The petitions by means of the non-litigation legal professionals, below the aegis of Affiliation of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners, ALDRAP, and the Nigerian Legislation Society, NLS, adopted an previous petition lodged ahead of the Prison Practitioners Disciplinary Committee, LPDC, by means of Akanbi in opposition to Government Secretary of the NLS, Dr Tonye Clinton Jaja and legal professionals who had been conferred with the Blue Silks rank.
Akanbi, by means of distinctive feature of his place as Leader Registrar of the Very best Court docket, may be the Secretary of the Prison Practitioners Privileges Committee, LPPC, a frame which confers the Senior Suggest of Nigeria, SAN, identify on legal professionals within the nation.
“Particularly, Mr. Kabir Eniola Akanbi has time and again being in violation of Rule 33 of the Regulations of Skilled Behavior for Prison Practitioners, 2023, and Segment 36(9) of the Charter of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 ever since we commenced complaints in opposition to him.
“On every occasion any lawsuit is instituted in opposition to any legal professional, they’re prohibited from newsletter of prejudicial statements ahead of the overall judgement of delivered.
“In disobedience to this hallowed theory of sub-judice, on thirteenth February and in July 2026, Mr. Kabir Eniola Akanbi in his capability because the Secretary of the Prison Practitioners Privileges Committee-LPPC, revealed in numerous nationwide newspapers prejudicial statements in opposition to Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja, and the included trustees of the Affiliation of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners (ALDRAP).
“This can be a blatant violation of each Sections 36(1), (9) and 36(12)of the Nigerian Charter as a result of by means of distinctive feature of that newsletter Mr. Kabir Eniola Akanbi is looking for the prosecution of Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja, SCN and 13 different legal professionals on the Prison Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) with out looking forward to ultimate judgment by means of each the Court docket of Enchantment Abuja Department and the Nationwide Commercial Court docket of Nigeria respectively.
“The foremost factor for choice in the ones complaints is whether or not Dr. Tonye Clinton Jaja SCN and different legal professionals, contributors of ALDRAP and the Nigerian Legislation Society (NLS), don’t benefit from the basic rights to freedom of affiliation to confer upon themselves the Blue Silks rank of Senior Recommend of Nigeria-SCN. That is the similar of Fellowship of the stated ALDRAP and the Nigerian Legislation Society (NLS) for non-litigation legal professionals,” portions of the petition learn.
It added that, opposite to the alleged “prejudicial” publications of each the officers of the NBA and Akanbi, “on the time in their newsletter, no court docket of regulation inside of Nigeria has delivered any judgment to proclaim that the Blue Silks rank was once unlawful”.
The non-litigation legal professionals, within the petition, famous {that a} judgment delivered by means of Justice Mohammed Garba Umar of the Federal Top Court docket, Abuja, on twenty seventh January 2026, by means of implication, gave impetus to the Blue Silks rank of Senior Recommend of Nigeria, SCN.
“Within the stated judgment, it was once mentioned that the NBA and by means of extension the LPPC may just handiest control Nigerian legal professionals on issues which are in particular mentioned within the Prison Practitioners Act, 1962. Because of this the NBA and LPPC can control the rank of Senior Suggest of Nigeria (SAN) as a result of it’s contained inside the Prison Practitioners Act, 1962,” the petition added.
They additional argued that it was once a gross violation of the main of honest listening to for Akanbi to report the petition, since, by means of distinctive feature of his place as Leader Registrar of the Very best Court docket of Nigeria, he’s without delay or not directly a member of the LPDC.
In a separate petition, the non-litigation legal professionals sought the pressing intervention of the Public Lawsuits Fee, PCC, “to forestall a sequence of acts of maladministration and administrative injustices by means of the movements of Mr. Kabir Eniola Akanbi, Leader Registrar of the Very best Court docket of Nigeria who has time and again refused to abide by means of the sub-judice rule since February 2026”.
Portions of the petition learn, “We write to respectfully request the Public Lawsuits Fee to interfere to name Mr. Kabir Eniola Akanbi, Leader Registrar of the Very best Court docket of Nigeria, to forestall the abuse of the powers conferred upon him by means of distinctive feature of his place of work because the Leader Registrar of the Very best Court docket of Nigeria.
“Particularly, Mr. Kabir Eniola Akanbi has time and again being in violation of Rule 33 of the Regulations of Skilled Behavior for Prison Practitioners, 2023, and Segment 36(9) of the Charter of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 ever since we commenced complaints in opposition to him.”
The petition additional mentioned that it’s on report that 72 % of 213,000 certified Nigerian legal professionals are these days non-litigation legal professionals who’ve selected to not have interaction in full-time court litigation follow. It added that since 1975, this class of legal professionals have mechanically been excluded from utility and conferment of the rank of Senior Suggest of Nigeria, SAN, for the reason that standards for conferment excludes them.
They famous that the advent of the Blue Silks rank of Senior Recommend of Nigeria was once “meant to supply a compensatory scheme for non-litigation Nigerian legal professionals”.
Noting that the appliance for and conferment of the Blue Silks rank is a voluntary scheme, the petition added, “In December 2023, Hon. Justice Gladys Olotu of the Federal Top Court docket Abuja delivered a judgment that mentioned that primarily based upon Segment 40 of the Nigerian Charter, Nigerian legal professionals are loose to shape associations of legal professionals and sign up those by means of any names such because the Nigerian Legislation Society (NLS) and this freedom of affiliation does no longer by any means jeopardise or infringe upon the rights of the Included Trustees of the Nigerian Bar Affiliation (NBA).
“This judgment is now the subject-matter of on-going litigation on the Court docket of Enchantment. Each the NBA and Mr. Akanbi are instructed to anticipate the overall judgment on those issues as a substitute of taking extra-judicial and prejudicial statements by means of submitting petitions in opposition to one of the most identical individuals who’re litigants in opposition to them within the courts of regulation.”