Pity Lawyers

Most Nigerians only remember lawyers when things get out of hands. Most Nigerians do not seek proper legal counsel when it is necessary. We only talk to lawyers when the damage has already been done. Many have paid a heavy price for this.

Lawyers suffer in silence.

How many Nigerians pay for legal advice? In the United States and other western countries, there is what is known as billable hours. Lawyers abroad charge for the duration of time that they put into discussing with clients. You dare not demand that as a Nigerian lawyer.

Despite how they are treated, most Nigerian lawyers still offer free legal advice. Some lawyers also take up cases pro bono. Yet, Nigerians will still not seek free legal counsel when it is necessary.

Someone will purchase a property for N10 million and will offer a lawyer N200,000 to do due diligence and documentation. This happens everyday. Sadly, some lawyers out of desperation or quest for survival will slavishly accept it. Nothing is more expensive than a cheap lawyer.

If lawyers in Nigeria decide to open up, you will pity many of them. It is not easy to run a proper law firm, particularly in a place like Lagos and Abuja. You've to pay rent, pay staff, buy fuel for generator and spend money on other things. But Nigerians expect free services.

Lawyers must earn fees. Let's stop stigmatizing lawyers who demand fees for legal services. Not every lawyer is interested in public interest or pro bono practice. If doctors can insist on money before attending to patients, lawyers shouldn't be stigmatised for demanding fees.

Law practice is not a charitable career. In advanced countries, people raise funds through GoFundMe, etc, to assist others that cannot afford legal services. How many times have we raised funds to support public interest cases and victims who cannot afford legal services?

If a lawyer that is based in Lagos wants to take up a rape case in Abia, Kaduna or other parts of the country, how will the lawyer be able to do that except he has a lot of personal funds? He has to pay for flights, accommodation and so on each time the case comes up.

I remember when a popular NGO abroad contacted me and wanted to support me in one of the cases that I did pro bono, when they sent their difficult conditions and excessive requirements for accessing the funds, I simply ignored the offer and continued using my personal funds.

Time and again, people who get free legal services hardly show proper gratitude. Some will not even call to say thank you. I once helped someone to recover arrears of her salary from a popular fast-food. Till date, not even a phone call from her.

We see this everyday.

I defended someone who's based abroad pro bono and paid defaults fees in thousands because she didn't file her papers within time. She didn't call me for about a year. She later insinuated that I had compromised by attending a compulsory Multi-Door Court Settlement proceedings.

I know public interest lawyers like @AbdulMahmud01 and others also have experiences to share. I have many other examples. Lawyers believe in suffering in silence. I am only saying a little today because of certain tweets about lawyers that I came across under a particular thread.

Nigerians will "sow seed" and pay tithe to pastors for prayer/deliverance, but will not pay lawyers. Nigerians will sell their properties just to pay the police for bail (which is illegal), but will not pay lawyers half of the amount to secure their release. We see this everyday.

People expect lawyers to listen to them, advise, write letters, draft documents, file processes in court and appear in court free of charge. People will have purely commercial or business cases, but when you demand fees, they will remind you that you're a "human rights lawyer".

I do not think there are other set of people in the world that abuse privileges like Nigerians. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) does not pay human rights lawyers money to defend the poor. Gani Fawehinmi was a multi millionaire. A poor lawyer cannot defend poor people.