Daily Law Tips (Tip 428) by Onyekachi Umah, Esq., LLM. ACIArb(UK)
Some agreements and transactions in Nigeria cannot be completed without the input of a lawyer. Even after such transactions or agreements are completed they are invalid, null, void and waste for the single reason that they were not handled/managed by a lawyer. And monies spent it paid on them can even be retrieved.
Some of the agreements and transactions that can not legal and valid unless handled by lawyers, are transactions or documents relating to;
1. Rent, tenancy, lease, mortgage, sale, transfer, gift, land, landed property, extracted and not-extracted minerals resources, mines, buildings, structures or
2. Probate letters of administration or
3. any proceedings in court in Nigeria.
Any document/agreement relating to the issues mentioned above prepared by a none lawyer whether the matter is in court or not, whether the parties are happy or not, is INVALID, NULL AND VOID as well as any monies or ownership obtained via such documents. And any of the party at anytime can collect back any monies or property paid or transferred, earlier whether the matter is in court or not even after expiration of 3 years.
Further note that it is a criminal offence in Nigeria, for a none lawyer to prepare any of the above mentioned documents. It is an offence punishable with fine not more than #200.00 or and imprisonment for not more than 2 years. Where an offender is a company, the directors, managers, secretaries or any such officer as well as the company will be held liable. Well, this offence cannot be brought to court after 3 years such offence was committed.
Note that, none lawyers are exempted from the above law, where such a person is doing such for himself and not in expectation of reward/payment. Other persons exempted are law students and staff of lawyers while performing their duties for the lawyer that employed them.
Lawyers are Legal Practitioners called to the Nigerian Bar and enrolled at the Supreme Court of Nigeria and not mere law graduates, other related professional or persons with law degrees or related courses.
My authorities are sections 2, 22(1)(d), 22(2), 22(4), 22(5), 22(6), 22(7), 24 and 25 of the Legal Practitioners Act, 1975.
CALL FOR AMENDMENT.
There is need to amend the Legal Practitioners Act of 1975 to meet up with reality. There should be an increase of the fine from #200.00 to an amount punitive in nature and the imprisonment term should be a minimum and not a maximum. Also, there should not be a limitation period for prosecution of the offence considering the peculiarity of our society and growing cases of fake lawyers and other overzealous professionals in real estate and investment sectors.
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