Demilade Adedeji is the daughter of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Ade Adedeji and businesswoman Biola Adedeji Esq. The 2019 alumnus of the University of Hull was one of the 4,350 successful candidates who passed the March 2021 Bar Final Examination of the Nigerian Law School and was called to the Bar last month. Miss Adedeji shares her law story with ROBERT EGBE.
I am Demilade Adedeji, Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. I am from Ijebu Ode in Ogun State.
Family
I have a small family: mum, dad and brother. I am the first born in my family. Both of my parents are lawyers and my brother just graduated from Day Waterman College in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Nigerian in America, Americana in Nigeria
I spent part of my primary school in Ps30 in Staten Island, New York and finished from Greenwood House School Ikoyi. For secondary school, I attended Chrisland High School in Victoria Garden City (VGC).
I remember being the Americana for a huge part of my primary school (in Nigeria), which was so funny because in America I was always the Nigerian girl.
University in UK was a different experience
I attended the University of Hull in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2015 to 2019. It was a different experience. No one can actually prepare you for university and, because I was always a day student, I felt I was just tossed into the deep end of adulthood. But, thinking about it, navigating through that period of my life was fun. If I should do it again, I may change a few things but not a lot. Studying law was NOT pretty. I thought it was going to be easier since I am surrounded by so many lawyers, but that was not the case at all. In fact, I’m finding it very funny that I really thought it was going to be a breeze.
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Biggest challenge studying law
My biggest challenge studying law was dates; I always found myself mixing dates up.
Graduation and the ‘I did it’ feeling
My best memory in university was the day of my graduation, of course, July 8, 2019. My parents and brother were there with me. I made my parents so proud, I could do no wrong. I think the best thing was the feeling I got, the ‘I did it’ feeling. Having my name called and then walking across the stage to get my scroll and all I could think of was ‘finally, I did it’.
Accompanying dad to court
I remember in Primary 6 following my dad to court, a tiny girl wearing black and white sitting at the back of the court. Thinking about that time is actually funny to me.
Parents’ influence on career
Yes, they were a HUGE influence, but at the same time I didn’t know anything other than law. Nothing really spoke to me other than law. I applied to other schools for other courses but I was not interested in them at all. I also didn’t want to be far from home (day student problems) and studying law meant I could study in the UK which is closer than America, so, everything was just falling in place easily.
Law School
It was difficult but not as bad as I imagined.
Strategy for coping with Law School stress
Oh wow! I gave myself specific periods to cry. I was not allowed to worry or be anxious outside those periods. Think about it, we were being tested on over 120 topics and that information must be in our head and, for my set, everything was pretty self-taught. So, of course, being nervous and anxious is normal. Fortunately and unfortunately for me, my dad is a Senior Advocate and there was that extra pressure for me which didn’t make things easier. But with prayer and organised break down, as I would like to call it, anything was possible.
Professor, SAN or Judge?
SAN, of course. I am not really interested in teaching and neither am I interested in being a judge, but we don’t know what the future holds, anything can change.
Marrying a lawyer?
Nope. Nope. Nope. I’m just not interested in marrying someone in the same profession
Mentors in the legal profession
Mr Ade Adedeji, SAN.
The future
I would like to find an area in law I love and specialise, like how my dad loves litigation even though that’s not all he does.
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