In the final bar examination conducted by the Nigerian Bar Association in November 2023, about 888 candidates failed.

A total of 5,300 candidates sat for the exam, and 4,412 of them were successful. Also, 251 out of the successful candidates passed with a first class grade.

This was disclosed at the Call-to-bar ceremony held on Tuesday 5th March, 2024 at the Eagle Square, Abuja by the Director-General, Nigeria Law School, Prof. Isa Hayatu Chiroma.

He said, “Mr. Chairman, distinguished members of the Body of Benchers, I will be presenting at this Call to the Bar ceremonies a total of 4,412 candidates who were successful at the November 2023 Bar Final examinations as well as 14 candidates from previous Bar Final Examinations

“I am happy to report on the good performance recorded by the candidates as seen in the Executive Summary below: Outstanding/General Performance.

“Total number of students who participated in the Examinations: 5,300.

“Total number of successful candidates: 4,412

“The Nigerian Law School is proudly happy to report that a total number of 251 candidates bagged first class grade in the last Bar final examination. This is indeed an outstanding excellent performance and, of course, unprecedented.

“These figures translate to 83.3 per cent success at the Bar final examinations.”

The current era, according to former Supreme Court Justice Mary Peter-Odili, Chairman of the Body of Benchers, is detrimental to the judiciary.

She observed that the wave of contradictory rulings and the lack of discipline among practitioners were eroding public trust in the court system.

Peter-Odili said, “It is a bad period in the sense that the judiciary is being bashed and public confidence in the legal system is dwindling, occasioned by incessant conflicting judgments in our courts and flagrant indiscipline amongst lawyers.”

She noted that a committee to see to the issue of conflicting judgments has been setup by the Body of Benchers.

“In a bid to address this vexed issue of conflicting judgments, the Body of Benchers constituted a committee made up of ranking members of the profession.

“The committee will come up with the best possible ways of addressing the concerns.

“When the committee completes its assignment and presents its report to the Body of Benchers, it will, upon consideration and approval, be forwarded to the relevant bodies for implementation,” she stated.

“You have been called to the Bar in a very important historic period in the legal profession in Nigeria, a period when the good, the bad and the ugly are all operating at the same time.

“The good to the extent that the Supreme Court now has the full complement of Justices required to man the court.

“The good to the extent that the welfare of judicial officers is being taken seriously and the Body of Benchers alongside other relevant bodies is championing the process.”

She urged the new lawyers to avoid all forms of malpractice and misconduct that could jeopardize the statutory ordinance of the judiciary.