Young Lawyers in Business: Ethical Implications by Nonso Anyasi

The Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners in Nigeria (RPC) prescribes the model ethical conduct for lawyers engaged in active legal practice in the Country. So many lawyers however do not pay fealty to some of the provisions of the RPC which they refer to as being outdated. However, despite the anachronistic nature of the provisions of the RPC, it continues to prescribe the ethical standards required of Nigerian lawyers.

Engagement in Business Activities

One of the most abused provisions of the RPC is Rule 7 which essentially prohibits unauthorized engagement in business by legal practitioners. For the avoidance of doubt, Rule 7 of the RPC provides thus:

1. Unless permitted by the General Council of the bar (hereinafter referred to as the “Bar Council”), a lawyer shall not practice as a legal practitioner at the same time as his practice any other profession.

2. A lawyer shall not practice as a legal practitioner while personally engaged in-
3. the business of buying and selling commodities;
4. the business of a commission agent;
5. Such other trade or business which the Bar Council may from time to time declare to be incompatible with practice as a lawyer or as tending to undermine the high standing of the profession.

3. For the purpose of this rule, “trade or business” includes all forms of participation in any trade or business, but does not include-
4. Membership of the Board of Directors of a company which does not involve executive, administrative or clerical functions;
5. being secretary of a company; or
6. being a shareholder in a company.

Whilst Nigerian lawyers usually do not have compliance issues with paragraphs (1) and (3) of the Rule, paragraph (2) has grown to become one of the most abused provisions of the RPC in recent times. The practice of the law in itself is too demanding to enable a practitioner mix legal practice with that of another profession. Hence, compliance with Rule 7(1) poses little problems for the preset day practitioner. Although there are indeed a few practitioners who are known to double their legal practice with another job description that falls within the parameters of an entirely different profession.

The focus of this article is however on the more problematic Rule 7(2) which prohibits legal practitioners from personally engaging in the business of buying and selling of commodities and also engaging in trade or business. This rule originated in 1964, when the business of commodity trading was a full time “hustle” in itself, thus making it nearly impossible to mix same with the practice of another profession. However, the present day pervasiveness of the internet and the ease of doing business index in Nigeria has made commodity trading so easy that it can be done from the comfort of one’s home or office at the press of a single button.

Entrepreneurship: A Panacea to Poor Remuneration?

Nigerian university students are taught in their penultimate years of study to embrace the spirit of entrepreneurship. This big word – entrepreneurship – has been given a very befitting nickname in Nigeria: “side hustle”. University students are prepared for the acute paucity of jobs in the economy. They are also informed that the little jobs available to the thousands of graduates produced by our universities annually are not financially rewarding to sustain a comfortable lifestyle. It is a notorious fact that does not require any modicum of proof that the average Nigerian young lawyer ranks amongst the poorest paid professionals in Nigeria.

To further aplomb this point, the 126-paged Executive Report issued by the Remuneration Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association on the 24^th January 2022 reveals that 33% of Nigerian lawyers earn between N20,000 to N70,000 monthly, while only 18% of Nigerian lawyers earn above N150,000 monthly. It further reveals that the lawyers earning between N20,000 – N70,000 monthly are mostly young lawyers within the 0-4 years post qualification bracket. By way of comparison, a Medical House Officer (medical doctor fresh out of medical school on house job assignment) earns at least N120,000 in their first year of medical practice. Similarly, the average entry-level salary for a Nigerian Accountant is N100,000 per month (Glassdoor Statistics). The poor remuneration structure of young lawyers in Nigeria is however not the focus of this article.

The rising cost of living is throwing many into financial depression, as the average income cannot match expected expenses. Lawyers are expected to adhere strictly to the ethical commandment to abstain from engaging in the “side hustle” of buying and selling commodities to augment their poor remuneration in the midst of the present day financial hardship. The RPC does not however offer suggestions on how young lawyers are to cope with their poor salaries.

The rise of social media and relative ease of doing business in Nigeria has made Rule 7(2) of the RPC very easy to disobey. It is not out of place to see present day young lawyers advertise their side hustles on their social media pages/profiles. These side hustles mostly fall within the trading activities prohibited by the RPC, e.g. trading human hair, retail clothes, cars, handbags, shoes, household items, etc. These lawyers engage in such commercial activities while actively employed in a law office. A young lawyer’s WhatsApp status may contain pictures of that lawyer in Court fully robed, while the next status could be advertisements of household commodities or clothing items for sale.

