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Dec 30, 2016
Dec 29, 2016
Life of a Lagos Lawyer - Episode 6
After a quick briefing
with my client, I am about to get in my car when I hear someone calling out “Dlaw,
Dlaw” from behind, I turn around and my heart skips a bit, guess who is pacing
towards me? Omalichanwa, the Ibo girl that broke my heart in the University. We
hug for a few seconds and immediately I get a whiff of her beautiful smell, I
am transported to what I would always remember as one of the most beautiful
times of my life.
Challenges with taxation system in Nigeria
Introduction
The Nigerian tax system has undergone several
reforms geared at enhancing tax collection and administration with minimal
enforcement cost. The recent reforms include the introduction of TIN, (unique
Taxpayer’s Identification Number), automated tax system that facilitates
tracking of tax positions and issues by individual taxpayers, e-payment system
which enhances smooth payment procedure and reduces the incidence of tax
touts.
The tax authority now has autonomy to assess,
collect and record tax.
Dec 26, 2016
Economic Impact of Migration: Benefit or Burden? BY Osiri Ndukwe
Introduction
Migration is a feature of social and economic life across many countries, but the profile of migrant populations varies considerably. In part this is because of the variety of sources of migration. In much of Europe, for example, citizens enjoy extensive rights to free movement.
Dec 24, 2016
Curbing terrorism through Immigration Policies by Osiri Ndukwe
Introduction
Immigration policies aim to facilitate the entry of
foreigners whose presence is desired, and to identify and deter the entry of
unwanted foreigners. Although immigration policy changes alone cannot prevent
terrorism, they are key ingredients in the effort to combat terrorism.
Dec 21, 2016
Rights Of A Tenant In Nigeria By Onyekachi Umah, Esq. ACIArb(Uk)
Just as the human
fingers vary, so do human status, situations and endeavours vary. At different
times, locations and situations in life you are either a tenant or a landlord
or even both. You may be the owner of your residence while you are a tenant in your
office complex. They can never be a tenant without a landlord. For more on
landlords rights and duties, read my article; RIGHTS OF A LANDLORD. Due to the African undue attachment
to land and landed property so much attention and superiority is added to the
status of “Landlordship”. This makes up for the ill treatment the so called
landlords do met out to their often poor tenants.
NCC, the Data Price Floor and Competition Law - Stephen Oke
Stephen 'seun Oke
I am sure most, if not
all, of us received notifications (be it from our telecoms operators, the press
or the grapevine) about a directive of the Nigerian Communications Commission
("NCC") requiring the Telcos to increase their data tariffs to
the level of a newly imposed price floor (the “Directive”) .
Fortunately, the Nigerian Senate mounted enough pressure on NCC to backtrack.
Most of us (myself inclusive) would agree that the Directive was unwelcome,
given the prevailing economic clime. However, harsh economic climes apart, the
following analysis seeks to:
Dec 19, 2016
Enforcement Of Tax Judgments Outside Nigeria - Osiri Ndukwe
Introduction
In
this era of increased international trade and foreign direct investment,
enforcement of foreign judgments has become very significant in our legal
system. Investors are more comfortable doing business with foreign
partners knowing that if they obtain a judgment from a superior court in their
home country, it can be enforced against the judgment debtor in another
country.
Dec 14, 2016
Suspension of FRCN Code of Corporate Governance: Lessons Learnt - Prince Ikechukwu Nwafuru
Introduction
The Financial Reporting
Council of Nigeria (FRCN) recently issued the National Code of Corporate
Governance, 2016 (“NCCG”). The three-in-one Code provides for sector-wide Code
of corporate governance for Private and Public Sectors as well as Not-for-profit
Organizations. According to information on the FRCN website, the Code of
Corporate Governance for the Private Sector is mandatory, the Code for the
Not-for-profit entities is comply or justify non-compliance while that of the
public sector will not be applicable immediately until an executive directive
is secured from the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Dec 12, 2016
41 Banned Items: Nigerian Government to Dump CBN’s Forex Policy
Recall that
earlier in the year, the Central Bank of Nigeria (“CBN”) banned 41 items from
access to the Official Foreign Exchange Market. The items include the
following:
Dec 10, 2016
Do you support Human Rights?
|
Dec 8, 2016
Nigerians and the MMM Craze by Ahmed Olaitan Banu
“Mystery creates wonder
and wonder is the basis of man’s desire to understand”….Neil
Amstrong
Certain events occur in
life that we find quite difficult to wrap our minds and thoughts around. It
took me a while to make up my mind on the need for this write up. Why? Because
I just can’t seem to understand what is going on - I see irrationality every
everywhere.
