“The legal profession should indeed take the lead in all human affairs”, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Ibrahim Muhammad has declared.
Swearing-in the Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf, the CJN took a swipe at judicial officials who are engaged in forum shopping.
“Taking The Lead” is the theme of this year’s annual general conference of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, that is currently holding in the Rivers capital, Port Harcourt.
Justice Muhammad emphasized that forum shopping pioneered by some lawyers has turned into an albatross that is lowering the esteem of the legal profession.
“However, the lead is at a price”, Justice Muhammadu pointed out, “We cannot take the lead when our courts issue ex parte orders recklessly.”
“We cannot take the lead when many litigants, with support of their counsel, engage in forum shopping.
Olumide Akpata, NBA President
“We cannot take the lead when counsel file a case before a court that they know lacks jurisdiction and the judge proceeds to hear the case.
“We cannot take the lead when counsel files frivolous cases in our courts just for nuisance value or to buy time,” the CJN warned.
Acknowledging that the nation has high hopes of the judiciary, Justice Muhammad stressed the need for self-assessment on the part of lawyers and judges in order to rid the legal profession of bad eggs.