By Yemi Oyeyemi, Abuja
In what aappears to be a response to an onslaught by the Nigeri Bar Association (NBA) on his leadership of the Body of Benchers (BoB), its chairman, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) has advised lawyers not to see the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) as a forum for settling scores with imaginary enemies.
The NBA President, Mr. Olumide Akpata, who recently wrote to Olanipekun to recuse himself as BoB chairman to allow unfettered investigation of a partner in his chamber, was curiously absent at the Call to Bar event where Olanipekun spoke.
Olanipekun said the LPDC, as an independent agency of the BoB, serves solely as an avenue through which it exercises the power to discipline any erring legal practitioner.
He spoke during the Call to Bar ceremony for 1491 new lawyers, held by the BoB on Wednesday, at its secretariat in Jabi, Abuja.
Olanipekun stressed that the LPDC “is a committee of the Body of Benchers, saddled with the responsibility of disciplining any legal practitioner in Nigeria where his or her conduct amounts to infamous conduct in professional respect in violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct for legal practitioners in Nigeria.
“Over the years, the LPDC, has continued to operate as an independent arbiter, enjoying absolute independence in the course of carrying out its assignment.
“The Body of Benchers does not and will not interfere with any of the proceedings or outcome of such proceedings before the LPDC.
“It is important to point out that the LPDC is not an avenue for dealing with perceived enemies or ventilation of grievances against fellow lawyers on personal issues.
“The decision of the LPDC is known as Direction, and any appeal against the Direction goes directly to the Supreme Court.
Recall that Akpata, asked Olanipekun to step down over an allegation of misconduct levelled against a female lawyer, Ms. Adekunbi Ogunde, a partner in Wole Olanipekun & Co. Chambers. The letter has since unsettled the bar.
The Nigerian Body of Benchers is a professional body concerned with the admission of prospective students into the Nigerian Law School. Members of the body are called Benchers.
The body also regulates the call of graduates of the Nigerian Law School to the Nigerian Bar as well as the regulation of the legal profession in Nigeria.
Akpata’s letter to Olanipekun reads in part: “As you know, the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) is a Standing Committee of the BoB, whose processes come under the supervision of the Chairman of the BOB – an office which you currently occupy.
“Against the backdrop of your partnership relationship with Ms.Ogunde, vis-a-vis the prosecution of the petition by the LPDC, it is clear, albeit unfortunate, that you have been put in a situation where your continued occupancy of the office during this period would conflict, or be reasonably interpreted to conflict, with or influence the processes of the LPDC, by fair-minded observers and right thinking members of the public, both within and outside our profession.
“By reason of your close professional ties and involvement with Ms. Ogunde, it would be an infraction of the salutary principles of natural justice for the said Petition to be heard by the LPDC while you continue as Chairman of the BOB, of which the LPDC is a committee.
“Consequent upon the above, I am constrained to invite you to recuse yourself from chairmanship of the BOB henceforth and to allow for the emplacement of an interim leadership of the BOB, in order to enable the LPDC carry out this particular assignment, amongst others, without coming under an undue suspicion of impartiality.
Adekunbi Ogunde had sent an email to Saipem Contracting Nigeria Ltd soliciting a brief after the Rivers state government preferred charges against the company over allegations of $130million fraud.
Though the firm of Henry Ajumogobia, SAN is defending Saipem, Ogunde told the management to consider hiring Olanipekun& Co.
The partner informed CEO Francesco Caio that Olanipekun has more “influence” with judges across all courts.
“We are aware that another law firm is currently in the matter but you will agree that highly-sensitive and political matters require more influence.
“We are happy to work with the current lawyers to achieve the desired results. Chief Olanipekun SAN, OFR, will significantly switch things in favour of SAIPEM.”
Ogunde included that Olanipekun chairs the BOB comprising “supreme court judges, presiding justices of the court of appeal and chief judges of all state high courts, including the Rivers state high court.”
In a protest letter, Ajumogobia declared that the action was a breach of mandatory rule, especially the acknowledgement that Saipem had a counsel.
“That I and my firm of Ajumogobia & Okeke were retained in the matter, was a matter of public record and was personally known to you and your firm, since you had asked me about the matter during our Unilag Law Faculty Alumni dinner at Harbour point in February,” he wrote.
Ogunde apologised to Ajumogobia: “My email of 20th June 2022 (although done in exuberance, but in good faith and with altruism) has caused great distress, embarrassment and trauma to the people I hold and will continue to very dearly.”
On June 24, Olanipekun again apologised in a rejoinder, stressing that no one authorized the email by Ogunde.
“First, let it be known without any equivocation that the said letter was written without the instruction, authority, mandate, approval or consent of Wole Olanipekun& Co.; it was also not brought to our attention by the writer.
“Second, it has never been the practice of our law firm to solicit for cases or clientele, and we shall never indulge ourselves in this disturbing practice and trend.”
