Court Not Sitting: Lagos Chief Judge Directs Registrars to Notify Lawyers, Parties Not Less Than 48 Hours to Scheduled Da
The Chief Judge of Lagos State, Hon Justice Kazeem Alogba has directed court registrars in the state to notify lawyers and parties whenever the courts will not be sitting, such notices to be delivered not less than 48 hours to the date the matters are slated for.
The Chief Judge’s directive was contained in a Notice to All Court Registrars with the reference number, LASJ/312455/Vol.XXVI/69 and dated January 21, 2021, which was signed by the Lagos State Chief Registrar, Mrs. O.A. Okunuga.
A portion of the Notice read:
“The Hon. Chief Judge of Lagos State, Hon. Justice Kazeem O. Alogba, has directed that whenever the Court will not be sitting, all Court Registrars Must Notify Counsel and Parties involved in the matter via SMS (text)/email or both not less than 48 hours before the date the matter is slated for.“
The Notice similarly warned the court registrars that failure to comply with the directive will be met with stern disciplinary actions.
Whilst the Notice did not provide further details of the disciplinary actions to be meted out to erring court registrars, LAWYARD notes that lawyers and parties to suits before courts in Lagos State have regularly suffered significant inconvenience from attending court only to be informed that the courts will not be sitting.
LAWYARD therefore considers the directive a welcome development even as compliance with the directive waits to be seen.