Anti-Dollarization Policy: Managing Reality – Issues And Discontents
*This article, co-
written with Chuks Okoriekwe, was featured in the Legal Insight column of BDLaw
(Legal Section of the influential daily, BusinessDay) of 08 December 2016.
INTRODUCTION
The Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) in its effort to starve off the pressure on the Nigerian currency
had drawn the attention of the public to its Currency Substitution and
Dollarization of the Nigerian Currency Circular issued on 17th day April
2015 (the Circular). The Circular essentially leveraged existing legislative
provisions to reiterate the bar against denomination and pricing of local
(visible and invisible) transactions in any foreign currency.
Ivie Omoregie: On Becoming – Did Someone Say ‘Defamation’?
I
am sure we are all aware of recent social media happenings involving the
release of a certain book….
On
Sunday 27th November 2016, Nigerian On Air Personality, Toke Makinwa broke
the internet with the release of the much anticipated “Must Tell” book, titled
“On Becoming”. The book details several events which have occurred in
her personal life and which have been instrumental in making her the woman she
is today. Although touching on several life changing incidences, including the
loss of her parents at the tender age of 8, the book also recounts, in detail,
events which might have led to the breakdown of Toke’s marriage to her
estranged husband Maje Ayida.
Dec 2, 2016
Life of a Lagos Lawyer - Episode 5 (Court Room)
It’s 9:00am and we are seated
in court. My client who wanted to pay me with yam and bush-meat is in the
gallery. Members of his Workers Union have been trooping in to give him support;
and about 18 of them are still on their way in the Union Bus. Opposing counsel,
representing the Defense, is also in court, in a few minutes now, His Lordship
will emerge from chambers.
Why we need competition laws in Nigeria
According to the Black’s
Law Dictionary, 8th edition, Competition is the struggle for
commercial advantage; the effort or action of two or more commercial interests
to obtain the same business from third parties. Whish and Bailey describe
Competition as a struggle or contention for superiority, and in the commercial
world this means a striving for the custom and business of the people in the market
place[i].
Personality Profile - Dapo Olanipekun SAN
Dapo Olanipekun SAN was
elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in July, 2015, being
the youngest person ever to be conferred with the rank since inception. Dapo
studied his LLB at the University of Lagos and proceeded to Queen Mary University
where he bagged his LLM and PhD respectively.
Nov 29, 2016
Duty of service providers to reveal customer information
The right of individuals
to protect their data is very sacred and fundamental. Section 37 of the 1999
Nigerian Constitution provides that; "the privacy of citizens, their
homes, correspondence, telephone conversations and telegraphic communications
is hereby guaranteed and protected".
Nov 25, 2016
Life of a Lagos Lawyer (Episode 4) - Big Law to Solo
It’s been 7 weeks since I
dropped my resignation letter out of frustration. I walked out of Oga’s office
with so much confidence, one would have thought, I just got appointed the personal
house boy to the PA of the Governor’s special adviser a special adviser to
the President. Oga had given me a query for leaving the office at 8.30pm to
attend to some personal matters even though my letter of employment said 6pm. I
am sure the contents of my resignation letter must have passed my message
across very well, I used the most polite of languages and gently eased the cup
of employment from my head. It said –
The Enforceability of Non-Compete Clauses/Agreements under Nigerian Labour Law
Entrepreneurs often dread losing key staff. The difficulty
involved in having to recruit and successfully integrate new faces into an
existing order makes the endeavour an unsavoury undertaking to many. However,
if losing a key staff is worrisome enough, the realization that a disgruntled one
may walk out the door with more than his termination letter and severance
paycheck, is a much graver cause for concern.
