Court mandates registration of new lawyers’ group to compete with NBA

The Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to proceed with the registration of a new lawyers’ association within the country. This decision comes in response to a legal action taken by a group of lawyers, including Bolaji Ayorinde, Mela Nunge, Garba Gajam, Emeka Ichoku, Chioma Ferguson, and Tejumola Adigun, who had sued the CAC for its failure to register their association as an officially recognized legal practitioner body in Nigeria.

The plaintiffs argued in their lawsuit that the names under consideration for registration as a lawyers’ association were not sufficiently distinct from that of the Nigerian Bar Association, potentially causing confusion among the public. The court’s ruling, therefore, not only compels the CAC to register the new association but also addresses concerns about potential misleading nomenclature that might be associated with the legal profession.