ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Former Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi has been granted entry into the legal profession
The former Minister of Transportation joins the class of 2024 following his successful completion of law studies at Baze University in Abuja
About 4,412 candidates out of 5,300 successfully passed, while 888 did not meet the requirements.
Punch reports that the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, conducted a final bar examination in November 2023, where out of 5,300 candidates, 4,412 passed.
The 2024 call to bar statistics confirms that over 80 per cent were successful in the bar exams, where among the successful candidates, only 251 achieved first-class honours.
Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, Prof. Isa Chiroma, disclosed this during the Call to Bar event in Abuja on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.
Chiroma said 4,412 individuals who passed the November 2023 Bar Final exams and 14 candidates from previous exams were admitted to the bar.
He further stated that out of 5,300 candidates who took the exam, 4,412 achieved success.
“The Nigerian Law School is proudly happy to report that a total number of 251 candidates bagged first class grades in the last Bar final examination. This is indeed an outstanding, excellent performance and, of course, unprecedented.
“These figures translate to 83.3 per cent success at the Bar final examinations,” he said.
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On her part, a retired Justice of the Supreme Court and current Chairman of the Body of Benchers, Mary Peter-Odili, described the present situation as unfavourable for the judiciary.
She highlighted a decline in trust in the judiciary due to a series of contradictory judgments and a lack of discipline among lawyers.
She said: “It is a bad period in the sense that the judiciary is being bashed and public confidence in the legal system is dwindling, occasioned by incessant conflicting judgments in our courts and flagrant indiscipline amongst lawyers.”
Speaking further, the retired judge said that the Body of Benchers has established a committee to address contradictory rulings.
She said: “In a bid to address this vexed issue of conflicting judgments, the Body of Benchers constituted a committee made up of ranking members of the profession.
“The committee will come up with the best possible ways of addressing the concerns.
“When the committee completes its assignment and presents its report to the Body of Benchers, it will, upon consideration and approval, be forwarded to the relevant bodies for implementation.”
Also, she encouraged the recently graduated lawyers to avoid corrupt practices and behaviours that might damage the judiciary’s reputation.
Amaechi revealed that he failed two out of five courses during his recent enrollment in law school.
He attributed his academic setback to his simultaneous pursuit of other degrees, including a master’s and another law degree.
The former Rivers State governor disclosed that he was admitted to King’s College in London for his master’s in law and the University of London for his LLB degree.