Nov 23, 2016
Compliance Under The Corporate Immigration Regime in Nigeria
Under the Nigerian corporate immigration regime, foreign
nationals may undertake any type of business and own 100 percent equity and
undertake any type of business in Nigeria except those in the negative list,
that is, production of arms, narcotics and related substances which are
prohibited to Nigerians and Foreign Investors alike.[1]
Nov 7, 2016
Nov 4, 2016
Life of a Lagos Lawyer - Milady (Episode 3)

It all started on the day of my Call. My father was so proud that his little angel was becoming a Barrister; He had put up my Pre-Call photo as his display picture on Facebook with the tagline “Beware, my daughter is a lawyer” and invited everyone to my call-to-bar celebration party.
The Communication Service Tax Bill: A Desperate Cry For Help – Emmanuel Ohiri
1. Introduction
On
31st August 2016, the National Bureau of Statistics of Nigeria (Bureau)
confirmed what was already in the minds of all Nigerians and the world- Nigeria
was in recession. From the Bureau’s Q2 report, Nigeria’s GDP declined to -2.06%
(year-on-year) in real terms. Rather than focus on alleviating the effect of
the recession, the National Assembly is contemplating levying taxes on communication
and internet services in Nigeria.
Nov 3, 2016
Compensation for death in the workplace
A fatal accident at work is defined as an accident
which leads to the death of a victim. Death is usually a tragic event,
especially when it occurs in the workplace. According to the International
Labour Organisation, ILO, statistics indicate that “one worker dies every 15
seconds worldwide, 6000 workers die every day and more than two million workers
die annually as a result of work related accidents and diseases.
Nov 2, 2016
Oct 28, 2016
Life of a Lagos Lawyer - End of the Month (Episode 2)
Everyone in the office is
smiling, except me. Their jubilation is expected,
being the end of the month and salaries have been paid. I always had dreams of
working in Big Law, in one of the top law firms on the Island. But I am not so
sure anymore, getting home from work at
10.30pm to leave at 6am the next morning; coupled with my insufficient salary
of N90,000 per month, minus penalty
fees at the office, I can’t even afford a social life.
Sexual Harassment Law in Nigerian Universities
The Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Educational Institutions Prohibition Bill,
2016; otherwise known as the Sexual Harassment Act is a welcome development
to the body of law in Nigeria. The Bill comes to rescue students in Nigerian
educational institutions who are victims of sexual harassment from preying
lecturers, teachers and educators who use their position to sexually exploit students.
Oct 27, 2016
What to do when your employment is terminated unlawfully - Adedunmade Onibokun
There are many instances
when employees have had their employments terminated unlawfully by their
employers. Some of these employees never
see it coming and become infuriated at the company for a termination they deem
unlawful. Others are confused and wondering what to do next and how to secure
the next pay check in order to provide for their families and needs. Many however,
do not realise that their termination is unlawful and they have a right to sue
the employer for a breach of their contract of employment.
Oct 25, 2016
Duties and Powers of The National Judicial Council (NJC)
The National Judicial Council is one of the Federal
Executive Bodies created by virtue of Section 153 of the 1999 Constitution of
the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In order to insulate the Judiciary from the
whims and caprices of the Executive; hence guarantee the independence of this
Arm of Government, which is a sine qua non for any democratic Government, the
National Judicial Council was created and vested with enormous powers and
functions.
Provisions of the proposed bill to establish a ranching commission in Nigeria
The National Assembly is
currently examining a Bill sponsored by Senator Barnabas Gemade, seeking to
establish the National Ranches Commission for the regulation, management,
preservation and control of ranches throughout Nigeria.
Oct 21, 2016
Life of a Lagos Lawyer - Bad mornings (Episode 1)
It was a very beautiful
day and I woke up feeling great. Like an angel had visited my bed side during
the night and whispered to me that I was waking to one of the best days of my life.
