The Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) has shortlisted 57 candidates for elevation to the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
According to a statement released on Thursday in Abuja by the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court and Secretary of the LPPC, Kabir Akanbi, the list comprises 56 legal practitioners and one academic. The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, approved the shortlist during the Committee’s 169th plenary session held on July 24, 2025.
The SAN rank is a mark of professional excellence, conferred on legal practitioners who have demonstrated exceptional competence either in advocacy or legal scholarship.
The Committee also reviewed three petitions filed against certain applicants but found them to be without merit and subsequently dismissed them.
All shortlisted candidates are required to undergo and successfully complete a mandatory Pre-Swearing-In Induction Programme, in accordance with the directives of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria.
The LPPC also cautioned nominees against placing advertisements or receiving congratulatory messages in the media regarding their nomination, warning that violations of this rule could attract sanctions for ethical breaches, as stipulated in Paragraph 25(1) of the LPPC Guidelines and Rule 39(3) of the 2023 Rules of Professional Conduct.
The swearing-in ceremony for the new SANs is scheduled for Monday, September 29, 2025.
Among those shortlisted are Theophilus Esan, Fedude Zimughan, Ernest Ikeji, Victor Esiriakpoguma, Leslie Njemanze, Akintunde Adewale, and Preye Agedah, among others. The sole academic on the list is Professor Chima Ubanyionwu.
