Court bars NBA from collecting practising fee

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, yesterday, restrained ed the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, from collecting the newly introduced practising fee for lawyers in the country. The court ordered the association to revert to the status quo, pending the determination of the substantial suit filed by some lawyers. Trial judge, Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, made the order, following an  application for injunction by the plaintiffs counsel, Mr Tunji Gomez, praying the court to halt the collection of the new fees. Plaintiffs in the suit are Mr. Seth Amaefule, Miss Amaka Aneke, Mr Celestine Nwankwo, Mr Charles Ola-Oni, and Mrs Tayo Arojo. They had asked the court to make an order of mandatory injunction, compelling the defendants to continuously collect the fees as it were on January 1, 2012. The plaintiffs had challenging the upward review in the practising fees for legal practitioners in the country, and averred that with the current fees regime, lawyers with less than five years standing at the Bar, were now to pay N10,000, as against N2, 000 the previous fees. Counsel to the plaintiffs, Gomez, who moved the motion for the interim order, urged the court to grant the prayer of the plaintiffs and make an order restraining NBA from collecting or enforcing the new fees regime. Gomez  also asked the court to stop the defendants from sending text messages to lawyers, persuading them to pay the new practising fee, until the case was finally determined. Defendants in the suit are NBA President, Mr. Okey Wali; General Council of the Bar; the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke, chairman NBA Lagos Branch, Taiwo Taiwo, among others. In their response, counsel to the first to fourth defendants, urged the court to dismiss the suit as lacking in merit. He argued that the plaintiff’s suit had no legal basis and so, was merely a suit aimed at wasting precious judicial time. The court in a short ruling, agreed with the submissions of the plaintiffs counsel and granted their prayers, while further hearing was adjourned till May 30, 2013. It will be recalled that the National Executive Committee of NBA had announced the new rate of practising fees, which is payable from 2013, which generated ripples among lawyers, who said it was 250 per cent increment compared to the fees paid in past years Vanguard