Senior Advocates Ask Judges to Expose Lawyers Trying to Influence their Decisions

Saraki: Justice Fabiyi calls for abolition of interlocutory appeals to S’Court

The body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria yesterday appealed to judges to report lawyers who tried to unduly influence them to appropriate authorities and promised that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) would get rid of such erring lawyers out of the legal profession.

The body also rejected any plan for the establishment of special court to try corruption cases, saying that it would not solve the problems unless “judges who know the law and are conscious of their public functions” were in place.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim, spoke on behalf of the body at the valedictory court session held in honour of a retiring Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice John Fabiyi, at the court complex in Abuja yesterday.

Fabiyi bowed out of the apex court after clocking the mandatory retirement age of 70 years.

With the retirement of Fabiyi, the number of Supreme Court Justices is now 16.

Abdullahi applauded the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, who presided over the event, for banning politicians and lawyers handling political matters from visiting him, saying though the CJN’s directive “raises a serious moral issues for the bar.”

Abdullahi reminded lawyers t The CJN along with Abdullahi, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN) and President of the NBA, Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN) all paid glowing tribute to Justice Fabiyi who attained the statutory retirement age of 70 on Wednesday.

The CJN thanked Fabiyi for his “immeasurable and invaluable contribution to the judiciary, government and people of Nigeria.

While Alegeh called for the improved welfare for judicial officers in the country and need for full compliance with constitutional provision which prescribes maximum number of 21 Justices of the Supreme Court in order to reduce the workload for the Justices.

In his response, Justice Fabiyi called for an amendment of the constitution to make sure that interlocutory appeals end at the Court of Appeal.

Fabiyi has called for abolition of interlocutory appeal at the Supreme Court, in the wake of some criticisms trailing the stay of proceedings on the trial of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) at the apex court.

Justice Fabiyi who surprisingly presided over the ruling on the stay of proceedings at the apex court, made the call yesterday in Abuja while speaking at a valedictory court session in his honour, having attained the mandatory retirement age 70 years.

He said: “It is time to do away with the right of appeal to the Supreme Court from interlocutory decisions,” adding that such appeal should terminate at the Court of Appeal.

“The constitution should, in my opinion, be amended to make changes in the interest of reducing the workload of the court and the interest of saving legal expenses to litigants as the present system exposes litigants to unnecessary extra level of appeal.

“The direct concomitant of the change is the possibility of expeditious determination of cases that come before the Supreme Court.”

According to the retired judge, the Supreme Court which is saddled with the responsibility to uphold norms and rule of law is