The letter said Ogunde acted on her own, “and we do wholly dissociate ourselves from the letter and its contents: internal measures would immediately be taken to address and redress this very unfortunate situation.”
“The writer never discussed her intention to write the letter or showed it to any person or counsel in the office, either before or after sending it to Mr. Caio.
“We unreservedly apologise to the highly respected H. Odein Ajumogobia, SAN, OFR, and the entire law firm of Ajumogobia & Okeke for the embarrassment which the letter might have caused them”.
Olanipekun added that the matter has also caused his chamber “a lot of embarrassment as well”.
After the exchanges between the two Chambers of Olanipekun and Odein Ajumogobia, both SANs, a petition sprang.
In the petition with registration number BB/LPDC/901/2022 to the LPDC, John Aikpokpo-Martins, NBA vice president said the issue brought shame to the justice system and legal profession liable to be disciplined…seeing that the Respondent has the ostensible authority to act as a partner, and indeed acted for and on behalf of the said firm”.
While plans were in the pipeline to commence the trial of Ms. Ogunde, the NBA President, Olumide Akpata, fired a letter to Chief Olanipekun wanting him to step down as BoB chairman.
Although the letter has been trending on the social media for more than 24 hours, Olanipekun said he was yet to be served.
Akpata, in the letter, informed Olanipekun that the NBA had taken the matter to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC).
He said the LPDC is a panel under the BOB which Olanipekun, a former NBA President, heads.
Akpata said he is in a situation where his continued occupancy of the office would conflict with or influence LPDC processes.
“I am constrained to invite you to recuse yourself from the chairmanship of the BoB and to emplace an interim leadership.
The NBA believes this would ensure the panel carried out its investigation of Ogunde, “without coming under the suspicion of impartiality”.
“I am pained that I have to make this call, but in this circumstance, it is in the best interest of our Association and of the legal profession in Nigeria “, Akpata added.
Olanipekun, at the Call to Bar ceremony in Abuja on Wednesday, also expressed concern about the unethical practice of forum shopping and hinted of plan by the BoB for regulations to address the problem.
“You are no doubt aware of the disturbing trend of Forum Shopping in Nigeria, a very reprehensible conduct introduced to the practice of law recently, whereby litigants and legal practitioners shop for ‘friendly venues and judexes’ to file and litigate otherwise frivolous and questionable causes, purportedly arising out of the jurisdictions where the actions are eventually filed, pursued and prosecuted.
“This ugly practice is permeating the entire Nigerian legal landscape, leading to the churning out, on regular basis, of conflicting orders and decisions of courts of coordinate jurisdictions.
“As a result of this as well, the legal profession is being brought to disrepute and opprobrium, leading to tirades, venoms and uncomplimentary remarks and sentences being passed on the legal profession and some of our Judges.
“Be informed that the Body of Benchers, by virtue of the powers conferred on it by Section 10 (1)(c) of the Legal Practitioners Act has now set up a Regulations Committee, empowered to make Regulations for the decent practice of law in Nigeria.
“The committee has submitted a draft Regulations to the Body of Benchers and the Regulations, when approved, will become binding on all legal practitioners, who will be restricted to initiating and filing causes and matters where the said causes of action arise or as provided by the Rules of the adjudicating courts.
“Just as it is provided under the Matrimonial Causes Rules, lawyers will be required to sign and file certain forms and documents, indicating compliance with the Regulations before filing any originating process at trial courts.
“Any infraction or breach of the Regulations would amount to professional misconduct.
Olanipekun, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (SAN) stressed the need for lawyers to always uphold the time-tested moral and ethical standards of the legal profession.
“I admonish you all to carefully and soberly go through the provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct in the legal profession, as the Rules regulate all your conducts, be it as a practicing lawyer in private legal practice or in any of our various Ministries of Justice, or as a solicitor, working in any private establishment, institution, company, organization or body.
“You should not assume that the Rules are meant to regulate and control legal practitioners in what is commonly known as ‘active legal practice’ or the private Bar.
“Adherence to the Rules is also a condition precedent to your success at the Bar and the legal profession.
“ I plead with you, as you join the Bar, to always strive at being an added value to the nobility, honour, dignity and respect of the profession, rather than coming to deplete and discount the established virtues the profession has stood for over the ages,” Olanipekun said.
Earlier, the Director General of the Law School, Professor Isa Hayatu Chiroma revealed that the graduation ceremony had to be shifted from the traditional place of Bwari to the Body of Benchers Complex due to thteats by terrorists and bandits to launch attacks against the l Law School.
The Director General thanked the Chief of Defense Staff, Chief of Army, Inspector General of Police, Director General of State Service (DSS,) Civil Defense Commandant and Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) for jointly coming to the rescue of the School by providing adequate security and wise security counseling.
He said that the graduands have been found worthy in character and in academic, hence their induction into the Nigerian Bar as fulfilleged lawyers.