Compliance To The NBA Uniform Scale Of Fees Would Greatly Improve Welfare Of Lawyers (Pt. 2) By Chidi Udekwe, Esq.
In February of 2022, I published part 1 of the above captioned article where I commended the Welfare Committee of NBA under the leadership of Olumide Akpata for its presentation to NBA NEC for approval, the Uniform Scale of Fees for Lawyers.
Indeed, for every association, one of the most important aims and objectives is the welfare of its members. For the Nigerian Bar Association, from 1962 to date, the welfare of lawyers in terms of standard of fees for services provided by lawyers, has always been legislated on, through the Legal Practitioners Act.
These provisions notwithstanding, charges have always remained an issue in the legal affairs of both senior and junior lawyers despite the statutory provisions. The general argument is that charges are not taught in law school. On the other hand, it is perceived as a problem because of the non implementation of the provisions of the Acts. Some lawyers also attribute it to the class of clients, while others have attributed it to the level or style of practice. Whichever one, there is no doubt that some lawyers in Nigeria have suffered economically because of lack of skill in charging fees.
In his book “Law Practice as a Business,” Stephen I. Azubuike examined in finality the problems with billing by lawyers and proffered ideal solutions thereto. But, are those solutions plausible without equivalent practicals?
Many reactions greeted the recent Legal Practitioners (Remuneration for Business, Legal Services and Representation) Order, 2003. Positive as this new legislation may have been, concerns were raised on its implementation, especially by lawyers. It appears that the new legislation was welcomed with mixed feelings because while some believe it will work, others think it is dead on arrival. Lawyers across the board have, however, made suggestions on how they think the provisions of the order can work in equivalent measures with the mental, psychological, and, at times, emotional inputs in a brief.
One of the ways that lawyers suggested is that NBA should establish a desk/account for stamping of deeds and general agreements where the required percentage by the Act will be paid into and subsequently remitted to the lawyer after stamping of such documents. There is also the suggestion of reporting and sanctioning colleagues who charge less as provided in the Order.
In any case, are lawyers not mindful of the fact that after spending upwards of seven (7) years in training that they deserve the best as noble as the legal profession is? Is touting, which may have become the order of the day by charging less in order to get a brief, smart enough? Is taking a brief just to pass for a day, not minding for instance, that a case may last for more than five years, worth it? Are lawyers generally to be blamed for the seeming near frustration in the practice of law?
These are some of the questions that should agitate our minds as we approach the end of the 1st quarter of 2024 and aspire to break through the biting Nigerian economy.
In most climes, fees are generally paid on an hourly basis, but in Nigeria, there is no particular form of charging fees. This is one aspect the Order may in the nearest future consider while the elaborate provisions of the Order on scale of fees for each brief both in land transactions and other form legal practice should be embraced in totality.
If law practice should indeed be regarded as a business, then the profit therein should be commensurate with the services provided. This enables the lawyer to provide the services to sustain the business of practice and be able to render further service. Rule 48 – 44 LPA provides that except in the case of special relationship and indigent clients the professional fees charged by a lawyer for his/her services shall not be excessive or so low, but shall be reasonable and commensurate with the services rendered. This is what the Legal Practitioners (Remuneration for Business, Legal Services and Representation) Order, 2023 has come to do. By this, it has invariably removed the argument that what is considered reasonable or commensurate to professional service rendered remains subjective.
Luckily, by virtue of his antecedents, the Mazi Afam Osigwe SAN-led committee is equal to the task. The committee has already launched a system of awareness to members of the NBA to know the essence of the Legal Practitioners (Remuneration, Business, Legal Services, and Representation) Order, 2023. It is hoped that the ebullient Learned Silk will continue to explore the dimensions of ensuring strict adherence to the Order. Mazi will achieve another feat by increasing the income of lawyers just as when he ensured that the stamp and seal were introduced, which helped to checkmate and reduce income flights from lawyers.
I have no doubt that Mazi Afam Osigwe SAN will deliver as usual just like he always has on any responsibility entrusted to him in the various roles he has played in the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association.
What will be left is for lawyers to adhere and follow the rules strictly so that any other progressive action taken by the Learned Silk and his team will yield the expected result.
Let us not remain “the law,” “my SAN,” “the bar,” “our lawyer,” without a show for it and at the mercy of hunger!
Chidi Udekwe Esq. is an Abuja based legal practitioner.
