After praying to God for career guidance one day, Ademola Adams had a dream in which he saw himself in legal regalia advocating in court. Adams, a second-class upper graduate of the Ambrose Alli University (AAU), tells TEMITOPE DANIEL how he went from dream to reality.
My name is Ademola Richard Adams. I’m from Ijebu Ode Local Government Area (LGA) of Ogun State. I am from a very lovely family of seven, including my parents and four other siblings. I am the first and only son. My dad is late and my mom is a businesswoman.
Best Art student
My primary school was Supreme Schools and my secondary school was Nutridam Special School, both in Benin, Edo State. My experiences there were memorable and built me into the person I am today. Like the saying goes “you have to crawl before you can walk”, so, I would take those stages in my life as the crawling stages; now I am walking on my feet because of the foundation I had then.
One memorable experience I would love to share was when I won the Best Graduating Student in primary 5 and also in Senior Secondary 3. I was the Best Graduating Art student; I won eight awards – best in English, Literature, Economics, Government, Commerce and Christian Religions Knowledge as well as Best behaving student and Best graduating Art student.
Choice of law
None of my family members is a lawyer and I never had the experience while growing up. Studying was a personal decision and it wasn’t influenced by any of my family members.
I had a passion for speaking and public presentation. In secondary school, I used to engage in debates; I just had the flair for speaking and government was one of my favourite subjects. I loved reading and arguing; those were the things that gave me the hint that law was a good discipline for me. I also prayed to God and, in my dream, I saw myself well dressed in legal regalia with the wig and gown with my bib advocating in court. I followed it up and here I am with five years’ experience and counting.
Bagging 4.73 CGPA at Ambrose Alli University
I attended Ambrose Alli University (AAU) in Ekpoma Edo State. I graduated in 2017.
Studying law was tasking because we had tight schedules for lectures and the time intervals for exams were very close; we could write seven straight exams within seven days, so, if you were the type that didn’t have the zeal to read before exams, you would have a lot of issues. One thing that helped me was the fact that I always liaised with senior colleges and they were able to put me through every stage. It was quite challenging but with God and hard work, I scaled through. My best memory at AAU was when I became the best student in my 100 level, with my best result. I graduated with a second-class upper with a 4.73 Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) score.
Conquering Law School
There’s always this fear that law school is hard and that mindset kills a lot of people. For me, law school was an amazing and challenging experience because we had to deal with the theory part of our studies and also because lectures were revealing and intensive.
The difficult part of it was that the academic schedule was copious; the exams were also back-to-back, but I already had an experience of that in my university days so I was used to it. There was limited time to grab everything.
I didn’t have any time for recreation but I was consistent in church and I was part of the choir. This was because anytime I recalled the amount of money I put in and the fear of failing and repeating, knowing the demanding law school experience, I lost interest (in recreation).
So church and my books were basically my life at the law school. I didn’t win any awards, but it (law school) was a very good experience.
Call to Bar
I didn’t have a celebration party, I just took pictures and my family prayed for me.
Changes since becoming a lawyer
A lot of things have changed because people expect a lot from you as a lawyer and you are born to solve all issues. Being a lawyer has shown me that you have to be versatile and read newspapers, books, be diverse and conversant with present realities. There is no pressure, I am guided by God and I read a lot so when I am confronted with an issue I think before I talk.
Law School grading system
There are a lot of complaints about the law school grading system. I don’t think it is fair enough. Take, for instance, we had about five courses. If you want a 2-1 or second class upper, you are expected to get a uniform grade across the five subjects. If you want a first-class, you need to get an A across the five subjects. Now, why I am not happy with the grading system is, for instance, you get four A’s, and you get a B minus or a B plus, it takes you to second-class upper. So, you are judged on your lowest grade. This is preposterous considering the amount of effort you put into your academics, because for someone that has four A’s and a B plus – if we’re using the cumulative grade point average system – that’s first-class. But to now judge you on your weakness doesn’t show transparency. I’m opposed to the grading system of the Nigerian Law School, I feel there should be an overhaul of it to better judge people well to better assess the input of the student. It is preposterous for someone to have four A’s and then one B plus or B minus, they are given the person 2-1 or 2-2. A lot of people don’t come out of that shock when they see their result; their confidence is dented because they’ve had this dream, they’ve had this belief that once I hit my first class, I’m going to work in a very big law firm, and, you know most of these law firms, they have a price tag before you can be employed. There’s a certain grade you need to get at the law school before they even consider you. So, that has dented a lot of people’s confidence. It should be reviewed to reflect the students’ true grades. I’m equally a victim of that as well but my advice to incoming Law School students is the fact that this is Nigeria, Nigeria is difficult already for us as citizens to live in but we still strive.
How to get a first class
My advice is if you want a first class, be focused. What it means is that you need to keep maintaining the level of uniformity across the five subjects. That comes with rigorous study, rigorous research and, by the Grace of God, you will definitely get there. A lot of lawyers, even SANs, have called for a review of the grading system. Until that is done, this is the current position; you just have to deal with it.
Should wig and gown be scrapped?
Every profession has its way of dressing, because that is what makes the profession unique and, as lawyers, our style of dressing and our regalia are unique. Once you see us with our wig and gown, everybody knows you are a lawyer. So, I don’t think it removes anything from legal practice. It gives us that uniqueness outside and, most importantly, it shows that we are noble men and I don’t think that should be cut short for nothing. I feel it should be maintained.
SAN, Professor or a Judge?
I want to be a Professor of Law. I am a reader, I love to read and write articles, briefs and legal opinions on issues. I am already pushing for my Masters so I look forward to getting my PhD, that’s my Doctorate. I am not downplaying the SANship position or Judge; if that comes, no problem but my main goal is to be a Professor
Marrying a lawyer?
No, I wouldn’t want to marry a lawyer. It’s just for the fact that I have never really fancied it and I tend to be a very diverse person. So, if I am a lawyer I should be getting married to someone in a different divide, like a banker or doctor.
Second chance at choosing a career
I love playing basketball and football, PS 4 games, reading, going out to see new places and interacting with people because it will boost my social skills.
I would love to pursue a career in law if I am given a second chance. Law is a tool of social engineering and it permeates every aspect of our lives. We are very unique and we are first among equals.
Except I would become a basketball player because of the money not because of the passion.