Jeffery, my driver, had detailed the custom Mercedes Benz S-Class and as the
smell of the rich and luxurious leather drifted in my comfortable back seat, I
could not help but notice my face on the cover of the Forbes Africa magazine
being displayed on the news stand with the caption “The Best Lawyer in The
World” written under my name.
Oct 20, 2016
Sun International's Pullout ,The Nigeria Gaming Industry And The Rest Of The Economy -
On the 25TH of
August of 2106 we woke up to splashing headlines by several local papers
announcing Sun International’s (SI) pullout from Nigeria. Some noted that it
was the 4th South African company to pullout from the Nigerian market citing
the hostile economic environment as the reason. As expected I was inundated
with inquires from several quarters especially from those eying the Nigeria
gaming market
Oct 19, 2016
Compensation for injury in the Workplace
The Black's Law
Dictionary, 9th Edition at page 320, defines compensation as:
"1. Remuneration and other benefits received
in return for services rendered.....
2.
Payment of damages or any other act
that a court orders to be done by a person who has caused injury to another."
(Emphasis
mine)
It is common for workers
to suffer injury or incur liabilities during the course of employment. This is
more common with employees whose employment require them to work with delicate
and complex medium and heavy duty machinery, such as workers on an oil rig, a
manufacturing company, a laundry service or even a restaurant.
Oct 17, 2016
Oct 14, 2016
“THE CNN EFFECT” If it Bleeds it Leads. Does media coverage make violent conflict more likely?
The saturation of media in
virtually all areas of contemporary life and its effects on society has been
widely discussed by many academic scholars. At the same time, since the end of
the Cold War in 1989, intra-state conflicts in which the Great Powers have been
openly involved have also become significant. Connecting these developments,
the media has been seen as not merely observers, but participants in these
post-Cold Wars.
Oct 13, 2016
Interview: Chika Ugonwa, Immigration lawyer talks about law practice and finding her niche by Anne Mmeje
Anne Mmeje interviewed Chika Ugonwa, a young entrepreneurial
Nigerian Lawyer who practices Immigration Law in Nigeria. Chika talks about her
work, human trafficking in Nigeria, and the Gender Equality Bill that failed to
pass at the National Assembly. Chika’s vision includes establishing a law firm
that will serve as a one stop shop for everything Travelling/Immigration
inquiry and assistance in Nigeria; having a bilateral relation with immigration
firms all over the world, Embassies and High Commissions; and building a strong
brand on the foundation of Trust and Integrity.
Oct 11, 2016
Ivie Omoregie: The Importance of Contracts;Especially When Dealing with Friends
The importance of
contracts
Over the years, in my
professional capacity, as well as in my personal life, I have seen extremely
ugly disputes erupt amongst people who would have once referred to themselves
as close friends or family; all because they attempted to do business or engage
in a project together which subsequently went pear shaped. I often tell people
‘even if you are going into business with your mum, make sure you sign
something setting out, in clear terms, exactly what is expected from each party’.
Oct 10, 2016
Powers of National Security Agencies in Nigeria
According to Wikipedia, National security is a concept that a government, along with
its parliaments, should protect the state and its citizens against all kind of
"national" crises through a variety of power projections, such
as political power, diplomacy, economic power, military might, and so on.
Oct 8, 2016
Who will speak for the judiciary – Dunmade Onibokun
Who will speak for the judiciary – Dunmade Onibokun
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak
out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not
speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to
speak for me.
by Martin Niemöller
Commendation to Nigerian Police on tattoos
I just stumbled on an article on the Linda Ikeji Blog about a lady
who was assaulted by the Police for having a tattoo. It’s so amazing the work
our Nigerian Policemen are doing.
Oct 5, 2016
Opinion: On Sambo Dasuki and the ruling of the ECOWAS Court by Raymond Nkannebe
The
considered ruling yesterday 4th October, of a three man panel of the Ecowas
court led by Justice Friday Nwoke that terminated in an order of immediate
release of the estranged former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki who has
been in custody of the DSS since last year, and cost against the Nigerian state
in the sum of 15 million naira is a welcome development. Nigerian security
operatives on no reason should be allowed in any guise to overshot the runway
of the law ostensibly to fortify the security of the nation.
