A thorny path to the Bar for over 4,000 NOUN Law graduates

2026-03-05 - 01:17

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri The National Assembly amended the National Open University Act (Cap. N6, LFN 1983) in 2017, primarily to align the institution with conventional universities and eliminate discriminatory barriers for its graduates. Remarkably, the amendment received swift executive backing as former President Muhammadu Buhari, in 2018, gave his assent. A major plank upon which the amendment came to be was the nagging need to address longstanding issues that prevented NOUN law graduates from attending the Nigerian Law School and participating in the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps scheme. Though established in 1983 by the then President Shehu Shagari to promote open and distance learning, operations of the NOUN were suspended on April 25, 1984, by the then Major-General Buhari-led military junta. With the start of the Fourth Republic, the university was resuscitated on April 12, 2001, by former President Olusegun Obasanjo—even as it fully took off operations on October 1, 2002. Despite his earlier action—which truncated the university’s activities—the later amendment of its establishing Act by ex-President Buhari’s administration gave the institution the legal imprimatur to operate as all other universities do, with the same powers, functions, and administrative structures. Meanwhile, about 43 years after NOUN was created, echoes of lamentations have continued to resound within the four corners of the country, with products of the institution, especially its law graduates, alleging discrimination. Already, more than 4,000 law graduates of NOUN have petitioned the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, over their exclusion from the 2025/2026 Nigerian Law School Bar Part II vocational training programme. The Council for Legal Education (CLE), which is the statutory body responsible for regulating legal education and professional training for aspiring lawyers in the country, has always restricted or conditionally admitted NOUN law graduates to the Nigerian Law School. The body mostly raised concerns about open-distance learning standards. Established under the Legal Education (Consolidation, etc.) Act of 1976 (re-enacting the 1962 Act), the Council oversees the Nigerian Law School and ensures standards for bar admission. In addition to managing the one-year vocational training program at the Nigerian Law School for law graduates from approved universities, the CLE also accredits law faculties and issues qualifying certificates for call to the Bar. However, the AGF has oversight powers over the Council, which currently operates seven campuses in the country’s geopolitical zones, with Abuja as the headquarters. The other campuses, with intake capacities totaling around 6,500 students annually, are located in Lagos, Enugu, Kano, Adamawa, Bayelsa, and Rivers states. Notwithstanding the existence of the seven campuses, NOUN law graduates have faced accreditation issues that continue to sideline them from attending the law school. Hope flickered in July 2025 when 203 graduates from the institution broke the CLE’s barrier and were admitted into the Nigerian Bar after they had successfully completed Law School training. Despite that milestone, a large backlog persists for later cohorts, leading to the petition pending before the AGF. The petition, signed by the group’s president, Adefowora Adedeji, and secretary-general, Samuel Udofia, described the exclusion of over 4,000 qualified NOUN law graduates as discriminatory and a breach of constitutional rights. The graduates contended that the 2018 amendment of the Act recognised NOUN law degrees for professional legal training, which they said enabled the pioneering set to gain admission into the Law School. “We bring to your kind attention, Your Excellency, our rights to equal legal education have been jeopardised in the just-released Nigerian Law School 2025/2026 Bar Part II vocational training admission exercise, which excluded the NOUN law graduates from applying for the professional program of being trained in the Law School as barristers and solicitors of Nigeria this year,” the petitioners told the AGF. They insisted that their exclusion from the Law School violates Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom from discrimination and equal rights for all citizens. “This has become a national crisis. Law graduates from other Nigerian universities are given the right of admission to the Nigerian Law School, while excluding us. This is against the constitutional principles of equality, fairness, and justice. “We have equal rights to legal education like other Nigerian university law graduates. It is against our right enshrined in section 42 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended). This is a pure state of discrimination! “However, it is pertinent to inform you, sir, that we are over 4,150 NOUN law graduates currently still awaiting admission into Bar Part II, Nigerian Law School. “Many among us have waited an average of more than five years, while many have sadly passed away, and the majority of us are now advanced in age. “In light of this situation, we earnestly seek your intervention to impress upon the Council for Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School the urgent need to address our matter. “Specifically, we are requesting an immediate admission action plan that will accommodate these over 4,000 graduates into Bar Part II within the shortest possible time,” the petition read. The NOUN graduates noted that their request for direct admission into Bar Part II was firmly grounded in the relevant laws and “the following reasons: The Act establishing the National Open University of Nigeria (2018 as amended) has removed any existing lacuna regarding our eligibility. “Provisions under the Legal Education (Consolidated, etc.) Act (Cap. L10, Laws of the Federation, 2004), which established the Council for Legal Education, stipulates that law graduates (LLB) from Nigerian universities are eligible for such admission.” “Denying us the same opportunity granted to our seniors will amount to discrimination and an infringement on our fundamental rights under Section 42 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended),” the statement said. “Lastly, the commendable performance of the first NOUN law graduates admitted into the Nigerian Law School—who have distinguished themselves academically and in character—stands as clear evidence of our readiness and capacity,” the petition added. The petitioners proposed a practical solution, suggesting that at least 600 NOUN law graduates be distributed across the seven campuses of the Nigerian Law School to address the backlog. They noted that earlier sets of NOUN graduates admitted into the Law School had performed well, demonstrating competence and readiness for professional legal training. Likewise, on February 26, 2026, the Law Graduates’ Association of Nigeria (LAWGAN) renewed calls for immediate admission of NOUN graduates ahead of the resumption of a new academic session of the Nigerian Law School this month. LAWGAN described the continued exclusion and delays as unjust and detrimental to aspiring legal practitioners. In a statement signed by its President and Public Relations Officer, Kayode Bello and Ojo Clement, respectively, the association noted that for years, NOUN law graduates faced uncertainty and exclusion, despite completing accredited academic programmes. “LAWGAN respectfully submits that these graduates, having fulfilled their academic requirements from duly recognised institutions, deserve equitable access to vocational legal training in line with constitutional principles of fairness, equality, and the right to education. “We use this medium to appreciate the efforts of Mr. Lateef Fagbemi, the incumbent Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) towards ensuring that all the NOUN Law Graduates are admitted at the Nigerian Law School. “The continued delay in resolving these issues risks undermining confidence in the legal education system and unfairly penalizes graduates who have invested significant time, resources, and effort in pursuit of their legal careers. “We therefore urge the Council and all relevant authorities to act swiftly in the interest of fairness, national development, and the integrity of Nigeria’s legal profession, and to ensure that all qualified law graduates are admitted without further delay,” LAWGAN stated. While the ongoing advocacy highlights the unresolved crisis, among those who have consistently advocated for the admission of NOUN law graduates into the Nigerian Law School is former President Obasanjo. He had in 2017 directly appealed to the CLE to reconsider its refusal to admit NOUN law graduates, arguing that sidelining them amounts to a violation of their right to inclusion. Obasanjo further highlighted NOUN’s role in providing second chances for education, the reason he revived the institution during his presidency. Last month, the former President urged NOUN’s new leadership to restore its suspended law programme, even as he criticized the continued exclusion of its graduates from Law School as causing “ridicule, pain, and sufferings.” While the CLE has yet to yield to the pressure that is mounting on it, what remains obvious is that the over 4,000 NOUN law graduates are currently walking a thorny path to the Bar.