Duty of lawyers to the society and the legal system by Saheed Afeez Ayinde
The role played by lawyers in attaining justice without defects in the court of law is entwined with the expectancy of the society.
Similarly, the burden to develop the society is been shared with the legal profession.
The court, in this case, while calling the attention of the concerned counsel to order, had cause to remind the counsel of his Obligations towards the society and the Legal system as observed below:
Suit No CA/K/319/07 – Mbas Motel Limited Vs Wema Bank Plc delivered on the 22nd of March 2013, this Court stated that:
“Lawyers as operators of the administration of justice system owe a duty to the society that nurtured them and made them what they are, to ensure that they conduct their activities in a manner that edifies and brings honor, respect and belief to the justice system. They should not allow themselves to be used by litigants to bring the justice system into disrepute.”
It is pertinent that this Court reminds Counsel of the eternal words of a great jurist J Wesley McWilliams who writing in an American Bar Association Journal in January 1955 (41 ABA 18) wrote in an article he titled “The Law as a Dynamic Profession” thus:
‘We belong to an ancient, to a great, to an honored profession. The practice of Law is a worthy calling. It has rewarded us with financial success and with prestige and leadership in our communities. It has given us much happiness and the good life. From it we have received the gratitude and respect of our friends and neighbors whom we have served. Our word affords intellectual pleasure with dignity and independence, in competition with our fellow Lawyers with whom we have cemented warm friendships and enjoyed happy companionships. For these blessings, we cannot but have a sense of gratitude and of obligation. The most productive, unselfish and wholly satisfying repayment of the obligation is constructive work to increase the effectiveness of our judicial system and the welfare of the profession.’
SAHEED, Afeez Ayinde
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