While it is true that laws are made for men and not men for laws, we must not forget that the draftsperson of any legislative provision or rule is not known to use or extrapolate words in vain. Every word in a legislative provision is carefully intended to achieve a particular purpose. Rule 7(2) of the RPC was inserted to achieve a particular purpose which is to maintain the high standards of the legal profession (please see Rule 7(2)(c) of the RPC). The returns on investment on a lawyer’s education is only as good as the premium which that lawyer and other persons in the society place on the lawyer’s profession. Value must proceed intrinsically before it can command external respect.

No matter how much we attempt to sugar coat it, a well-dressed and well-polished lawyer is more likely to command higher professional fees and respect for the same brief than a shabbily-dressed lawyer.  A well-dressed and well-spoken lawyer presenting himself to the security agencies to represent a client is also likely to command more respect from the security officers than a shabbily dressed lawyer.

Similarly, a lawyer who is known to engage in certain commercial ventures would experience difficulties in commanding higher fees for certain briefs from clients who have seen the lawyer engage in such commercial ventures. A client who has “priced” clothes or household items on a lawyer’s WhatsApp status would have no fear whatsoever in “pricing” the cost of company registration, legal documentation for real estate transaction or other legal services with that same lawyer like it were a petty bargain.

What I am laboring to say is that Rule 7(2) of the RPC may be outdated, but it remains an extant provision of the law which lawyers must hasten to comply with. The rule exists solely for the benefit of lawyers. It instills and protects the value of the legal profession. From the text of Rule 7(2) of the RPC, it is unethical to parade oneself as an active legal practitioner in one breathe, then personally engage in the business of buying and selling of commodities in another breathe. For want of a better description, it is unethical to make social media posts in the morning giving the impression that one is actively engaged in legal practice, then make another post within twenty-four hours advertising commodities being personally sold by that lawyer. It diminishes collective value in the profession. It should not be condoned.

The Way Forward?

One cannot turn a blind eye to the prevailing economic realities of lawyers who engage in such unethical practices of trading in commodities. These lawyers have bills to pay which cannot be satisfied by their poor salaries. However, the fact that one is hungry does not justify the theft of items from a food store. Any side hustle which a lawyer engages in to augment their poor salary should not be a prohibited activity capable of undermining the value of the profession.

It must also be pointed out that while Rule 7(3) of the RPC prohibits a lawyer’s participation in “any form of trade or business”, this does not appear to apply to skills-based commercial ventures e.g. baking, cooking, photography, etc.  The Black’s Law Dictionary defines the term “trade” as “the act or business of exchanging commodities by barter; or the business of buying and selling for money”. This writer submits that such skills-based commercial activities such as baking do not fall within the definitive parameters of trading as prohibited by the RPC.

Young lawyers must also learn how to attach premium to themselves and properly position themselves to attract premium wages and briefs. The Nigerian Bar Association has stressed the importance of capacity building to the profession. The present administration of the NBA has provided lots of resources and training for young lawyers in this regards. The NBA-YLF has also shown commendable attention to the issues of free/subsidized capacity building and training for young lawyers in recent times. Young lawyers must be willing to utilize these opportunities and think outside the box to position themselves optimally.

It has also been submitted that there is a distinction between the practice of the law and the business of the law. Young lawyers who are able to hack the latter would realize that a successful legal business can be run together with a full time law office job. The internet and social media has given us the tools to make legal services more readily accessible to the general public in such a way that the dignity of the profession would still be maintained.

In conclusion, the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners do not exist for the sole purpose of passing Professional Ethics and Skills examinations at the bar finals of the Nigerian Law School. They are meant to be religiously obeyed by all lawyers in active legal practice. The rules may be outdated, but remain the law. Any lawyer who feels that it is impossible to comply with the rules has the freedom to totally opt out of complying with the rules.

Nonso Anyasi is a member of the NBA Lagos Branch and can be reached via nonsoanyasi@nigerianbar.ng