Jaja Questions LPPC Secretary’s Petition Over Blue Silks Rank

Executive Director of the Nigerian Law Society (NLS), Dr Tonye Clinton Jaja, has questioned a petition reportedly filed against him and 13 other lawyers by the Secretary of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), Kabir Eniola Akanbi, over the Blue Silks rank of Senior Counsel of Nigeria (SCN).

Jaja argued that the dispute over the rank should be addressed through the appropriate legal procedures, including an appeal against any court judgment with which a party is dissatisfied.

In a statement dated 11 October 2026, Jaja said the petition was published in Punch newspaper on 6 October, raising concerns about a fair hearing and the procedure adopted in pursuing the matter.

He referred to a Federal High Court judgment delivered in Abuja on 27 January 2026, which he said addressed the respective powers of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the LPPC and the bodies involved in conferring the SCN rank.

“The Nigerian Constitution stipulates that when anyone is dissatisfied with the judgment of any High Court, such a person is supposed to file an appeal before the Court of Appeal,” Jaja said.

He argued that the judgment should be challenged through the appellate process if any party disagreed with its findings, rather than through disciplinary proceedings.

Jaja also questioned whether Akanbi’s positions as LPPC secretary and Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court could raise concerns about the appearance of bias in the handling of the petition by the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC).

He alleged that Akanbi had claimed he could not establish his current contact details for service of the petition, describing the claim as false.

According to Jaja, legal documents had been exchanged through lawyers representing parties in other ongoing cases involving them, including proceedings before the Court of Appeal in Abuja and the National Industrial Court of Nigeria.

He further argued that the petition raised questions about the constitutional principles of fair hearing and double jeopardy. These remain his legal arguments and have not been independently established by the material provided.

The Blue Silks rank was introduced in 2025 by the Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners (ALDRAP), the Body of Senior Counsel of Nigeria (BOSCON) and the NLS, according to Jaja.

He said the rank was designed to recognise lawyers whose professional work focuses on non-litigation services, including legislative drafting and legal publications.

According to him, applicants must have held a Bachelor of Laws degree for at least 10 years and provide evidence of 35 verifiable non-litigation transactions or publications. He added that applications were assessed by a panel of judges who are members of BOSCON.

Jaja maintained that non-litigation lawyers had been disadvantaged by the criteria for the conferment of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), which he said focused on courtroom litigation experience.

He also cited Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of association, in support of his position that the NLS could confer the SCN rank on its members.

Efforts to reach Akanbi for his response were unsuccessful, as he did not answer calls or respond to a WhatsApp message sent to him at the time of filing this report.