Tag: lagos

Barely 27 days after four judges were sworn into the Lagos State High Court, three were sworn in last week, bringing to 57 the state’s judges, reports ADEBISI ONANUGA

Three new judges have been sworn into the High Court of Lagos, bringing to 57, the number of judges in the state, made up of 41 women and 16 male judges.

The new judges, two women and one man are the former Director, Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP), Olabisi Ogungbesan;  former Registrar of Titles, Adedayo Akintoye and a former Senior State Counsel, Obafemi Adamson.

The state Chief Judge Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade admonished the new judges. “Your elevation to the high court bench is a call to service.  A vocation that demands your absolute commitment, dedication, honesty, loyalty and fairness at all time. Like every other judicial officer, yours is a sacred responsibility, a duty you owe to God and humanity.

“Having come this far,  I have no doubt , the enormity of the task entrusted on you by this appointment, is without any ambiguity.‘’

She continued: “I charge you, therefore, to live aboard board and to always conduct yourselves in accordance with the ethics of the profession. Let the oath of office which shall be administered unto you remain your guide as discharge your constitutional responsibilities. Not only must adhere strictly to the code of conduct of judicial officers as it is contained  in the schedule to the 1999 Constitution, you must also be morally upright and shun every act of corruption and all temptations that tend towards corrupt practices.

“You must always endeavour to act in such manner as to inspire the hope and confidence of members of of the public in our judicial system.  Bearing in mind that the people are watching, and to whom much is given, much is expected. Let the fear of God be at the centre of your thoughts and activities always, acknowledging Him as the ultimate judge.’’

Explained that the need to fill the vacancies at the High Court compelled the appointment of additional competent hands to serve in this capacity. She said this became necessary, taking into cognizance the peculiarity of the state; its vast human population and huge economic presence, which also reflected in the volume of litigations and cases filed on daily basis in various registries across the state.

Expressing confidence in the new judges, she wished them well in their new assignments.

Earlier, Governor Raji Fashola (SAN) also admonished the judges  to do justice to without fair or favour.

He told the judges that as public property, they should “do justice only according to the law”.

Pointing out that the world is  always changing, the governor counselled them to acquaint themselves with developments around them.

“Your quest for knowledge must be unending. You must expose yourself to training locally and at international level to be able to deliver justice appropriately, he said.

The governor reminded them that as members of the bench, there are things they can no longer do and thoughts they can no longer share with anybody.

He pleaded for understanding from their families, friends and relations on their behalf when they do this.

“A judge can get it wrong because a friend is involved,” he noted, reminding them that their duty as a judge  is to be fair at all times.

The Attorney-General, Ade Ipaye, who introduced the new judges, said their appointment afforded the state to bring to the bench “a wealth of experience, scholarship, selfless service and rigorous work ethics”.

He said these attributes imbued in the new judges would further boost the image and efficiency of the judiciary in the state.

Ipaye said the judges, who were among the seven nominees whose names were initially sent to NJC,  merited the job.

He assured the people of the state  that the new judges would give quality service like those before them.

He said the NJC, having examined their qualifications, competence, experience and integrity, also found them worthy of the appointment.

Ogungbesan graduated with LL.B   honours in 1982 from the University of London and was called to the Nigerian bar in July 1983. She worked in various capacities in the Ministry of Justice  of Bauchi, Oyo and Lagos states both in criminal prosecution and in defence of civil cases representing the government. In Lagos, Ogungbesan rose through the ranks from Principal State Counsel to become the DPP, the position she held till her new appointment. A thorough bred, disciplined and meticulous prosecutor, Ogungbesan has prosecuted and gained numerous convictions on behalf of the state government.

Akintoye  obtained her LL.B from the University of Lagos in 1980 and was called to the bar in 1981. She worked briefly as a Legal Officer at Afribank Nigeria Plc in 1983 before joining the Lagos State Magistracy  in October 1985. She left the service to manage a legal practice in the United Kingdom in 1991. Justice Akintoye qualified as a Chartered Secretary and Administrator in London in 1988 before taking up an appointment at the Nigerian High Commission in London in October 2000, working directly with the High Commissioner. In 2002, she returned to legal practice in Lagos and joined the state Judiciary in 2005. He was appointed Deputy Registrar of Titles and rose to become the Registrar (an equivalent of Chief Magistrate 1), a position she held till her new appointment.

As the Registrar of Titles, she effectively managed the computerisation of all land records held in the registry dating back to 1863. During her service in that department,  the Land Registry expanded to encompass a Mortgage Registry and an Acquisition/Excision Registry.

Justice Adamson, on the other hand, graduated with a Bachelor of Law from the Ogun State University, Ago Iwoye in 1994 and was called to the bar in 1995. He began his career at Creeks & Shield Solicitors as a youth corps member. He was involved in many high-profile oil spillage cases, inspections and settlements.

He also handled many criminal cases all of which were well defended. After his service year, he joined St. Francis Chambers, the law firm of the former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Okey Wali (SAN).                                                                                                                                After the service year in Lagos, Justice Adamson practised with B.A. Shitta-Bey and Co. as an Associate and joined the service of the Lagos State government as a State Counsel in 2001. His first posting was to the Directorate of Citizens Right and was among the first set of mediators trained by the Department. He handled several mediations, human rights abuse, matrimonial cases, consumer protection, tenancy cases, most of which parties reached settlement.

In 2002, he was seconded to the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission where he was assigned the responsibility of supervising the production of the Local Government  electioneering materials for the  Lagos and was issued two commendation letters for his participation in the successful election of 2004 and also for representing the commission in the post-election period.

In 2006, Justice Adamson was recalled to the Ministry of Justice and was posted to the DPP where he remained until his new appointment. He drafted the team that prosecuted the notorious Rev. King’s case, responded to the appeal of the defendant at the Court of Appeal. He has just completed the brief for filing at the Supreme Court on the matter.

He also handled many high-profile cases while in the DPP. His diligence and resourcefulness and dedication to work earned him, “The most productive officer of the year award” in the senior staff category in 2011.