‘How I became Sokoto’s first SAN’

  The Sokoto State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Suleiman Usman, is one of the 30 legal practitioners recently conferred with the title of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in accordance with the Legal Practitioners Act 207 Section 5 (1) by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee. SAN is conferred on legal practitioners in […]

 

The Sokoto State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Suleiman Usman, is one of the 30 legal practitioners recently conferred with the title of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in accordance with the Legal Practitioners Act 207 Section 5 (1) by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee. SAN is conferred on legal practitioners in Nigeria of not less than 10 years’ standing who have distinguished themselves in the legal profession. Usman, the first from state to be conferred with the prestigious title, in this interview, speaks on his effort to accomplish the feat and why it took so long for the state to produce a SAN. Excerpts:

 

Daily Trust: How did you feel when you got the news that you had been conferred with SAN?

Barrister Suleiman Usman: Well, I felt elated when I got the news because the rank of SAN is prestigious not just in Nigeria but also in other countries where such is given. In the United  Kingdom, it is called QC- Queen’s Counsel. In Nigeria, it started as QC. The first person that got the title of Queen’s Counsel is Rotimi Williams and that is why when the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria was introduced in 1975, it was automatically conferred on Rotimi Williams. Rotimi Williams and Dr. Nabo Graham  Douglas were the  recipients in 1975. So, I feel elated and fulfilled as the journey was long and tortuous. It is a rank awarded to people who have achieved legal distinction in the practice and to achieve that is not easy. First, you must have a minimum of 10 years at the bar before you would be eligible for the rank. 

Then there are lots of other requirements. You should also display diligence by making sure that you pay your practicing fees for 10 consecutive years as and when due. You must have paid local dues both monthly and annually for 10 years as and when due, you must have paid income tax as and when due. You must have done at least four pro-bono cases, cases done without asking for fees as a way of ensuring individual corporate responsibility. It should not be just about making money. Fundamentally, you must have conducted a minimum of 20 contested cases from the beginning of the case to the end with records within the 10-year bracket in high courts and courts of equivalent jurisdiction-the Federal High Court, Election Petition Tribunal, Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. 

Apart from being contested, the cases must be of legal significance, substance and complexity.

These are some of the requirements in respect of cases. Then Chamber, you should have a well-established chamber that is modern and has all the necessary facilities with good location, lawyers and supporting staff, among others.

DT: What is the significance of being the first person from Sokoto to become a SAN?

Barrister Usman: Apart from being historic and ground breaking, it is also something of joy and pride. That is why I worked hard knowing that we had not produced any. There were temptations to go into the judiciary in the past to get appointed as a High Court judge several times but I would also look at the fact that nobody had made it from this state and many of my colleagues, both senior and junior, were encouraging me, that if I abandoned that quest, it would be a sort of discouragement to others who would want to try it because I had been engaged in full time practice, unlike many lawyers. I am the only person in the state apart from my seniors who have done the practice and left it for other government appointments, we have Bello Mahmud, the former Attorney General, now the Registrar General, Corporate Affairs. He was a full-time practitioner and His Excellency Sokoto Governor Aminu Tambuwal who was also in full time practice before he joined the National Assembly. These are some of the people that if they had maintained the practice, they would have got it but the rest joined the Judiciary. These are some of the reasons why it took long for Sokoto to produce a SAN.

DT: How many times did you apply for it before you got it?

Barrister Usman: It was my first attempt. I got it on first attempt. There are some that applied five times and more before they got. I am one of the very few that got it on first attempt.

DT: What is the secret and what’s your advice to those aspiring to become SAN?

Barrister Usman: It is not easy if you want to excel in anything. Excellence is not something that you get on a platter of gold. It is a product of hard work, it is a product of diligence, a product of discipline and consistency and then you should also have character. Even if you have all the qualifications, without character, you cannot become SAN.