The federal high court sitting in Abuja on Friday, 15th December, 2023, (coram) Hon. Justice G. K. Olotu has ordered the Registrar General of the Corporate Affairs Commission to without delay register the Nigerian Law society, a rival body of Nigerian Bar Association as a legally recognized body.
Delivering it's judgment in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/482/2023 filed by Chief Bolaji Ayorinde SAN & 5 ORS V. Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) favour of the Plaintiffs, the Court, rejected the argument of CAC in both the Preliminary Objection and the substantive Suit and held that, the right to peaceful assembly and association guaranteed under Section 40 of the CFRN 1999 covers the kind of association the Plaintiffs intend to register.
On the defendants claim of lack of spread and national character, the court also held that it cannot find anywhere under sections 823, 824 and 825 of CAMA where spread and national character was stated as pre-conditions for registration of an incorporated trustee by the defendant.
On issue of similarity with the NBA, the Court stated that the name, 'Society of Nigerian Lawyers" does not share any similarity with the Nigerian Bar Association and that "Nigerian Law Society" (NLS) only shares one word with the NBA which is "Nigerian".
The Court further stated that "Association of Legal Practitioners" only shares one word with the NBA, which is "Association", but does not mean that the names stated above are identical to that of the NBA and capable of misleading the public, hence, there is no iota of justification for the Defendant’s rejection of any of the proposed names on the grounds that the names are identical to the NBA and are capable of misleading the public and so should not be registered.
On the issue of the Plaintiffs seeking approval from the NBA, the court declared that, the NBA is not a government department or body but just an incorporated trustee and cannot change its status from an incorporated trustee to government department/body, hence, the contention of the defendant in this regard cannot hold water and ruled favour of the Plaintiffs.
Earlier, the Plaintiffs through their trustees, Chief Bolaji Ayorinde SAN, Audu Mela Nunghe, Ambassador Garba Gajam and Ors. represented by Mr Clement Onwewunor SAN and Mr. Kingdom Okere, a human rights lawyer had argued in their Originating Summons that the Plaintiffs submitted two separate applications to the Defendant for registration as an incorporated trustee but the Defendant, under the leadership of the then Registrar General, Mr. Garba Abubakar, refused to approve any of the names proposed, claiming that the names are similar to that of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and would be misleading.
NLS has since notified the CAC which under the leadership of the new Registrar General, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, SAN, of the existing court order and to formally register same
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