The
Nigerian Legal Practice:
The
plight of the young Nigerian lawyer:
Response
to the plight of the young Nigerian lawyer:
The Nigerian legal practice:
The word ‘legal’ connotes anything
associated with ‘law’. Law has no specific definition but all numerous definitions possess similar characteristics namely; (a) body of rules (b) element of coercion (c) dynamic in nature (d) man-made (e) normative in character and (f) territorial limitationThe word ‘practice’ refer to the ongoing pursuit of a profession literally, an activity to improve skill. It is therefore, proper to conclude that legal practice is the pursuit of the law profession. It is the growth of the budding lawyer in the noble profession.
However, in a broader sense, using the
Wikipedia’s definition, legal practice involves giving legal advice to clients,
drafting legal documents for clients and representing clients in legal
negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits and is applied to the
professional services of a lawyer or attorney at law, barrister, solicitor or
civil law notary. It is important to note that the Nigerian legal practice
involves the legal system of Nigeria consisting of the English received laws,
common laws, customary laws and Sharia Laws.
Conclusively, the Nigerian legal practice is simply the pursuit of the Nigeria law profession.
The plight of the young Nigeria
lawyer:
In order to recommend a solution to
the plight of the young Nigerian lawyers, the plight itself needs to be
discussed. Plight is an instance of danger, risk or situation. The Nigerian
legal practice is not without its risks even as it continues to grow
considerably.
One important risk to consider is the high
increase in the number of lawyers in the legal profession with few jobs to
accommodate them. Unemployment has been one of the greatest challenges faced in
Nigeria. Given to the fact that law is a professional course of study, majority
of people chose to study law. There is a high increase in the population of
professional lawyers and although, population is beneficial in so many ways, it
is not without it disadvantages starting with unemployment. There is often an
unbalance equation between those already in the practice and those coming into
practice. Funny enough no one will give way for the other. The young Nigeria
lawyer is likely to face this problem.
The increasing population tends to
lead to unhealthy competition with lawyers trying to pull down each other. This
is one of the reasons why some lawyers involve in unprofessional conducts not
befitting the Nigerian legal profession.
Closely related, is the inability of young
lawyers to advertise themselves. The legal professional is highly competitive
and anyone coming in must be able to publicize his legal potentials. Budding
lawyers often come with high hopes failing to realize that there are many
qualified professionals already in practice. The young Nigerian lawyer must
unveil his potential slowly to the public and prove himself knowledgeable at
all times.
Moreover,
some young Nigerian lawyers lack passion. A good number of Nigerian lawyers
have exhibited lack of commitment for some reasons to the legal practice. The
strong desire to defend the noble profession is tossed aside. The money drive
has replace truth, equity and justice. In the bid to bring up a solution,
people have played the blamed-game, with some pointing to the government and
others to the lawyers. We have recorded quite a number of cases involving
visionless lawyer and lawyers without zeal. Lawyers who have dragged the name
of the legal professional into the mud by using the profession as a medium for extortion
and self-glory. Dale Carnegie once said ‘you never achieve success unless you
love what you are doing”. Where is the passion to kick start the wheel of
justice and to restore law and order?
Another peculiar problem of the young
Nigerian lawyer is his own emotions. A good lawyer must be able to control his
emotions. He must not allow his emotion get in the way of justice. The young
Nigerian lawyer must be prepared to administer justice to all without
partiality, sentiments, or favoritism. He must seek at all time to satisfy the
provisions of the law. Also, the young lawyer should not be ashamed to demand
for money when necessary from his client simply because the client is directly
or indirectly related to him.
Response
to the plight of the young Nigerian lawyer:
It is now proper
to discuss the response to the young Nigerian lawyers’ plight, having discussed
the plight.
(a)
Provision
of jobs, funds and public enlightenment: You have heard
someone said variety is the spice of life. Well, this applies to the population
of lawyers. The population does not need to be reduced but rather, increase in
the availability of jobs to engage the lawyer. This role is important and must
be played majority by the government. Also, the public needs to be enlighten on
legal matters. One of the causes of unemployment in the legal profession is the
lack of public enlightenment. Most Nigerians especially average Nigerians, do
not known the importance of engaging the services of a lawyer. There are many
cases especially domestic violence that are hidden. People need to understand
the importance of hiring a lawyer and that it is a means to settling cases
amicably and not conflict.
(b)
Disciplinary actions should be taken
against lawyers with declining professional standards. Certain rules must be
place to curb deviant behaviours. To some extent, lawyers are responsible for
unemployment. When people are unfortunate to hire an unprofessional lawyer,
they tend to discard lawyers in general refusing to hire their services. When
disciplinary actions are put in place, young Nigerian lawyers will understand
that the good name of the noble professional must be exalted above other
things. Lawyers are expected at all times to showcase dignity and character
befitting the legal profession. They are meant to be ministers and agents of
justice who have the duty of preserving the law. Any lawyer falling short of
the above ethical standard must be discipline immediately to avoid destroying
the good name of the legal professional. Disciplinary laws already put in place
must also be reviewed and strictly followed irrespectively of whom the deviant
is.
(c) Compulsory
continuing legal education: The young Nigerian lawyer must be prepared to learn
until there is nothing left to learn. He must be versatile, apt to understand
and always ready to update his knowledge. In Henry Ford’s words ‘Anyone who
stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning
stays young. These words can be applicable to a young lawyer. As a legal
practitioner aspiring to be successful, he must constantly update his knowledge
skills and ideas. His knowledge must be unending going beyond his area of
study. A lawyer should be able to discharge his duties to different clients on
a wide range of subjects. He is answerable to his clients on different issues
as it is the general belief that he is learned. It s improper for a lawyer to
display weakness when handling a case. This can lead to him being liable in
damages for professional misconduct.
Conclusion
Engaging the Nigeria lawyer early
in the profession is important. Young wigs must learn to restore professional
dignity, ethics and integrity. Over the years, the legal profession has continued
to grow better and it is important that young wigs lead it to become the best.
The fire must continue to burn through collective hard work, success in the
legal profession is achievable.
BY: PADA FAVOUR SHEKWOLO