“Sale” Of The SAN Privilege/Award In Nigeria Plus Matters Connected Therewith: Questions For Lawyers

By Sylvester Udemezue

In Re: “SAN Application: Controversy Over One Million Naira Application Fee By LPPC” (6 January 2023: TheNigeriaLawyer).

Section 5(2) Legal Practitioners Act CAP L11 LFN 2004: “(2) 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”.

If this SAN award is about recognition of excellence and distinction in the legal profession, should people apply for it or shouldn’t it go through nomination process?

Shouldn’t excellence and distinction in to the legal profession be a matter of the facts speak for themselves, leading to handwritings on the wall for all to see and judge?

Shouldn’t it be when one is nominated, that the LPPC would now request from the nominees, their CV’s, cases, literary or other contributions speaking to their suggested excellence and distinction?
Thereafter, the LPPC would now do a selection process guided by the Guidelines, leading to award under the principle of many called, few chosen, because not all that glitters is gold?

Is the LPPC awarding SAN or selling SAN?

How much did Prof Ben Nwabueze pay to get awarded the rank of SAN in 1978 or thereabouts?

Have we not turned the SAN rank from the “award/privilege” which its founding fathers had in mind to a trading process which its founding fathers had not in mind?

Sometimes, and i may be wrong, i compare this SAN award to the award of Professorial Chair (in the teaching profession) or the National Honours Award in Nigeria, only that no one had ever been reported to have been asked to pay any “application fee” as part of the process of award of the rank of professor or the national honours of GCFR, GCON, MON,OFR, CFR, etc.

Have we not ruined the original intentions of our forebears in instituting the rank of SAN as an award/privilege instead of a commodity to be paid for, negotiated or traded?

Is it not inapt to make one pay for an award? Now, if he truly has distinguished himself or otherwise attained excellence in the legal profession why does he have to pay for the “award” or “privilege”?

Let’s think about these? SAN as an award or privilege to be bestowed on who reasonably merits it or a commodity to be bought by the highest bidder?

Okay, let’s leave “award” alone. let’s rather look at the SAN rank as a privilege . should one pay to get a privilege?

Finally, does section 5 LPA envisage the making of an application, let alone the payment of a mandatory Application Fee, as a condition precedent for the award of, or the privilege of having, a SAN rank?

Do not forget it’s meant to be an honorary award/privilege to be given to persons considered by the LPPC to have attained excellence or distinction in the legal profession! Don’t forget!

Now, does the LPPC have the locus to impose any such mandatory condition as per payment of an application fee as a mandatory condition precedent? Or, is this one way for the prospective awardee to demonstrate that he has attained excellence or distinction in the legal profession as required by section 5(2) of the LPA? Or, is payment of an application fee envisaged by the expression “in such a manner ad the LPPC may from time to time, determine”?

One more question, pardon me; I don’t want to make this too long: Does section 5 of the LPA authorise the LPPC, the CJN or anyone within the profession to unilaterally, whether through a Rule, Guideline, or other subsidiary legislation, exclude any segment of the legal profession from the award of SAN or to otherwise impose conditions aimed to frustrate or make it impossible for lawyers (bona fide members of the legal profession) from any segment of the Legal Profession, to ever be able to attain such level of excellence or distinction as may be necessary for their possible consideration for the award/privilege of SAN? For example, does section 5 of the LPA envisage that it’s possible for any Law Teacher (other than the DG) in the Nigerian Law School (where there is currently not in existence any award of or promotion to “Professorship”) to attain such level of excellence or distinction in the legal profession as to make him/her eligible to be considered for the award/privilege of SAN? If yes , then by imposing a ban on award of SAN to non-professors in the academic category, has the Guidelines not acter in breach of section 5 of the LPA by excluding Law School Lectures in a manner that could reasonably by seen as an unjust and unlawful discriminatory?

Even in the universities, are you saying until you become a professor it’s not possible to have otherwise distinction in the legal profession as a Law Teacher?
You see, there may be times oppression, suppression and victimization may render one powerless. But let there never be a time oppression, suppression and victimization could deter one from at least raising one’s voice in protest against the oppressor. (Well, stories for another day! )

Meanwhile, all I have done is to ask questions. Or, let me just adopt the trademark concluding expression of one of my ogas (names withheld): Just Asking

Respectfully,
Sylvester Udemezue (udems)
08109024556.
[email protected]
(January 06, 2023)