In 2014, more than 2000 students were
called to the Nigerian Bar. This year, and the years to come, the
Nigerian Law School will continue to churn out new lawyers to the ever
increasing pool of lawyers in the country.
As expected, the Call to Bar Ceremony,
which is the ceremony “initiating” new lawyers or new wigs as they are
called into the profession, is usually frenzied with excitement. Food
and drinks would flow, friends and family will buy “Aso-ebi”, proud
parents would paste stickers with witty inscriptions on their cars
indicating that their child is now a member of the “elite club”. Some
parents go the extra mile of publishing pictures of themselves and their
children smiling gleefully at the camera in national dailies and of
course, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media outlets
would be flooded with tweets, posts, pictures of the ceremony and
praises to God for the success at the Bar exams.
Continue reading after the cut....
On that very special day, new wigs are
usually very ecstatic and rightly so too. Anyone who had gone through
the rigours of studying law for five years in a Nigerian university or
any other university in the world, and later spends one year of vigorous
study, in the anxiety inducing environment at the Nigerian Law School
will understand and appreciate the delight of new wigs.
However, after all the glitz and glamour,
young lawyers are released into the society and reality assumes a
different face. The Call to Bar Ceremony can be likened to a wedding
ceremony where everybody comes to celebrate with you amidst great pomp
and pageantry but once the day ends, the new couple are left to chart
their lives together, the success or failure of the union would depend
largely on the conduct of both parties thereafter. In the same manner,
the success or failure of your profession would depend on what happens
after that one special day.
There are certain facts every young
lawyer should know before leaving law school as the practice of law is
remarkably different from the business of law. In recent times, a large
number of young lawyers leave the profession to do other things like
music, fashion and business. Whilst this is not necessarily a bad
development, it is a testament to the growing dissatisfaction of young
lawyers with the profession.
The problem, however, is not an abundant
supply of lawyers. The problem is the perception of the public towards
service-oriented industries. In our society, there is a general
unwillingness of people and organisations to pay for services. They
would readily pay for goods and negotiate services. Many would insist
that you offer your services for free. I attended a meeting recently
with a lawyer who was trying to negotiate his legal fees with his
client. As both parties haggled over the fees to be paid, his client, a
successful businessman, told his lawyer cynically that he (the lawyer)
wasn’t hungry yet, and that when he was he would take the brief.
Legal practice in Nigeria is far from the
glamour depicted in popular television shows, like “Suits” and “Boston
legal” where the lawyers wear smart suits, and all the women appear
attractive and dole out impressive arguments in court. Legal practice,
particularly litigation, involves hours of endless research, continuous
adjournments in courts, religious adherence to procedure, impatient and
grumpy clients, lots of heavy ugly looking files held together by thick
white ropes, and a not-so-impressive salary. Young lawyers need to be
prepared for this. It is not all grim though as the legal profession is
one of the few professions that affords you the opportunity of earning a
living by helping people. The intrinsic satisfaction derived from
providing solutions to problems cannot be quantified.
The first and perhaps most important fact
is that young lawyers should not expect quick financial rewards. Many
pro-bono briefs would be done in the first few years of practice. Young
lawyers should understand that the legal profession rewards diligence,
hard work and longevity. Whilst this is no excuse for the miserly
remuneration some senior lawyers pay their juniors, it is better to be
prepared for what lies down the road, so one does not get disappointed
and discouraged. Parents who have invested in their children to become
lawyers and are eagerly awaiting “harvest time” should also understand
that harvest time may not come immediately after graduation from law
school, “harvest time” may come five or 10 years later.
Furthermore, young lawyers should
endeavour to work in a good law firm under an experienced senior counsel
for at least a year or two. Law firms that do not compartmentalise
their practice are the best kind of law firms to work for, in the early
years of practice. This is so because you get to do a bit of every area
of law like corporate, commercial and litigation. This way, a young
lawyer can decide where his strength lies, what area of law he is most
proficient in or if he is interested in pursuing a career in the
profession at all.
