No respite for the NBA despite the legal victory

Another splinter group is again claiming the indivisibility of the Nigerian Bar Association, despite the court assertion that it is the Bar Association of Nigeria, writes SUNDAY EJIKE.

About two years after surviving the last attempt at dismantling, the Nigerian Bar Association, established in 1933 as a non-profit association of all lawyers admitted to the bar in Nigeria, is once again struggling to maintain its indivisibility as another splinter group emerged from its ranks, demanding independence.

Not even a well-received judgment from the Enugu State High Court on July 29, 2022, mandating membership of the association for all barristers in Nigeria, will not stop the emerging dissent of the association.

Despite awaiting the decision, the Law Society of Nigeria (LSN) was announced on October 30, approximately three months after the court's decision.

The group is led by a controversial Silk, Mr. Kunle Ogunba.

The new leader of the splinter group has an interesting history with the NBA and the justice sector.

On January 11, 2018, the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee stripped him of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria at its 129th Plenary Meeting. The body, after its investigation, said it had upheld a petition against him by the Honeywell Group, alleging professional misconduct.

According to the statement issued by Hadizatu Mustapha Esq, then Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court/Secretary of the Committee, the alleged misconduct included the institution of a multiplicity of proceedings before different judges of the Federal High Court on the same subject with the deliberate purpose of abusing the process of the Court and derailing the course of Justice.

The Committee added that after a thorough investigation of the petition by the sub-committee it established (during which the Respondent was given a fair hearing), it decided that the petition was founded.

Interestingly, it is the NBA that Ogunba is now seeking to break up that has rallied behind him, with a ray of hope finding him not guilty of the same allegations for which the LPPC, led by the judge in leader of Nigeria, condemned him.

NBA, in its August 5, 2016 response to the Honeywell Group's petition against Ogunba, signed by its then-General Secretary, Mazi Afam Osigwe, stated that it would not refer him to its Disciplinary Committee.

"We regret to inform you that a careful reading of the petition has revealed no alleged breach of the Rules of Professional Conduct 2007 in respect of which Mr. Kunle Ogunba (SAN) may be called upon to provide an explanation.

"It is a principle of law that corporations are separate legal entities capable of sue and be sued.

"By placing this principle next to your allegation of abuse of legal process, we are satisfied that the cases mentioned as well as the legal proceedings joined by yourselves have not demonstrated the existence of a case involving the same parties with respect to the same facts and requesting the same remedies,” the NBA concluded.

The LPPC sanction was finally lifted on September 20, 2018, on the condition that Scholar Silk maintain good and honorable conduct in the future.

Troubled waters again?

As if he was made for controversy, Ogunba, the restored silk was back last year, before the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) and the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee of the Bar Association Nigerian (NBA) for alleged gross misconduct and unethical practices under the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners 2007.

This time it was Seplat, a major indigenous independent oil and gas exploration and development company that filed complaints with both bodies, accusing Ogunba of violating Rules 1, 15, 24 , 30 and 32 of the Rules of Professional Conduct 2007. , requesting sanctions against lead counsel pursuant to paragraph 55 of the Rules of Professional Conduct.

Seplat, also accused Ogunba of ordering the invasion of No. 16A Temple Road, Ikoyi Lagos, housing his offices, a rented property which also housed Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria Limited, African Finance Corporation and Arise Television.< /p >

He urged the LPPC to “immediately institute disciplinary measures against Mr. Adekunle Babatunde Ogunba, SAN” for measures and actions he considered “unbecoming of a lawyer of his rank and constituting a danger of throwing the discredit on the legal profession, which is so expensive”.

Seplat also alleged that after locking down its headquarters in a commando style, "Adekunle Ogunba's agents served certain legal proceedings on Seplat containing a writ of summons, a motion for notification and an ex provisional parte in lawsuit No FHC/L /CS/1588/2020".

The lawsuit relates to a loan obtained by Cardinal Drillings Services Limited from Diamond Bank (now Access Bank), which...