Adegbamigbe Omole is the Chairman of the Ikeja Branch of the Lagos State Chapter of the Nigerian Bar Association. He also runs legal chambers, Kings Gate Solicitors located at Budland Street, Ojodu, Ikeja, Lagos.
He speaks to Paul Dada on the need for every lawyer to have patience in order to make it.
When did you make up your mind to become a lawyer?
I made up my mind right when I was young. You see, I had two purposes in mind. It was either I become an aeronautic engineer or? a lawyer. Even when I was in secondary school, I was working towards those two. I was both a science and an art student, although Mathematics was my problem. In Physics, I was doing fine. In Chemistry, I was doing fine but I don’t know why I was not doing fine in Mathematics.
Then we had a school counselor who gave sound counsel to us students when we had a problem.? I attended a very good school. In class three, they would give you a form to fill, and you would write what you wanted to become. So I decided to go for Law.
I went for my A-Level course. Then I took Government, Literature and Religious knowledge. Even after my A-Level I couldn’t make it to university for Law. In fact, I was advised to go and study something else and I said no. I was? interested in becoming a lawyer. Luckily, I tried and that was it. I went to Ile-Ife, the University of Ife and finished in 1991.
How would you describe your education, when you were in school, especially when you were in Law school? Was there anytime you felt like “why am I here” maybe because of the stress?
You know in our own days, when we were in school we normally had our exams in June, because we only had our exams once in a session, as Law students then. We did not write semester exams. Our exam was once and unfortunately, if you were so unlucky to fail one of the courses, you’ll have to re-sit the exam. If you failed two courses, that would be? automatic repeat of a class. You won’t have the opportunity of having to re-sit those papers you failed. You would have to repeat one whole year. If you repeated just for one year and you failed, they would send you out of the school. In fact, there was nothing like carry-over in Law in those days. It was what they called ‘Almighty June’ and that was why Law students did not have much time for anything else. You had? to be hardworking then, unlike now that they do special exams that you call carry-over,
That means you were just taking up the challenge, you were not discouraged at all.
No, I was not discouraged because I had made up my mind that this was what I wanted to become, so whatever challenges I faced did not really deter me from my goal.
When you came out of the Law school, where did you? undergo your pupilage?
There is one Akin Olatunji and Co. in Ikeja, that was where, I was before I went into partnership with colleagues.
One of the complaints you hear from young Lawyers today, is that the? senior Lawyers pays them very little like N20,000 and some of them would rather dabble into other fields like Banking.
Even then, it was pittance? so what you need to know is that when you go through a pupilage, you are gathering experience and since you cannot get experience from the pages of textbooks, you need to work under a senior lawyer. But you could get jobs to do and that will complement whatever salary you get. You do not have to complain because one way or the other, you’ll be able to complement whatever salary that is being paid to you.
When did you get your first big job as a Lawyer, I mean the first big service you rendered?
There is always a time for a lawyer. A lawyer always has his time. We have done a business that we collected N5,000. We started from? somewhere -N5,000, N20,000 -and by the grace of God, we have done jobs that we were able to get millions of naira.
And you discover that in this business those jobs that fetch you good money are the briefs that you will not sweat for. That is the truth. But it is a matter of time because there are some things that don’t, Even as a lawyer there are some? things you have? to do pro bono just to assist because everything is not about money.
When you started your chambers, were you alone or you employed junior lawyers?
No, I was not alone. I started with some friends and colleagues. To find an office, that is the only way. If you want to do it alone it will be difficult especially when you don’t have the financial capacity and capability. Or when you don’t have a father to give funds to start a chambers. You have to start from somewhere and you know, little by little, you will grow because the problem with the younger generation. They want to ride big cars, have an office, marry, have a house all in one day. That is why you see some lawyers running away with their clients’ money.
Given the fact power supply is not stable, how does it affect the running of your chambers?
The government has not provided an enabling environment not only in legal practice but all professions. Government has not provided an enabling environment. We are confronted with the problem of electricity. You have to run your office on diesel or petrol.
Even in your house it is the same, you have to provide for your own water. You have to provide virtually everything. Even for the rehabilitation of a road, you have to call your neighbours to join you in fixing it. Most of these things eat deep into the finances of a company.
Have you started making use of the opportunities that ICT affords in the practice of the legal profession?
Some of us are doing it but you have to know too that in the profession not many people can afford the ICT facilities. That is the truth. If you really want to go digital, you know what it costs.
What is your opinion about “charge and bail” lawyers. It seems some of them are getting rich?
You don’t have to narrow your practice to charge and bail because these lawyers have no permanent clients. If someone is alleged to have committed a crime and they are charged with an offence, the charge and bail lawyer would appear to argue for their bail. But they are not there when the real trial starts. I want to appeal to my colleagues not to restrict themselves.
What qualities should a lawyer have aside professional training?
They have to be bold, courageous, patient, studious and versatile.
It seems that Nigerian lawyers combine the role of a Solicitor and a Barrister unlike what obtains in the UK.
Over there in Britain that you have mentioned you are either a solicitor or a barrister.
You are either given the certificate of a solicitor or barrister. But here in Nigeria you are trained as a barrister and a solicitor at the same time.
What is your advice for upcoming lawyers?
They should be patient and know that there is a time for every lawyer. If you are patient your time will come.