A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has dismissed a suit seeking judicial backing for the conferment of a “Blue Silk” rank on Nigerian legal practitioners as an alternative to the prestigious Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) title.
Delivering judgment on Wednesday, Justice James Omotosho held that the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/421/2026, lacked merit and affirmed that only the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) possesses the statutory authority to confer the SAN rank on deserving lawyers in Nigeria.
The judge ruled that the applicants’ reliance on the constitutional right to freedom of association was misplaced, stressing that the legal profession in Nigeria is strictly regulated by statute.
According to him, unlike political associations where individuals are free to move between groups, the legal profession operates under a unified statutory framework that does not permit the creation of parallel professional ranks outside the law.
“There is only one legal profession in Nigeria duly recognised by statute,” Justice Omotosho held, adding that the attempt by the applicants to introduce and confer the rank of “Blue Silk” was unlawful, void, and unrecognised under Nigerian law.
The court further held that the applicants could not invoke fundamental rights provisions to circumvent clear statutory regulations governing the legal profession.
Justice Omotosho declared that the applicants failed to establish any breach of their rights to fair hearing or freedom of association, noting that the burden of proof rested on them and had not been discharged.
Consequently, the court dismissed the suit in its entirety and issued a perpetual injunction restraining the applicants from conferring the “Blue Silk” title or any similar rank not recognised under the Legal Practitioners Act.
The suit was instituted by the Incorporated Trustees of the Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners alongside Dr. Tonye Jaja.
Named as respondents were the Incorporated Trustees of the Nigerian Bar Association, its General Secretary Dr. Mobolaji Ojibara, as well as officials connected with the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) and the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee (LPDC).
In their originating motion filed on March 2, the applicants sought seven reliefs, including an order restraining the respondents from subjecting them to disciplinary proceedings over the proposed Blue Silk rank.
They also demanded N50 million in damages for alleged violations of their fundamental rights, a public apology in two national newspapers, and N5 million as the cost of litigation.
The suit followed a disciplinary notice reportedly issued to Dr. Jaja by the NBA over the promotion of what the association described as an unlawful and unrecognised rank for legal practitioners.
The applicants argued that since the “Blue Silk” rank was not expressly prohibited by the Legal Practitioners Act, the respondents lacked the authority to interfere with their activities.
However, the respondents urged the court to dismiss the action, maintaining that no individual or association outside the LPPC has the legal authority to create or confer professional ranks within the Nigerian legal profession.
The court ultimately agreed with the respondents, reaffirming the LPPC as the sole body empowered by law to confer the SAN title in Nigeria.
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