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The Association of Legislative Drafters and Advocacy Practitioners, ALDRAP, has submitted a proposal to the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters urging it to insert a new clause into the Legal Practitioners Bill to back Legislative Drafting as a distinct area of legal practice in Nigeria.
ALDRAP stated this is a letter addressed to the Senate committee signed by its Secretary Dr Tonye Clinton Jaja.
The Association recommended that legislative drafting — the elaborate process of constructing a text of legislation — be made a new sub-discipline of law and subject for legal research and scholarship.
In the letter ALDRAP outlined the following:
“It is recommended that an additional sub-section (7) be added/inserted to Clause (section) 7 of the above Bill,
The new Clause 7. should read as follows:
- A person is presumed to be practicing law or providing legal services when engaging in those of others;
(d) negotiating legal rights or responsibilities on behalf of a person.
to, preparing or filing documents or conducting discovery; or
constitute the practice of law or not:
(b) Serving as arbitrator, mediator, conciliator or expert determiner; and
(c) representing a person before an adjudicative body, including, but not limited
any of the following conduct on behalf of another:
the legal rights of a person;
(a) giving advice or counsel to persons as to their legal rights or responsibilities or to
6) Notwithstanding the provisions above, the following are permitted whether they
(a) Pro se representation;
(c) trainee law students working under the direct supervision of persons entitled to
(b) selecting, drafting, or completing legal documents or agreements that affect
practice law in Nigeria in strict compliance with the Rules of Professional Conduct.
(7) In addition to the list provided in the above, sub-section 7 (1)-(6), a person is presumed to be practicing law or providing legal services when engaging in Legislative Drafting Advocacy either as a staff of the National Assembly, State House of Assembly, Local Government Area (LGA) Legislative Assembly or as a legal consultant, provided such a person has prior certification issued under the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education programme of the Nigerian Bar Association’s accredited organisation namely the Association of Legislative Drafters and Advocacy Practitioners-ALDRAP”
Thus, ALDRAP is canvassing for the recognition of Legislative Drafting as a sub-discipline with its own theoretical basis, its principles and value which has a goal in effectiveness of legislation. And as a legal practice area that has recognised tools to achieve that goal
The Legal Practitioners legislation is due for public debate on Monday, 15th November, 2021 at the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
