Kehinde Sofola SAN, CON: A Legal Icon
On the 10th Anniversary of his passing, the Kehinde Sofola Family pay tribute to this exemplary lawyer and legal icon, Mr. Kehinde Sofola, SAN, CON. Not only did some of his landmark cases help in no small measure to shape the law in Nigeria, he was also
MIn Memory of a Legal Icon r. Kehinde Sofola, SAN, CON celebrated a legal career spanning over five decades before he passed on in 2007. He was an intellectual giant in legal practice, an extraordinary solicitor, a distinguished barrister, a lover of the law, a friend of the Court, and a champion of the underdog.
Some of His Landmark Cases that Shaped Nigerian Law
Mr. Kehinde Sofola made his mark on the legal annals of Nigeria in over 500 notable judicial cases. His cases contributed to shaping our law of evidence and civil procedure. For example, around issues relating to the construction of wills in ADEBAJO v ADEBAJO & ORS (1975) NSCC 204; JADESIMI v OKOTIE - EBOH (1996) 2 NWLR (Pt.429) 128 and the resolution of the contentious case on locus standi at the Supreme Court in the case of OWODUNNI v REGISTERED TRUSTEES OF CELESTIAL CHURCH OF CHRIST (2000) 6 SCNJ 404 where his wealth of experience and deep grasp of the law manifested with the novel argument that resolved the legal issues at stake.
In the Owodunni case, the Supreme Court upheld the submission of Kehinde Sofola, Esq., that the issue of locus standi is to be ascertained from examining the pleadings, to see whether it discloses sufficient interest, in order to determine if the plaintiff has locus standi; and not just from the relief sought by the plaintiff. This shed much needed light onto the issue of locus standi as applied to Nigerian courts.
The important distinction between a ground of law and one of mix law and fact or facts in a Notice of Appeal was given clarity in 2 Supreme Court cases of OJEMEN v MOMODU [1983] 3 S.C. 173 and OGBECHIE v ONOCHIE [1988] NWLR (Pt.70) 370. He also made major imports into the development of law of insurance see KEREWI v ODEGBESAN (1965) A NLR 95 etc. The outcomes in several royal disputes were impacted by his advocacy see ALHAJI AWWAL IBRAHIM v GALADIMA SHAIBU BARDE & ORS [1996] 9 NWLR (Pt.474) 513, ADEFULU v OYESILE [1989] 5 NWLR (Pt.122) 377.
In the area of criminal law, he successfully defended many unjustifiably accused persons charged with politically motivated prosecutions. He was lead counsel in the defence of the President of Nigeria, Alhaji Shehu Shagari and his Vice-President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme in the tribunal set up after the December 1983 military coup.
The impact of his cases also went beyond legal practice and helped formulate law. It must be recalled that the minimum wage for Civil Servants in Nigeria, came on the heels of the action instituted by Mr Kehinde Sofola at the Nigerian Industrial Court, on behalf of the Nigerian Civil Service Union.
His Speeches and Writings Equally notable were his speeches and writings at august occasions, such as the inauguration of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, retirement of Judges and Chief Justices, advice to incoming Presidents of Nigeria, and various lectures at the Nigerian Bar Association
An Exemplary statement by Mr. Kehinde Sofola (his preferred title) is the excerpt below, delivered at the swearing-in ceremony of new Senior Advocates of Nigeria, 26th September 2005:
“The Bar has a duty to respect the court and the court ought to be treated with extreme courtesy and deference. Respect begets respect. Members of the Bar must, through hard work, thorough preparation of their cases before appearance, purposeful cross-examination, beauty of language, strict adherence to the unwritten laws of the legal profession, sincerity and truth as the basis of success at the Bar, command the respect of the Bench.
It is the Bar and the Bench that are supposed to protect people against abuse. The courts are truly the last bastions of the populace before anarchy. We all must accept that the main function of the court is to preserve the kind of society which ensures that all men are equal before the law and have equal opportunity for themselves and for their children.”
