Slow growth of Lawyers in the industry
Litigation happens to be the most practiced area of law in Nigeria, primarily because focus on who a practicing lawyer is has been restricted to lawyers who go to court on frequent basis. Now, with the influx of at least 3,000 lawyers being called to the Nigerian Bar, one will think that the courtrooms will […]
Litigation happens to be the most practiced area of law in Nigeria, primarily because focus on who a practicing lawyer is has been restricted to lawyers who go to court on frequent basis. Now, with the influx of at least 3,000 lawyers being called to the Nigerian Bar, one will think that the courtrooms will be overcrowded with young legal professionals; sadly, these young lawyers do not last long in litigation due to one reason or the other.
Personally, I encourage legal professionals to expand the frontiers of the legal industry by engaging in other specialized areas of law. But then, ask a lawyer on call to bar about a career path, 90 percent will say they want to bring justice to the system through a career in litigation. Ask the same lawyers a year into the profession, and only a handful will maintain this confession.
Which begs the question, what are the reasons for the slow and stunted growth of lawyers in the legal industry? Nwafor Orizu Nnenna Blossom Esq. has submitted a whole article for the reason why new wigs flee litigation and salaried employment in law firms. In her words:
“Maltreatment from senior lawyers: A lot of senior lawyers disguise under the clothing of a disciplinarian to humiliate junior colleagues under their employ. They engage these young lawyers in domestic activities outside the scope of their employment, some work over the weekend running errands with no overtime pay. Many young lawyers have this psycho mentality that the seniors are doing them a favor by employing them, and being caught up in this web make a number of young lawyers lose self confidence in the judicial system.
“Lack of confidence in a young lawyer’s ability: Many young lawyers spend years in a law firm and never get a chance to appear alone. They only bow down to my lord, take down dates in diary, and other relevant notes and carry clients’ file. This is so because their principals don’t have confidence in them and this kills the self-confidence of young lawyers especially when they have put in a lot of time in preparing pleadings and lacing the arguments with recent cases and authorities. For such a lawyer, legal practice can be discouraging and can trigger a quest for legal independence so as to attain a chance to speak in court.
“Paltry stipends: As has been rightly said overtime in the profession, no lawyer can ever be paid fully for the services he/she renders. Then again, there is another side to the coin called reasonable pay. Sadly, a lot of young lawyers earn stipends in the name of salaries. Studies have shown that an employee puts in their best when treated well and rewarded appropriately, but in Nigeria we want the best from the lawyer but not ready to pay adequately.”
Nnenna Blossom, Esq is a young wig who has become frustrated by an atmosphere of a legal industry that is unfavorable to young legal professionals across Nigeria, and I actually don’t blame her for feeling the way she feels. Truth be told, pupilage is important once entering into the legal profession. Secondly, litigation is also good for the development of a lawyer’s charisma, advocacy and confidence, but then the system is not structured in a way that allows a young legal professional to get the best of both worlds.
We have so many half-baked law firms littering the legal industry because a lawyer got tired of being treated as a slave under the guise of employment or learning the trade, without the requisite experience to be a principal partner of a law firm. It is important to state that there are law firms in Nigeria who take the welfare and capacity building of their employees very sacred. Unfortunately, these firms are so few to make the necessary impact in the legal industry.
Legal professionals in Nigeria should pay attention to partnership as a viable means to establishing a law firm. If a young lawyer wants to be independent and still practices litigation, look for other lawyers in that category and establish a firm together. If a lawyer wants to expand the frontiers of the profession by exploring other areas of law and yet wishes to still be in touch with litigation, find a colleague interested in litigation and work out a partnership together.
In sum, focus only on the problems of the Nigerian legal industry without proffering solutions is only going to leave the millennial lawyers in an atmosphere worse than it is today. The seniors of the profession have played their part whether good or bad, it is time for the younger generation to make the future better by doing things differently.
Godspeed!
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