Supreme Court Justice, Emmanuel Agim, has said that judges do not belong to secret cults, insisting that integrity and godly conscience remain the bedrock of the judiciary.
Agim stated this yesterday in Abuja at the Legacy Dialogue 2.0 organised by the Johnny Agim SAN (JASAN) Foundation in Abuja, with the theme ‘Institutionalisation of Mentorship in the Legal Profession: A Strategic Blueprint for Professional Development’.
Agim said he found it absurd when people accused judges of belonging to cults.
He, however, lamented what he described as the erosion of character and professional integrity in today’s legal practice.
Agim said, “I have a conscience. Otherwise, I should not be going to Holy Trinity Parish or even praying if I don’t have a conscience. God is my protection, my fortress and my refuge. You cannot be evil and expect God to be all of that to you.
“But whenever I say this, a friend of mine would say, ‘I thought they said you (justices) all belong to cults.’ It is not so. We are ordinary human beings,” he stated.
“When I was a lawyer, we had cases already settled by law and you knew what your opposing counsel would say. But today, people go to court to win, not to get justice.
“Poor readership, poor knowledge of law – that’s our problem today. Some lawyers hold judgements in their hands but don’t read them. They go on television to spew ignorance so loudly and with audacity. It is a shame.”
Agim revealed that he had delivered over 600 judgements, saying it was impossible to understand the reasoning of a judge without studying the judgement itself.
“If a lawyer knows the law, it is very difficult for him to be unethical. If a judge knows the law, it is very difficult for him to be corrupt. But ignorance is bliss,” he declared.
Delivering the keynote address, former Supreme Court Justice, Ejembi Eko, lamented the lack of structured mentorship in the legal profession.
Eko, who was represented by Justice Mabel Segun-Bello of the Federal High Court, warned that the future of law in Nigeria was at risk if younger practitioners were not properly guided.
He, therefore, called for the establishment of a National Mentorship Council for lawyers to coordinate mentorship, professional ethics, and continuing education across the bar and the bench.
Eko noted, “We multiplied numbers without multiplying mentors. Any profession that leaves its young ones unguided and unguarded loses its future.”
Eko Stressed that his team remained committed to fostering excellence in the legal profession through mentorship and sponsorship by creating a network of 500 well-rounded young lawyers poised to drive positive change in the legal profession by taking the rank of silk or becoming judges of Courts of Records in the next 10 years in the midterm and to becoming institutions in themselves in no distant future.
He stated, “As an advocate that is passionate about legal reforms in order to build a lasting legacy that is preparing young platform for promoting mentorship, sponsorship, reforms and advocacy within the legal profession has generations of lawyers for excellence.
“#TheLegacy Dialogue, as our flagship annual thought leadership, becomes one veritable tool in achieving that goal by bringing together legal experts, academics, and stakeholders with the aim of exploring innovative approaches to mentorship and sponsorship in the legal profession.”
On his part, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Ondo State, Dr. Kayode Ajulo, SAN, who also chairs the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Mentorship Committee, called for the institutionalisation of mentorship as a matter of national importance within the legal community.
Ajulo said mentorship must evolve beyond informal relationships to become a structured and sustainable system that nurtures excellence and preserves the values of integrity and discipline that once defined the profession.
“The theme of our gathering is not merely a discussion point; it is a call to arms. Mentorship is not just a duty; it is a profound responsibility we owe to our future leaders,” said Ajulo.
He urged senior lawyers and jurists to deliberately guide younger colleagues, stressing that “success is not measured solely by personal achievement but by the impact we have on others.”
Ajulo praised the JASAN Foundation for its role in advancing mentorship and professional growth, particularly through the Indigent Scholarship Programme and the Legacy500 Elite Mentorship Platform, which he described as “lifelines for aspiring lawyers.”
He challenged young lawyers to uphold ethical standards, read more deeply, and build their careers on integrity rather than shortcuts.
