Nigerian legislative lawyers seeking to introduce an alternative to the title of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, have petitioned the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, insisting that the Blue Silk ranks are not regulated by the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962.
The Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners, ALDRAP, had introduced the Blue Silk ranks for non-litigation lawyers in Nigeria, as alternative to the SAN rank which is conferred on legal practitioners adjudged to have demonstrated exceptional distinction in legal practice.
The SAN rank, conferred on lawyers by the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee, LPPC, is seen as the most prestigious honour in the legal profession in Nigeria.
ALDRAP’s move to introduce an alternative for non-litigation lawyers with the Blue Silks ranks, including titles such as Senior Legislative Counsel of Nigeria, SELCON, Counsel of Nigeria, SCN and Senior Legal Academic, SLA, has been opposed by stakeholders in the legal profession, including the NBA.
Recently, the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, who serves as Secretary of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee, LPPC, said the Blue Silks ranks are not recognized by the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962, and are therefore illegal.
However, in the petition to the CJN, dated February 19, 2026 and made available to journalists on Thursday, ALDRAP, through its Secretary, Dr Tonye Clinton Jaja, insisted that the Blue Silks ranks are not under the regulation of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962.
Jaja noted that a court judgment had already ruled that the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee, LPPC, can only regulate matters under the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962.
“We write to remind respected Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) of our letter dated 8th December 2025 wherein we stated for the avoidance of any doubts that the Blue Silks rank of Senior Counsel of Nigeria, SCN, is designed for non-litigation Nigerian lawyers.
“We further stated that the Blue Silks rank is not regulated by the provisions of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962 as is the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
“Our statements in the said letter of December 2025 has recently been given judicial pronouncement by the Hon. Justice Mohammed Garba Umar of the Federal High Court Abuja who delivered a judgment on 27th January 2026. In the said judgment, it was held that neither the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, and by extension the LPPC cannot interfere or regulate the Blue Silks rank of Senior Counsel of Nigeria, SCN, or any other matters that are not specifically mentioned inside the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962,” parts of the petition read.
Stressing that the judgment maintained that as the Blue Silk ranks do not come under the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962, therefore it cannot be regulated by either the NBA, LPPC, LPDC or the Body of Benchers.
The petition added, “This legal point of view is supported by the recent judgment of 27th January 2026 delivered by Hon. Justice Mohammed Garba Umar of the Federal High Court Abuja. The said judge stated that the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, and by extension the LPPC, cannot seek to regulate Nigerian lawyers on items that are not expressly stated inside the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962.
“Therefore, neither the NBA nor the LPPC has a monopoly of legal services in Nigeria.
“The spirit and letter of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission Act, 2018, forbids the NBA or any other player within the legal services industry from playing the role of a monopoly.
“From a common-sense and logical point-of-view, since both the NBA and the Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners, ALDRAP, are both incorporated trustees both registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission, under the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020, the NBA cannot serve as regulator over another incorporated trustee.”
The lawyers argued that the NBA’s role is restricted to regulation of lawyers involved in litigation as defined under the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962. They further argued that NBA cannot regulate lawyers who are not into litigation or other legal services not mentioned under the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962.
“Any legal services, any rank or title for law graduates such as the Blue Silks which is not specifically mentioned inside the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962 such as legislative drafting, company secretarial services, under the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020, just to mention a few, are outside the regulatory powers of both the NBA and the LPPC,” the petition added.
The lawyers added that in addition to the judgment delivered by Justice Mohammed Garba Umar, another Federal High Court Abuja is adjudicating on a suit numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/2594/2025, brought against the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCCPC, in which ALDRAP is seeking to break the monopoly of the NBA.
In the said suit, the lawyers are seeking an order of mandamus to compel the President to issue an order to break the monopoly of the NBA regarding the fixing of prices of goods and services within the legal services industry in Nigeria, especially with regards to goods and services that are not expressly stated inside the Legal Practitioners Act, 1962.
According to the petition, other associations of lawyers, such as ALDRAP and the Nigerian Law Society, NLS, should be allowed to set prices of goods and services within the legal services sector in Nigeria.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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