7-KEY STEPS FOR ENFORCEMENT OF REMUNERATION ORDER, 2023 : END OF QUACKERY

By ~ Meti M. Ukpeh, Esq. 

 Uyo-based Human Rights Lawyer

Introduction:

With the legal practice in coma; with the legal practice hanging on an ill-fated balance;  with legal practice battling with existential extinction and clogs posed by self-made and self-imposed "lawyers" and very recently, cyber/ICT programs/softwares such as Artificial Intelligence (CHATGPT, CHATBOT, etc.), the fate of who is a lawyer as defined in Sections 2 and 24 of the  Legal Practitioners Act continues to lurk in the murky waters of uncertainty. 

Be that as it may, the advent of the Legal Practitioners (Remuneration for Business, Legal Services and Representation) Order, 2023(hereinafter referred to as: "Remuneration Order of 2023 or Order or, 2023 Order) came as a succour,  a solace and a beam of a long awaited light shone on the emaciated soul of the legal practice just to beckon in the era of sanity and sanctity of legal practice in Nigeria. As this gladdens the hearts of Nigerian lawyers, the major challenge that greets the 2023 Order is the staring and glaring issue of enforceability of the Order for efficient legal practice, hence the below-listed Seven(7) Steps for enforcement of the 2023 Remuneration Order 

For the purpose of this work, particular reference shall be made to Scale-4 of the Remuneration Order, 2023. Scale-4 envisages remuneration of a legal practitioner in respect of business or services connected with any sale, purchase, lease, mortgage and other matters of legal documentation and in line with the scale of charges contained therein. Thus, legal services to a client, related to due diligence, review, preparation, documentation, or registration of any property instrument, (whether lease, tenancy, purchase, sale, assignment or of any other nature) are of particular reference for enforceability of the 2023 Order

These 7-key Steps include:

1)  Execution of Memorandum of Understanding(M.o.U) Between NBA Branches with State Internal Revenue Service(S.I.R.S): This is the chief and most important step that should be taken by each branch of the NBA for effective compliance with the 2023 Order. It is pertinent to note that the intention of the 2023 Order was not and still not for NBA National to go through the needles of all its 128 branches to effect compliance with the Order.  Thus, the bulk of duty rests on the branch of NBA to endeavor to execute an agreement/MoU with the Government and tax authorities of the States to set the framework for collecting the withholding tax due and payable from the professional charges of legal practitioners for legal documentations

2) A remuneration committee to be set up,  drawing up members with proven integrity from both the Branch and the S.I.R.S.This should also be done in conjunction with S.I.R.S 

3) A remuneration account to be set up. This is a distinct, non-domestic and special account,  hence an escrow account with a chosen banker set up, managed and supervised only by the remuneration committee, branch and S.I.R.S.

4) Constitution of Compliance Committee as a watchdog against possible infractions. The Compliance Officers should be Bar members highly disciplined and with proven integrity to champion the taskforce of the Remuneration committee and ready to carry out to the latter the provisions of R. 16 and R.17 of Rules Applicable to Scale 4 of the 2023 Order. Viz:

S. 16: "Any legal practitioner who on his/her own volition and/or conspires with his client to-

Falsely endorse or state the value of professional fee, consideration, purchase price or value of a piece or parcel of land on an invoice, deed or any other document presented to the tax office shall be guilty of unprofessional conduct.

 Falsely endorse or state the date of the preparation of a land instrument/document on an invoice, deed and/or any document presented to the tax office shall be guilty of unprofessional conduct.  

Any legal practitioner who contravenes the above provisions shall be suspended from practice for not less than 3 years upon being found liable by the Legal Practitioners’ Disciplinary Committee." 

S. 17: "The Remuneration Committee of the Bar or an authorized officer of the Bar, shall have power to investigate a legal practitioner where there is reasonable ground for believing that a provision of this order has been breached."

5) Publication and sensitization of the general populace of the intendment of the 2023 Order in Gazettes of the states, National and Local dailies, Radio/TV outlets and social media platforms. 

6) Issuance of MEMOs/Circulars to Court Registries, Branches of JUSUN, et Al., of the intendment and enforceability of the 2023 Order. 

7) A Dialogue through each branch of the NBA(Remuneration Committee) with Judges and Magistrates on the intendment of the 2023 Order. This is to guard against conflict of the 2023 Order with S.150, S. 148 and S. 168 of the Evidence Act which may be exploited by some lawyers to circumvent the 2023 Order

In conclusion, it is note worthy to submit that, whereas surveyors, estate valuers and other professional bodies had long dashed out of the bedridden enclave of primitive and archaic practice of running their beloved professions aground, but standardised their practice(s), same with other less-professional/pseudo bodies like Onions Sellers, Crayfish and perewinkle sellers, etc., it is about time the legal profession stooped to its destined best through the enforeacibility of this long-awaited-but-here-fulfilled Remuneration Order of 2023. A lawyer should be reminded of his calling in S. 2 and 24 of LPA. A lawyer must arm himself, very importantly, with R. 14 and R.16 of Rules Applicable to Scale-4 of the 2023 Order. A lawyer should marry the above with Rules 1, 8,9,14,15,16,17 of our revered RPC, 2023.