Young lawyers should also understand that
whilst knowledge is essential in the profession, experience is
“golden”. What this means is that a young lawyer may know all the
principles of the law and may even be able to deliver the same with the
mastery of a senior lawyer; however, a client would be more confident
and at ease giving the brief to a senior counsel. This is the unfair
reality of the profession.
Working in an established law firm gives a
young lawyer access to law briefs he would probably not have had access
to, had he set up his law practice immediately after graduation.
Perhaps, I should also mention at this point that there is nothing that
precludes a new wig from setting up a law practice immediately after
graduation. This is a topic for another day. In life really, there are
no rules cast in stones. Diligence, consistency and hard work are the
only requisite tools for success. A number of successful lawyers started
their law practice immediately after graduation from law school and
excelled. However, working with a senior for a while will afford you the
opportunity to learn from their experience.
Young lawyers, who work in law firms that
permit them to pursue their private practice, are encouraged to take
advantage of it, as it is an opportunity to start building their
clientele early. Young lawyers should do their business cards and
letterheads, stating their area of practice and contact address. The
first set of clients for many new wigs usually consists of close family
and friends. This set of people would request for legal advice and
representation of all shades and forms. It would be wise to accede to
their requests, because these cases would serve as pilot cases, training
ground for the development of one’s legal skills for larger and more
financially rewarding briefs. More so, since the people involved are
family and friends, errors made in handling such briefs are more easily
tolerated and overlooked. Such errors may not be tolerated by other
clients.
However, be warned, do not expect any
substantial form of financial remuneration from this set of people, as
they would expect you to offer your services free of all charges.
A lawyer never reveals his ignorance. As a
lawyer, you are essentially a problem solver. People only come to you
when they have problems. You would therefore be required to proffer
solutions on issues you probably know nothing about. Every lawyer knows
that no lawyer knows it all. The eminent Lord Denning knew this for a
fact when he reportedly stated that, “God forbid that I should know the
whole Law.” Experienced lawyers have mastered the art of “tactfully”
requesting for more time to study a particular issue rather than an
outright confession of ignorance. There is a need for young lawyers to
therefore acquire this skill too.
Furthermore, whilst it is wise to
“tactfully” request more time to examine an issue, it is also important
to note that you may indeed not have the solutions to all the legal
issues brought to you. Wisdom is therefore knowing when to hold a brief
and when to fold it. Young lawyers should remember that they are lawyers
not miracle workers.
The first few years of practice are
perhaps the most trying ones for lawyers; besides the poor remuneration
in the industry, the profession recognises seniority and hierarchy. Many
senior lawyers would mandatorily require their juniors to carry their
wigs, gowns and files for court appearances. Many young lawyers find
this disconcerting and denigrating. Although there truly is no reason
why this should be, young lawyers should not be discouraged; it’s a
learning curve and an opportunity to learn what to do and what not to do
when you become a senior.
Happy customers give the best form of
publicity to any business. Young lawyers need to understand that
customer satisfaction is key. The reputation of any lawyer precedes him,
hence integrity and client satisfaction should not be compromised in
service delivery. Young lawyers should resist the urge of making fast
gains at the detriment of their client’s interest. The “Charge and Bail”
practice, which is a derogatory term used to describe lawyers that
loiter in court premises soliciting briefs from accused persons should
be shunned; it portrays the profession in negative light and lawyers as
desperate people.
Young lawyers should endeavour to draw a
line between the legal profession and real estate agency. In recent
times, many lawyers have reduced their legal practice to real estate
agency. Some of them end up clamouring for “managerial rights” on
properties with mere real estate agents. The act of haggling over
properties with real estate agents should be avoided. It belittles your
practice, and reduces it to a “Landlord and Tenant” practice. Whilst
specialisation is essential, a young lawyer should not be too quick to
establish or create a reputation in a particular area of law early in
his career, as he may later discover his flair for a different practice.
Finally, the ability to earn decent wages
is still enormously important. Of what benefit is knowledge if it
cannot be translated into financial gains and career satisfaction? So,
if as a young lawyer you find a legal practice that allows you to earn
decently and learn, please, by all means, embrace it.
Culled - Ms Imosemi/Punch
Share your thoughts....thanks!
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