his opinion is in the best interest of his client
3. A counsel’s authority at the trial of a
case extends to the action and all matters which are incidental to the action.
However, the authoritycould be expressly limited by the client and where there
is such limitation, the counsel’s authority ceases to be pervasive.
4. Itis within the general authority of
counsel retained to conduct a case to
consent to the withdrawal of the case and a compromise is within his apparent
authority and building on client notwithstanding, the Client may have
dissented, unless the descent was brought to the notice of the opposite party
at the time. We refer to;
(a) CAPPA & D. ALBERTO LTD VS AKINTITO[20]
(b) ADEWUMI VS PLASTEX NIG LTD [21]
(c) IGWESI VS ATU [22]
(d) A.G FEDERATION VS A.I.C LTD[23]
(e) NIGERIAN NATIONAL SUPPLY CO LTD VS ALHAJI
IFAMAJODA SABAMA & CO LTD [24]
With good
professional ethics, the choice of friends will assist in all the progression
stages of the legal profession.
6. CHOOSE
YOUR FRIENDS
It
is necessary for a Legal-practitioner to choose among Legal-Practitioners who
to be his major friends and not every Legal-Practitioners that should be his
friends. Wrong friends will never discuss how to excel in the Legal-Profession.
He will only be discussing the issue of how you will enjoy from the social
circle.
The
adage is usually, “tell me who are your friends and I will tell you who you
are”. There are lot of friends that once you are in need of a particular
authority, they are always there to assist you, the latest authority will
always be sent to you, while you will always have meaningful discussions on how
to succeed in the Legal-Profession.[25]
It
is important that in choosing your friends, you are likely to avoid ethical
challenges and economic challenges especially the young lawyers which I had
cause to talk about in an earlier paper I presented.[26]
In most instances, it is from friends, you learn to be technologically driven.
7. BE
TECHNOLOGICALLY DRIVEN
It
is incumbent that a lawyer should try to be computer literate in order to
advance in the Legal Profession. Most Legal matters are done through the
internet now especially in terms of filing and documentations even the supreme
court has announced that filing of process has to be done through the internet
now and not through the usual filing of processes. Legal E-mails were
accordingly provided. There a lots of platform on the social media you can join
which will be beneficial to you as a lawyer. Since technology is part of
knowledge and a further knowledge, other additional studies are important.
8. FURTHER
STUDY
It
is important that the Legal-Practitioner if he cannot continue educationally to
further his or her study in LL.M and Ph.D, should try to attend additional law
courses or the Continue Legal Education (CLE) recognized by the N.B.A,
furthermore, it is important to attend national and Bar conference or
conferences. It is necessary that a lawyer who knows that he loves the
profession and has advanced in his study should determine to be a Senior
Advocate.
9. EVERY LEGAL PRACTITIONERS SHOULD ASPIRE
TO BECOME A SENIOR ADVOCATE OF NIGERIA (SAN)
It
is not in doubt that except there is pretence; no legal practitioner would not
want to become a senior advocate of Nigeria. However, if a Legal-Practitioner
want to succeed in the Legal-Profession his or her aim should be how to become
a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. [27]
This does not mean that aspiration immediately amount to reality but it is a
move towards reality. The conditions stipulated for a Legal-Practitioner to
become a Senior Advocate of Nigeria is tasking and such aspiring legal practitioner
must not be found wanting ethically and in practice of law, it is a good
yardstick in propelling a Legal –Practitioner to succeed in the legal
profession. This is because, there are certain number of cases you must have
conducted at the High Court, 20 cases, Court of Appeal, 5 cases and Supreme
Court is 4 cases, however the privileges committee has certain number of
persons to be awarded the rank from the academics every year also. Where the
Supreme Court, cases are conducted from the high court to Supreme Court, only 3
cases are required. This must be contested case.[28]
The candidate must posses some of this attributes and achievements among other
criterias;[29]
i. Not
less than 10 years post call.
ii. Must be of good character and must not have
any pending disciplinary case or complaint relating to professional misconduct.
iii. There must be no bad behavior either in or
out of the court.
iv. There must be no indulgence in drug,
alcoholic or other substance causing moral depravity or anti-social behavior.
v. There must be no breach of legal trust, no
self praising or advertisement.
vi. There must be sound knowledge of the law.
vii. There must be contribution to the development
of the law.
viii. He must demonstrate clear qualities of
leadership and loyalty to the legal profession. He must pay all this practicing
fees and membership dues for the past 10 years before applying for silk. Income
tax evidence should also be presented.
xi. There must be not less than three (3)
pro-bono cases conducted.
x. A candidate who is not the owner of his
chambers, should be a partner in another chambers with evidence of such. There
must be good library, conference room and good books and statutes.
