Lawyers seeking conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria( SAN), in Edo State, have appealed to the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), to extend the date of application to allow qualified legal practitioners complete the registration process.
The online registration portal for lawyers seeking to be awarded the senior advocate status, https://lppconline.com/, was opened to the general public in January, 2022 and was closed on 31 March, 2022.
Barrister Benjamin Okorie, who spoke on behalf prospective SANs in the State, called on the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to intervene to ensure that qualified legal practitioners are not denied the privilege of applying for the position.
He said the call became necessary due to the difficulties experienced in the online application process, adding that the online registration process for the position had become a pain in the neck.
According to him, “Few months after the LPPC announced the automation of the application process for the conferment of the rank of SAN, the move which was initially praised by many has become a pain in the neck.
“When in December, the LPPC jettisoned the manual mode of application and went digital, we were all excited with the conviction that the process would be seamless and hitch-free.
“Little did we know that the automation which we all celebrated will make it impossible for some of us who are deserving to be denied the rank.
“The portal steadily experiences lags, while the filing process is not only difficult but makes it impossible for applicants to complete the registration process.
“I call on the LPPC to be considerate and extend the application to accommodate the interest of many qualified legal practitioners who may be affected by this hitch,” he said.
On his part, Barr. Uyi Ekeosa of Ekeosa Chambers in Benin, called on the LPPC to take responsibility for the failures in the new portal and extend the date of application.
“I started my application in the second week of January and was still not able to complete the process till I was shut out of the site at midnight, March 31, 2022.
“This is quite embarrassing and immediate actions must be taken to salvage the situation.
“As applicants, we were expected to upload clear and legible copies of all supporting documents that are required by the guidelines for the purpose of the application on the application portal.
“But this was impossible in the over two months that I struggled to complete it. The site is quite slow and troubleshoots, thereby affecting the filing process,” he lamented.
Also speaking, Berr. Igbinosa Edebiri said, “With the digitalisstion and automation of the application process, we anticipated a hitch-free application process.
“But this is not the case as most of us were logged out of the site without completing the process,” he said
Edebiri urged the committee to ensure that the date of application was duly extended, in the spirit of fairness.
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