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The Nigerian Law Society (NLS) has opposed the directive by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, instructing lawyers to stop using the title “Barrister” in official engagements at the Supreme Court, insisting that the order has no legal backing.
The directive, contained in a July 13, 2026 memo signed by the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, Kabir Akanbi, directed legal practitioners, court registrars and other court officials to discontinue the use of “Barrister” before their names and adopt “Esquire” instead as part of efforts to promote professional standards.
Reacting in a statement on Wednesday, the NLS, through its Executive Director, Dr. Tonye Jaja, argued that the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962 recognises “Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria” as the professional designation for lawyers called to the Nigerian Bar.
Jaja maintained that while the use of “Barrister” alone may not fully reflect the statutory title, the designation “Esquire” is equally not provided for under the Legal Practitioners Act.
He said the CJN’s directive could not be traced to any provision of the existing law, stressing that neither the Chief Justice, the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) nor the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has the authority to impose professional titles not recognised by statute.
According to him, replacing a title expressly recognised by law with one that lacks statutory backing raises legal and procedural concerns.
The NLS also criticised what it described as inconsistency in the handling of the controversial "Senior Counsel of Nigeria" (SCN) title.
Jaja argued that if the absence of a title from the Legal Practitioners Act is used as the basis for rejecting certain professional designations, then the same standard should apply uniformly to all non-statutory titles.
He accused the CJN and the LPPC of applying double standards by discouraging the use of "Barrister" while permitting "Esquire" and disputing the recognition of the "Blue Silks" Senior Counsel of Nigeria title.
The NLS further noted that the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) rank itself evolved from the British King's Counsel tradition and was adopted in Nigeria in 1975 rather than being created directly by legislation.
Jaja maintained that the absence of a professional title in a statute does not automatically render its use unlawful, adding that the Senior Counsel of Nigeria designation derives its legitimacy from established guidelines issued under constitutional and statutory provisions.
