The Nigerian Law Society (NLS) has rejected a directive by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, ordering lawyers and court officials to discontinue the use of “Barrister” as a professional title and adopt “Esquire” instead.
The society argued that the directive had no clear legal basis, insisting that the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962, recognises “Barrister” and “Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria” as professional titles applicable to lawyers called to the Nigerian Bar.
The controversy followed a July 13, 2026, memo signed by the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, Kabir Akanbi, directing legal practitioners, court registrars and other lawyers to immediately stop using “Barrister” before their names in official engagements at the apex court.
According to the memo, the directive was intended to promote professional standards at the Supreme Court.
However, the NLS, through its Executive Director, Dr Tonye Jaja, in a statement issued on Wednesday, faulted the directive, arguing that neither “Esquire” nor alternatives such as “Barrister-at-Law” and “Attorney-at-Law” are expressly provided for in the Legal Practitioners Act.
Jaja said while the use of “Barrister” alone might not fully capture the professional designation of a Nigerian lawyer, the same legal framework did not expressly prescribe “Esquire” as an alternative.
He argued that the CJN, the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) lacked the power to impose professional-title requirements that were not expressly provided for in the law.
The NLS also questioned what it described as inconsistent treatment of professional titles, particularly the “Blue Silks” rank of Senior Counsel of Nigeria (SCN).
The society faulted arguments by the LPPC and Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja that the SCN designation should not be recognised because it is not expressly provided for in the Legal Practitioners Act.
Jaja argued that the fact that the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) rank is expressly recognised by law did not automatically render other professional titles illegitimate.
He accused the CJN and LPPC of applying different standards in regulating professional titles.
“The Blue Silks rank of Senior Counsel of Nigeria, SCN, is not stated inside the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962,” Jaja said, arguing that it was contradictory to restrict the use of “Barrister”, which he said was recognised by the law, while permitting alternatives that were not expressly provided for by statute.
He further described the differing treatment of professional titles as discriminatory and potentially inconsistent with Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution.
Jaja also challenged the argument that only titles expressly contained in the Legal Practitioners Act could legitimately be used by Nigerian lawyers.
He noted that the SAN designation itself evolved from the British King’s Counsel tradition and was adopted in Nigeria in 1975, rather than being created directly by Nigerian legislation.
According to him, the King’s Counsel tradition dates back to the 16th century in Britain, with Francis Bacon recognised as its first holder.
The NLS executive director maintained that the absence of a professional title from a statute did not, by itself, make its use unlawful.
He similarly argued that the Senior Counsel of Nigeria designation, conferred by the Nigerian Law Society and the Body of Senior Counsel of Nigeria (BOSCON), derives its legitimacy from guidelines rather than direct statutory creation.
Jaja said the guidelines were established pursuant to Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution and Section 19 of the National Assembly Service Commission Act, 2014.
The NLS therefore maintained that the CJN’s directive required a clear statutory foundation and urged consistency in the regulation and recognition of professional titles within Nigeria’s legal profession.
