New appointment granted to Onnoghen, ex-CJN

The Body of Benchers has named Justice Walter Onnoghen, a former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), as the head of a high-level committee to investigate the recent wave of contradictory court rulings in the nation and other related issues that impact the courts in an effort to stop the country’s legal system from being further mocked.

At the recent Special Court session honouring the late Justice Edith Nneka Neolita Agbakoba, this was revealed by Emeka Ngige (SAN), a representative of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN).

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The presidents of state and federal courts, as well as the President of the National Industrial Court and some retired judicial officers who are Benchers, are among the committee’s members, according to Ngige, the current Chairman of the Council of Legal Education.

A person wishing to become a lawyer must be formally called to the Bar, and incompetent attorneys must be disciplined by the Body of Benchers, the organisation representing highly distinguished legal practitioners.

Currently serving as the body’s chair is retired Supreme Court Justice Mary Peter Odili.

Ngige claims the Body of Benchers made a decision during its most recent meeting, which took place on Thursday, November 30, 2023.

In the pre- and post-election litigation in the different courts and tribunals around the nation, he said, the problem of contradictory rulings from the courts reached an embarrassing level.

He claims that the problem of contradicting judicial rulings has persisted in undermining the established tenet of stare decisis.Ngige pointed out that in the absence of precedents, all members of the judicial hierarchy would have the freedom to decide or pronounce judgements in accordance with their own opinions. This would mean that there would be no legal certainty.

He expressed gratitude to the Body of Benchers for its prompt intervention and the hope that a long-term solution would be found to halt the negative trend.He said that in order to provide members of the Bench and Bar, as well as members of the public with helpful suggestions on how to halt the unsightly trend, with the opportunity to provide their contribution, the committee’s activity should be extensively publicised.

“We won’t end this speech without making a comment regarding the persistent and bothersome problem of contradictory rulings coming from our courts.”The pre- and post-election litigation in our numerous courts and tribunals has brought this nasty trend to a climax.The established legal principle of stare decisis in our courts is being undermined by this trend. A significant number of practicing solicitors and bench members are now deeply concerned about it.

Legal luminaries like Dr. Olisa Agbakoba have expressed concern over it. It is important to emphasise that the doctrine of stare decisis, or precedents, is a cornerstone of the legal profession in Nigeria and throughout the world. Without precedents, the law would be unpredictable and all members of the judicial hierarchy would have the freedom to rule or make decisions based solely on their own opinions. Enough said; our legal system is firmly based on the antiquated idea of stare decisis, which is the cornerstone of the Nigerian legal profession.

“This unpleasant tendency did not start today, and following our emergency meeting conducted in January 2019 at the Nigerian Law School Lagos, the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (BOSAN) had cause to form a committee on the matter. The committee’s report and recommendations, along with a letter signed by its then-Chairman, Prof. Ben Nwabueze (SAN), now of blessed memory, were later forwarded to Justice Walter Onnoghen, the Nigerian Chief Justice, in January 2019. Regretfully, the former Chief Justice of Nigeria was ousted from office before he could act upon the letter and suggestions.”The current state of affairs is similar to that of 2019, but it has taken a risky turn due to a wave of contradictory rulings from trial courts, tribunals, the Court of Appeal, and even the Supreme Court.

“At its most recent meeting, held on Thursday, November 30, 2023, the Body of Benchers, led by Hon. Justice Mary Peter-Odili (rtd), expressed concern over this turn of events and decided to form a high-level committee to investigate the matter of conflicting judgements and other related issues in our courts.”In addition to the President of this honourable court, Benchers selected from the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, and a few retired judicial officers who are Benchers, the committee is chaired by Justice Walter Nkanu Onnoghen, a former Chief Justice of Nigeria.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Body of Benchers for its prompt response and express our hope that a long-term solution will be found to halt the negative trend.”We propose that a broad public announcement be made about the committee’s work so that members of the Bench and Bar, as well as members of the public, who have helpful suggestions on how to stop the ugly trend, can provide their inputs,” Ngige said.Ngige had earlier in his statement praised the late Justice Edith Agbakoba as a committed judge who shown her abilities via the range of decisions she rendered.

He said the late jurist was of the school of thinking that justice should be administered by resorting to substantial justice rather than merely technicalities, noting that she applied the law with fear of God and was never impeded by norms of formality.