For the
academics[30] 15 copies of published
books, by reputable publisher, candidate must show substantial contributions to
teaching, research and published works in Nigerian university and other
institutions, evidence of supervision of students, mentorship, and leadership
quality. References from 3 professors of not less than 10 years as professors
resident in Nigeria, practicing fees and Bardues for 5 years
SUMMARY
We have been able to show that for a
legal practitioner to attain success in the Legal profession there is the need
to love the profession first of all, in order to have self-satisfaction among
other necessary criterias.
Also, we discussed the issue of
inculcating the spirit of hardwork. A. Lazy Legal Practitioner may not be able
to cope with the tasking jobs in the Legal profession.
There is also the need for a legal
practitioner to choose his mentor or mentors who would guide him through
successes in the legal profession.
We also discussed the need to dress
properly and decently in order to project the image of the Legal profession in
the right direction. Itis unprofessional for a Legal-practitioner to be dirty
and to look hargard.
There is the need for a Legal
Practitioners to be guided by the rules of professional conduct and to also
inculcate perfect professional discipline. These can be properly done by going
through the rules which most Legal Practitioner don’t go through.
RECOMMENDATIONS
It must be under stood that most of
our discussion in this work are more or less recommendations to Lawyers on
their own, except those areas where we critically analysed the issue.
We therefore, once again recommend
strict adherence to all our suggestions in order to achieve success in the
Legal-profession
Notwithstanding what we have said in
the two paragraphs above, we accordingly recommend as follows;
i. There should be more seminars such as this
one, we are in, to be organized by Most NBA Branches across the country.
ii. There should be more articles in journals
to discuss the present topic with the Journals focusing on this topic solely.
iii. There should be more researches on this
issue where Lawyers especially young Lawyers will be given form to fill in
order to have a feed back about the progress and their ambition and problem in
order to achieve success in the Legal profession.
iv. Believe in yourself that you can make it,
that you can be a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and be determined from today
to be one, because, the best dedication to duty, best character and all
excellent ethical practicesare expected from a SAN, and once you have all this
attributes even if you are not a SAN yet, you can be said to be successful in
the Legal Profession.
v. Lawyers especially Young Lawyers should
mount on our Judges who pressure lawyers before were whether legally or
administratively or through other lawful means to stop getting us out of
business when they make judicial pronouncement, such as a lawyer can’t sell
house, SAN must reduce the number of Lawyers, he comes to court with, don’t use
the name Barrister while even some governors in Nigeria are using same. If we
don’t do so, one day, you will find out, that there may be a pronouncement that
Legal documentations can be done by anyone, after all, its not even compulsory
for a man to take a Lawyer to do a case from the Magistrate court up to the
Supreme Court. The Nigerian Bar Association (N.B.A) must be alife to its
responsibilities and not to collect dues yearly alone. After all, the Judges
themselves are our fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers, if we are out of
business, and we don’t build a career in the Legal profession, can they be
happy even in retirement? If they don’t assist us now, we that are here should
do it later in life and posterity will judge.
CONCLUSION
The conclusion, we can authoritatively
say that the Legal profession is a dignified one, a respected profession and
because it is the first and best profession in the world, there are so many
guidelines and suggestions vis-à-vis steps to be taken for Legal Practitioner
to achieve success in the Legal profession. The above
suggestions/recommendations will go a long way to assist Legal practitioners to
achieve success in the profession
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A.
INTERNET
MATERIALS
B.
CASE LAWS
1.
MENA
KAYA VS MENAKAYA (1996) 9 NWLR (PART 472) PAGES 256 AT PAGES 304-305 PARAS G-D
RATIO 29
2.
CAPPA
& D. ALBERTO LTD VS AKINTITO (1987) 3 NNCR (PT 32) page 767
3.
ADEWUMI
VS PLASTEX NIG LTD (1993) 6 NWLR (PT 300) 484
4.
IGESI
VS ATU (1995) 2 NWLR (PT 378) 338
5.
A.G
FEDERATION VS A.I.C LTD (1977) 2 NWLR (PT 74) 23
6.
NIGERIAN
NATIONAL SUPPLY CO LTD VS ALHAJI IFAMAJODA SABAMA & CO LTD (2003) 9 NWLR
(PT 824) 49 RATIO 3 AT PAGE 58
C.
STATUTES
1.
THE
RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT 2007
2.
SECTION
12(4) OF THE LEGAL-PRACTITIONERS ACT LFN 2004
3.
REPUBLIC
OF NIGERIA, OFFICIAL GAZETTE NO. 112, VOL 105 DATED 31ST AUGUST,
2018
4.
PAGE
B149 OF THE GAZETTE OF 31ST AUGUST, 2018
D.
BOOKS/JOURNALS/PRESENTATIONS
1.
YUSUF
O. ALI ESQ., SAN; “PREPARING FOR A SUCCESSFUL CAREER IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION
2.
YUSUF
ALI, SAN; ATTAINING EXCELLENT IN LAW PRACTICE.
3.
HON.
