The death of Professor Alfred Bandele Kasunmu, SAN, has drawn a deeply personal tribute from one of Nigeria’s most prominent advocates, Dr Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, who described the late jurist as “a rare breed” of the old school of Senior Advocates whose courtroom excellence placed him in the highest tradition of the Nigerian Bar.
For Agbakoba, the loss is not simply that of a distinguished senior counsel whose name became associated with major legal battles, but of a lawyer whose forensic skills helped shape the careers of those who appeared against him and alongside him.
Recalling his own encounters with Kasunmu as a young counsel, Agbakoba said he remained indebted to the late professor for much of the advocate he eventually became, placing him alongside the legendary Chief Rotimi Williams, SAN, among the greatest advocates in the history of Nigerian legal practice.
His full statement made available to Law & Society Magazine reads:
Professor Kasunmu SAN was a fine gentleman. A rare breed of the old school of SAN,s whose excellence in Court ranks just below that of the Master , Chief Rotimi Willams SAN , the incomparable genius of the Nigerian Bar.
Both these gentlemen will remain in perpetuity as the greatest in the history of the legal profession. I was very privileged to, even as a young counsel to engage Professor Kasunmu in many major legal battles . I will always remember him with fondness.
I owe a lot of who I have become to the foresenic skills of Professor Kasunmu. Long will he be remembered as one of the most accomplished senior Counsel in Nigerian Legal history.
Dr Olisa Agbakoba SAN