Mr. Kehinde Sofola, a Teacher of Lawyers Mr. Sofola was the Principal Partner and Head of Kehinde Sofola & Co, also known as Ewenla Chambers, established in 1954. He devoted a significant part of his career to training new wigs who served tutelage in his chambers. He was not just a lawyer, but a teacher of lawyers. He trained numerous legal practitioners, legal officers and judicial officers. Kehinde Sofola Alumni include two Justices of the Supreme Court, the late Justice Michael Ekundayo Ogundare JSC and late Justice Olajide Olatawura JSC, Justice of the Court of Appeal, Justice Abimbola Obaseki- Adejumo, former Chief Judge of Lagos State, retired Justice Ayo Phillips etc, numerous Senior Advocates of the Federation like Kehinde Onofowokan, Dr. Mudiaga Odje, Prof. Gbolahan Elias Mrs Phoebe Ajayi-Obe, Olumide Sofowora, Lanre Ogunlesi, and innumerable, successful legal practitioners. He trained his own family to be lawyers, too: his brother, Idowu Sofola, SAN; his nephew, Kunle Sofola; and three of his own children, Kayode Sofola SAN, Dr. Olatokunbo Sofola and Ms. Adefowora Sofola.
The late Chief Gani Fawenhimi, SAN had this to say about him:
“He is a legend. That is indisputable. He is a legal icon. That cannot be controverted. Kehinde Sofola is one of the few whose stamp on the rule of law and its development has helped to shape the legal profession since the emergence of the Nigerian legal practice in the 19th century. Highly brilliant, extremely intelligent, exceedingly hardworking, courageous and strictly disciplined, Sofola has become a living legal role model”
Back Cover of the [2005] 11 NWLR (part 935)
His Life Mr. Kehinde Sofola, SAN, CON was born in IkenneRemo, Ogun State on the 10th of March, 1924. He was of the second of three sets of twins delivered by his mother, late Chief Salamotu Adefowora Efunwiyan Sofola, the ‘Iya Suna’ of Ikenne Muslims. His father was the late Chief Sanni Sofola Odulana, Seriki of Ikenne Muslims, one of the first indigenes to accept Islam in Ikenne.
He attended C.M.S School, Sagamu from 1938 to 1939 and went on to Baptist Boys’ High School, Abeokuta in 1940 to complete his secondary education. Between 1944 and 1945, he sat for and passed with flying colours, the London Matriculation Examination, whilst working at the Nigerian Railway Corporation as a clerk. He worked until 1951 when he left for further studies in England.
It was not the original plan of Mr. Kehinde Sofola to pursue a degree in law. He was persuaded to read law partly in deference to his father who had a great influence on him, and partly because of his natural aversion to the oppression of man by man.
Before he left for England to study law, the young Kehinde Sofola booked his return passage for a specific date, which he fulfilled by determination. On arrival in England, he enrolled at Lincoln’s Inn for the Bar Examination and passed the Bar Finals in December 1953. He was called to the English Bar on the 9th of February 1954 on the same day as the Late Honourable Justice Okpan Kalu Anya (J.C.A) and the Late Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, the former British Prime Minister. He also graduated with his LL.B in 1954 and went on to complete a special practical course at the Council of Legal Education. He returned to Nigeria thereafter, and was enrolled as a legal practitioner on the 11th of September 1954 at the Supreme Court of Nigeria with NBA no. 430.
He achieved distinction at the Bar and was conferred with the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria on the 1st of December, 1978 with 12 others including the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, SAN. In 1983, he was nominated and appointed to the highly coveted position of Attorney-General and Minister for Justice of the Federation.
Mr. Sofola held many important national, international and professional appointments such as the Director of Nigeria Airways (1963-1965); Director, Board of Customs and Excise (1965-1966); Vice-Chairman, Bank of India (Nig.) Ltd, later known as Allied Bank of Nigeria Plc, (1975-1977); and Member, Panel of Arbitrators, International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. Other appointments include membership of the Federal Judicial Service Commission representing the Bar (1980 – 1983); Member, National Judicial Council (2001 – 2004). Mr. Sofola was a Life Member and former Chairman of the Body of Benchers, the apex authority in the legal profession. . He was the legal adviser to several companies and organisations.
In 2002, the Federal Government of Nigeria, in recognition of his contribution to national development conferred upon him the national merit award of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).
Mr Kehinde Sofola, SAN, CON, left this dimension on the 25th of March, 2007. He has left his indelible mark on the legal profession of Nigeria, and Nigeria. He is sorely missed.
The Kehinde Sofola Family
"THE IMPACT OF HIS CASES ALSO WENT BEYOND LEGAL PRACTICE AND HELPED FORMULATE LAW. IT MUST BE RECALLED THAT, THE MINIMUM WAGE FOR CIVIL SERVANTS IN NIGERIA, CAME ON THE HEELS OF THE ACTION INSTITUTED BY MR KEHINDE SOFOLA AT THE NIGERIAN INDUSTRIAL COURT, ON BEHALF OF THE NIGERIAN CIVIL SERVICE UNION"