Dr Tonye Clinton Jaja, Executive Director of the Nigerian Law Society (NLS), 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 October 11, 2026, Jaja said the petition was published in Punch newspaper on October 6, 2026, raising concerns about fair hearing and the procedure adopted in pursuing the matter.
He referred to a judgment delivered by the Federal High Court in Abuja on January 27, 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.
Jaja said, “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.”
He maintained that the judgment should be challenged through the appellate process if any party disagreed with its findings.
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 further disputed the reported claim that Akanbi could not establish his contact details for service of the petition, saying legal documents had been exchanged through lawyers representing parties in other ongoing cases involving them.
Jaja cited proceedings before the Court of Appeal in Abuja and the National Industrial Court of Nigeria as examples of cases in which, according to him, the parties had exchanged legal documents.
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 said the initiative was intended to recognise legal practitioners whose work falls outside courtroom litigation, which he argued was not adequately reflected in the existing criteria for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
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.
The dispute raises questions about the legal basis of the SCN rank and the extent of the regulatory powers of the professional bodies involved.
Akanbi’s response to the allegations was not included in the material provided by Jaja.
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