Law Personality

PILOT JUDICIARY profiles embattled senior lawyer based in Ibadan, Otunba Kunle Kalejaye SAN, who was disbarred by Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC), last Thursday.

Indisputably, Kunle Kalejaye is a household name in Nigeria's legal field. As legal practitioner, he had traversed all courts and got the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), which is the peak in legal career as a lawyer.

The founder of Kunle Kalejaye SAN & Co, he studied Law at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife), graduating on top of his class in 1983 and was called to the Nigerian Bar in the year 1984.

“The Law reports are replete with records of Legal battles fought by Otunba Kunle Kalejaye,” this was part of brief remarks about the legal giant on his law firm’s website.

He is a distinguished member of the Nigerian Bar. Otunba Kunle Kalejaye started his legal practice in the chambers of Alhaji Adebayo Shittu.

He later moved to the chambers of Kanmi Ishola-Oshobu and remained there until 1988 when he proceeded to establish the firm of Kunle Kalejaye & Co.

He was admitted in to the Nigerian inner Bar as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in 2006.

In addition to his membership of the NBA, Otunba Kunle Kalejaye, SAN is a member, Negotiation and Conflict Management Group (NCMG) and fellow, Society of Law Citers. USA.

The legal luminary is the Baba Ewe of St Paul's Anglican Church Ilese-Ijebu and the Otunba Baamofin of Ijebu Land he is also the Atsabogie of South Ibie Kingdom, Auchi, Edo State.

According to information received on Kunle Kalejaye SAN & Co’s website, as a prolific writer, Kalejaye had authored the following articles and commentaries on law;

1. The ombudsman as the peoples Defender - myth or reality

2. Corporate Governance and Shareholders' Rights

3. Legal theories and practicalities of sentencing

4. Criminal Trials and Victims' Rights

5. Reconciliation and Conflict Management under the Law: The Nigerian experience

6. The Nigerian Judge as an Endangered specie

7. Judicial independence under the presidential system of Government : a myth or reality

8. Corruption in Nigeria

9. Dissolution of marriage contract.

10.Issues of Jurisdiction

11. Ostensible authority of Corporate Managers and the liability of the company

12. Print and be damned!

13. The Legal Implications of parading suspects before the press

14. Government by oracles

15. Witchcraft and Juju in Law

16. The American Election and the rest of us.

17. Wife Beating; better life and the law

18. Sycophancy, the transition and new breed politics: The law to the rescue

19. "Disappearing organs" and Public Security: what the law says

20. Spiritual Gbajue: The law in limbo

21. Government Take Over and Maintenance Culture: Chief J.A.O. Odebiyi in lamentations.

However, the ‘big lawyer’ is at the verge of losing his practicing license following directive by the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) that he should be disbarred on ground of professional misconduct.

The LPDC found Kalejaye guilty of misconduct while representing the Peoples Democratic Party and its then candidate, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola at the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, where Oyinlola’s victory in the 2007 poll was being challenged by the then candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola.

Kalejaye was said to have engaged in a “confidential, private and confidential telephone conversation” with the Chairman of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, Justice Thomas Naron, without the knowledge of the other party.

He allegedly engaged in the unprofessional act between March and June 2008 and the Justice Naron with whom he committed the misconduct had since February 20, 2013 been compulsorily retired by the National Judicial Council.

The Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Ekiti Division, Justice Paul Galinje, who read the directive (judgment of the LPDC), held that the prosecution, the Nigerian Bar Association, proved its three count complaints against Kalejaye.

He held that Kalejaiye violated the provisions of sections 1, 15, 30, 31, 34 and 55 of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners (2007).

The panel directed the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court to delete his name from the roll (list) of legal practitioners in the country.

The committee also directed that its decision should be served on the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, the Chief Judges of all the states of the federation, the Chief Judge of Federal High Court, Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, the Inspector General of Police and all the states’ Commissioners of Police.

In a swift move to thwart the directive, Kalejaye approached the Supreme Court, asking that to among others, set aside LPDC’s directive on disbarment.

His request is contained in the appeal he filed before the apex court on Friday wherein he also urged the court to restore his name to the list of legal practitioners in Nigeria.

In the notice of appeal filed by Kalejaye’s legal team, led by Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), the appellant raised eight grounds. Also, in the team are Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN), Adebayo Adenipekun (SAN) and Chief Duro Adeyele (SAN).

The appellant contended that the LPDC erred in law and facts, denied him fair hearing and that its verdict “is against the weight of evidence.

“The appellant, from the onset, denied any communication with the said judge. There was no evidence before the committee on what was communicated between the appellant and the said judge. The purported call long did not show the content of the said communication.

“It was too simplistic for the committee to hold that any communication in this case between a lawyer and a judge without evidence of the content of such communication amounted to infamous misconduct,” he said.

Kalejaiye also contended that the complainant, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), “did not prove the elements in the three-count charge as alleged before the committee (LPDC).

“The committee placed heavy reliance on record of proceedings contained in the call logs, which were computer-generated, but did not satisfy the requirement of the Evidence Act. No witness gave evidence on behalf of the complainant,” the appellant said as part of the particulars of error canvassed in the first ground of appeal,” he said.

The appellant further argued that the LPDC misdirected themselves in law and in fact when they held that though the defence of spoofing availed the appellant, the failure of the appellant’s expert to demonstrate using MTN to MTN network, instead of Glo to Airtel was fatal to the appellant’s defence of spoofing”.

He also faulted the verdict of the LPDC on the grounds that the LDPC erroneously held that the Certified True Copy of documents, which contained call logs from computer-generated source do not need any compliance with section 84 of the Evidence Act once it has been certified.

The appellant contended in ground four that “the direction (the judgment) is against the weight of evidence”.

In support of ground five of the appeal, Kalejaiye argued that the committee misdirected themselves in law and fact when it held “that it was the duty of the appellant to call the MTN service provider as his witness instead of relying on the MTN letter alone.”

No doubt, the development has sent jitters down the spines of legal practitioners in the country although, the disbarment is not new, but when senior lawyer like Kalejaye appears falling victim, it becomes news. Meanwhile, the legal fraternity awaits final judgment from Supreme Court, since the embattled SAN had filed an appeal.

#JUDICIARY