‘A Would-be Lawyer must have an Aptitude for Reading, not just Law Books but Anything under the Sun’
My name is Chris Chijioke Ohuruogu. I am from Abazu-Akabo, in Ikeduru Local Government Area of Imo State of Nigeria. I am a Lawyer, Law Teacher and Consultant. I attended the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), the University of Lagos and the Nigerian Law School. I was also a Visiting Scholar and Teaching Fellow at the Human Rights Institute, Columbia University Law school in New York, USA in 2002-2003;
I am an alumnus of several International Institutions and Programs including the Forced Migration and Human Rights Law Programme at the American University in Cairo (then under Barbara Harrell-Bond OBE); the International Law Programme of the Human Rights Institute of the University of Pretoria in South Africa, the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg France, International Institute of Humanitarian Law in San Remo Italy, the Center for the Teaching of Human Rights Law (CIEDHU) in Strasbourg France, among others.
I am a recipient of several Fellowship and Scholarship awards including First recipient of the C.S Ola’s Prize for the Best Graduating Student in the Law of Taxation (Obafemi Awolowo University, Summer Institute of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) New York and the Columbia University in New York (June 2004),etc.
Have you had any challenges in your career as a lawyer and if so what were the main challenges?
I practised law fully for nine years before venturing into academics. One thing I remember vividly was speeding to court early in the morning, only to have my case adjourned either because there was power failure or the judge was not sitting. Also getting Companies to give briefs on a part-payment fee basis was another challenge. I decided to refuse to negotiate along that line, and so did not get listed in many of the companies where I applied as external solicitor.
What was your worst day as a lawyer? The day I hit the table with my fist before Hon Justice TAO Abdullai (Nee Oyekan) .I was representing a client who was in detention in New Jersey USA for failing to send his children back to the US as requested by a New Jersey County Court, following a case filed by his estranged wife. There was a subsisting Order of a Nigerian court, restraining him or anyone else from taking the children out of jurisdiction pending the determination of the applications before the court here in Nigeria. The lawyers representing the man’s wife in Nigeria did not want the Motion on Notice to be heard because they believed that the man being detained in the US continually would put pressure on him and his family to have the children returned to the US. So they filed all manner of Applications aimed at stalling and frustrating the hearing of the matter in Nigeria. After several adjournments and several months of being in court, I urged the court to take any of the numerous applications filed. For some reason, the court was pandering to the side of the lawyers for the woman not minding the fact that a Nigerian was languishing in detention in the US and that hearing the case in Nigeria could affect the matter in the US Court. That fateful morning, we were in court for the hearing, and they brought another application. The Court was again disposed to adjourning the hearing, to give me an opportunity to file a counter affidavit to the new application. I objected and urged the court to allow any of the numerous applications to be heard as I was prepared. In anger and frustration I hit the table with my fist, prompting the Judge to warn that I would be cited for contempt. At that point some senior lawyers in court that morning, including Chief Mike Okoye stood to apologise on my behalf.
What was your most memorable experience?
The day I appeared as a rookie to argue my first Motion on Notice before Hon Adigwe,J as he then was at the High Court Awka.My Principal, Chief O.B Onyali had asked me to go to court with the file, I think it was Court 3 Awka then, assuring me that he was coming to join me as soon as he was done with the matter he had in court 1.The night before, I had taken time to read through the file and arranged the Law Reports, but I was not also prepared for what was to happen in court the next morning. It happened that Justice Adigwe sat promptly at 9 am and I did not know. It also happened that the Judge observed the custom of allowing seniors to mention their cases first. My Principal’s case was called first. He was nowhere to be found. I stood up, announced appearance and the Respondent Counsel did the same. I was sweating. I announced that my Principal would be appearing soon, but I was prepared to move the Motion on Notice which I did. The Respondent Counsel replied, and I responded, reminding the court that the Respondent had not filed a counter affidavit, therefore, on the Authority of Falobi v Falobi which had just been decided a few weeks then, that the only facts before the court were those of the Applicant, and since they were not controverted, the court was bound to apply the fact as stated in the Affidavit in support of the motion. The judge ruled in my favour just as my Principal was strolling in with a mischievous smile.
Who has been most influential in your life?
Many people influenced me as I grew up. First, my parents. My late Dad Mazi Mark Chikere Ohuruogu of blessed memory was my first teacher. He was my mentor and confidant. He taught me and my siblings the virtues of hard work, focus, dedication, honesty and fear of God. I had the privilege of been nurtured by such varied personalities as Professor ISY Ajiferuke who was my Maths and Add Maths teacher in secondary school, John Milverton Angia Torunana (I do not know where he is now),COD Okoronkwo at the Chapel of the Resurrection ,University of Ibadan,The Bishop Lasebikan (now Bishop of Ondo),Professor Sam Olofin, Professor Wale Ajai; and Professor Okorodudu-Fubara, Professor and` Mrs Sydney N.Osuji to name but a few.
Professionally, I owe much to Professor O.A. Osunbor and Professor Segun Yerokun under whom I served at LASU. The Justice Ebenezer Oufemi Ayoola under whom I worked at the Ayoola Law Center in Ibadan made a lasting impression on me.
Why did you become a lawyer? Basically, I have always been drawn to the idea of law as a tool for social engineering. Though I started off as a Science student, and later became interested in Economics, I read Nelson Mandela’s “No Easy walk to Freedom”,by Barry Danenberg as well as “Biko’s Inquest” by Donald and Wendy Wood, while I was still groping for direction. Those two books made me decide that I was going to be a Lawyer. At that time, I reasoned that Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela could square up with the Apartheid protagonists, basically because they were lawyers. I also admired the role of world leaders-Mandela, Churchill, Gandi, Tambo, etc who were lawyers.
What would your advice be to anyone wanting a career in law?
Having a law degree and going to the Law school does not guarantee success as a lawyer. I think that anyone wanting to become a lawyer must have a passion. It is no need studying to be a lawyer out of peer or parental pressure. A would- be lawyer must have an aptitude for reading wide, not just law books, but anything under the sun. He or she must also have patience to climb the ladder. Success is a journey and not a destination.
If you had not become a lawyer, what would you have chosen?
I would have been a sailor. I loved Geography, I loved ships, I loved travelling but I was scared of the Oceans, Seas and Rivers. I imagined that if I was ship wrecked in the middle of the Atlantic, how would I survive? I also loved to be a Vet doctor. I could also have been a Master Economist. But I am glad to be a lawyer, putting all my learning to use.
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Wherever the Master Planner and owner of life decrees. Humanly speaking, I will like to become an Ambassador.