JUSTICE L.H GUMI, CHIEF JUDGE; PROFESSION ETHICS; THE BAR, THE BENCH AND
SOCIETY
4.
PROF.
AMUDA-KANNIKE, SAN; “THE ETHICAL CHALLENGES AND ECONOMIC SURVIVAL OF THE YOUNG
LAWYER”
5.
YUSUF
ALI, SAN,; PREPARING TO BE A SENIOR ADVOCATE OF NIGERIA
6.
2018
GUIDE PAGE B147 LINES FOR CONCERNMENT OF THE RANK OF SENIOR ADVOCATE OF
NIGERIA.
[1] No. Wonder most lawyers will always say “I am
proud to be a lawyer”.
[2] See: https//www.thebalancecareers.com
accessed through the internet on 28/11/2018 at 4 a.m
[3]
Ibid
[4]
See: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com
accessed through the internet on 28/11/2018 at 4:10am
[5]
See Law careers prospects;
https//www.prospects; https//www.propects.oc.uk. accessed through the internet on 29/11/2018 at 3 a.m
[6] See Sally
Kane factors to consider if you want to become a Lawyer;
https//www.theballancecareers.com accessed through the internet on 29/11/2018
at 5a.m
[7] On the 6th of October, 2017 Hon.
Justice Babatunde Adejumo, the president of the National industrial Court of
Nigeria advised Lawyers to work hard and have respect for the legal profession. See https//www.vanguardngr.com
accessed on 1/12/2018 at I am
through the internet
[8]
Being a Lawyer what you really do see www.owiguru.job
description. Accessed through the internet on 1/12/2018 at 2 a.m
[9]
See “getting the hear of it;
https//www.aba.net.au accessed on 1/12/2018 at 4am
[10] See Mentorship; https//en.m.wikipedia.org accessed through the internet
on 2/12/2018 at 1.am
[11] See mentor; meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary;
https//dictionarycambridge.org accessed through the internet on 2/12/2018 at
1.15am
[12] Yusuf O. Ali Esq., SAN; “preparing for a successful career in the
Legal profession, A paper presentation on 6th June, 2013 at college
of Law, Osun state University, 1st College lecture, page 6 ”
[13] See Penny Loretto; 8 Qualities of a Good Mentor updated on May,
01, 2018; https//www.thebalancecareer.com accessed through the internet on 2/8/2018
at 6am
[14] Hon. Justice Peter Lifu of the National Industrial court Abuja
cautioned a Lawyer who appeared in court dress improperly see; the
nationalineng.net accessed through the internet on 2/12/2018 at 4 a.m
[15] See dress code for Lawyers appearing before courts in the Fct; www.fcthighcourt.gov.ng
[16] Yusuf Ali, SAN; Attaining Excellent in Law Practice being a
lecture delivered at the annual system posium of the Muslim Lawyer Association
of Nigeria (MULAN) Lagos State Branch held on 8th October, 2016
pages 08-09
[17] Hon. Justice L.H Gumi, Chief Judge; Profession Ethics; the bar,
the bench and society; published in the Eastern Law Journal Vol.2, No. 2, 2008.
[18] The Rules of professional conduct 2007 was made pursuant to
section 12(4) of the Legal-Practitioners Act LFN 2004
[19] It has been observed that most Lawyers who are involved in
disciplinary matters falls victims because no matter their age at the Bar, they
don’t read the rules, yet it is this rules that forms part of their daily
activities as a Legal practitioner. This is serious carelessness.
[20] (2003) 9 NWLR (pt 824) 49 Ratio 3 @ page 58
[21] (1987) 3 NNCR (pt 32) page 767
[22] (1993) 6 NWLR (pt 300) 484
[23] (1995) 2 NWLR (pt 378) 338
[24] (1977) 2 NWLR (pt 74) 23
[25] The issue of friendship is important because bad friends would
definitely not want to succeed and would not want you to succeed too, infact,
he will tell you that all you need from the Legal Profession is financial
richness regardless of how you become rich. He will tell you that “If you can’t
beat them, you join them”
[26] Prof. Amuda-kannike, SAN; “The Ethical challenges and economic
survival of the young lawyer” A paper presented at the conference organized by
the young lawyers forum, NBA, Degema Branch, Rivers State on 14/12/2017.
[27] Yusuf Ali, SAN,; preparing to be a Senior Advocate of Nigeria;
being a paper presented at the University of Ibadan faculty of Law on 13th
June, 2013.
[28] Federal Republic of Nigeria, Official Gazette No. 112, Vol 105
dated 31st August, 2018; 2018
page B147 Guidelines for concernment of the rank of Senior Advocate of
Nigeria and All other matters partaining to the rank
[29] Ibid, Yusuf Ali, SAN pages 16-18
[30] Ibid page B149 of the Gazette of 31st August, 2018
N600,000 is the amount to purchase the application form, if the application is
successful, then another N200,000 will
be paid this are non-refundable deposits.
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