- Ginni Rometty
Introduction
For Nigeria, the 21st century came a bit too fast. As at 2000, merely 19 years ago, there were only so many mobile phones in Nigeria. I remember my dad getting his first 'handset’ in 2001! Between then and now, there’s been series of exponential changes to our reality, made possible by technology and the globalisation that characterizes these times.
We now live in the age of fantastic gadgets and cutting-edge technological solutions. Digital Technology, Machine Learning, Internet of Things, FinTech, Blockchain, AI etc. are the savvy buzzwords of today's contemporary conversations and they promise to further change the dynamic as we know it. The problem is, for us Lawyers, reality as it is today, is still not yet fully in our grasp, how much more about another wave of change.
It is by now stock to say that law affects all facets of societal life; this much is easily a given. With this in mind, it is expected that this paradigm shift in society caused by these developments would be reflected by the setup of the law and legal practice in the country. This is not the case in Nigeria.
A Changing Landscape and a Stagnant Industry - The Problem
Lawyers are not adapted to be dynamic, especially here in Nigeria. We are traditionalists; we romanticize systems and rules no matter how old or unnecessary they become and we reject change by habit. We call it precedence. We call them wigs. We call it distraction.
The Nigeria Legal Industry is faced with a peculiar problem - the landscape of business is changing ever so fast; society is steadily and completely moving, but the profession is decidedly behind at all times - it simply has not kept up.
The genesis of the problem is with the University teaching of Law that fails to evolve so as to at least acquaint law students with the reality of these changes and, to put it comically, the exodus of the problem is in the continued limited perspective of Lawyers and other key actors in the legal industry who confine themselves eternally to traditional and convenient areas of practice and methods of practice. Today we have a wide range of niche practice spheres where astute legal service would be invaluable, but we remain transfixed to a traditional, limited scope. On the other hand, we have a legal service industry that ironically prides itself on archaic practice methods and manners ( with the exception of few pace setters.)
As it has to do with new and emerging areas of practice, its is not the case that there are no lawyers providing legal services to these markets; not at all! The point is;
These areas are still not contemplated by enough lawyers in Nigeria and as a result, have only so few lawyers ‘capably’ engaged in their practice (and only in select cities in the country even);
While this is good for these select astute lawyers, it bodes negatively on the legal profession since it means that few hands, and necessarily, fewer capable hands, would be engaged in these areas, translating to a paucity of ready legal services for consumers in these markets.
The mind-set of most Nigerian Lawyers is such as has been conditioned to stick to the celebrated orthodoxy. Our education as Nigerian lawyers does not prepare us for, or expect us to indulge in innovation. Without the orientation for innovation and independent thought and with the continued general emphasis on tradition in legal practice, which ultimately prevents capacity building in these novel and/or esoteric areas, it is hard to see how we can expect any other outcome that what we are faced with.
We end up having little or no legal capacity in burgeoning industries which amount to unrealised business opportunities. Often, foreign capacity is sort by Nigerian Businesses or Multinationals in these areas, constituting capital flight from an already under-provided industry.
On the other end of the divide, as it has to do with methods of practice, we end up with a systemically non-progressive legal industry unable to capitalize on existing advancements for its own improvement and unable to match global competitive standards.
Addressing the Problem - Evolving
To improve, we must first recognise the need to listen to the pulse of society. Law cannot exist of itself, it must serve society by the egg shell rule - just as it finds her. To remain relevant, lawyers simply must evolve.
Education is the bedrock of change. But it is obvious that it would take a while before the Nigeria Legal Education System, in all its characteristic reluctance, would be able to catch up to the times. It is not commendable, but it is a fact. It falls down to the lawyer to aid himself, of himself and for himself. And to do this, lawyers, especially young lawyers, need a change in perspective. We need to begin to view Law Practice in terms of our immediate reality. We need to stop considering law from the lenses of yesterday, and start snooping into the future. We need to relentless build capacity in these novel areas. We need to evolve, like everybody else. We need to stop being just ring-side advisers and start to innovate. We need to learn to capitalise on new methods of practicing, and above all, like Roger Meltzer was quick to note, we need to learn to diversify.
The tricky thing about legal service is that no industry will crumble without it. With premium legal service, any industry will fare better - in the absence of it, just about anything else would suffice and the Industry will get on, if not yet thrive. We need a change in orientation, if not for the sake of society, for our sake - collectively and individually.
There are various ways we could improve:
Tertiary Education; Despite the highlighted issues with this option, it remains completely important. Our Universities need to expose budding lawyers to the new realities. Where they cannot incorporate new age subjects into their curriculum, at least basic orientation would go a long way. Schools could sponsor events engineered towards preparing students for what is the future of law practice.
Research and Personal Effort; Lawyers need to realise the need to research into these new age methods of practice and new markets for legal services. Ultimately, this is the most viable option, because it is entirely at the instance of the individual and there are no limits to the possible bounty.
Open-mindedness; Lawyers, budding lawyers especially, need to become more open minded in accessing legal practice. Often, the reason for the lack of independent thought in the approach to practice is in the fact that many lawyers are not open-minded enough to try out new things. If nothing else, the likes of Senator Ihenyen have shown how this is done.
Diversify; Many lawyers, young lawyers, just follow the bandwagon. More lawyers need to be less restricted by formality, “over-lawyering”, and tradition. We need more lawyers practicing law inside other industries - law was never meant to be practiced in isolation; it was always to be applied to everything else. We need Lawyers servicing industries directly, having the skills and competence to be directly relevant to new industries and practicing in new modes.
Outreaches and Events; The need for organizing programmes and events that allow lawyers the opportunity to take an adventure into re-discovery cannot be overemphasized. Re-orientation and technology education will help expose the Lawyers to the new tech-trends in society, whereas an astute mind-set will help them realize a law practice angle to them.
Moot, Mock, Debates, University Activities; Silicon Valley is Silicon Valley because it is at the berth of some of the most profound schools in the world. The role Universities can play in development cannot be overstated. In this case, activities usually organised and conducted by students in Universities often help to shape the perspective of law students, fine-tuning them in line with modern needs. These activities should be encouraged and sponsored by schools and well-meaning actors in the legal sphere, particularly where they promote understanding of new age subjects.
New Laws and Policies; The framework of Laws in Nigeria also contribute to the redundancy in legal practice today. It is interesting to note that there is no Digital economy as recognized by law in Nigeria. The only law remotely recognizing the reality of digital interaction is the Cyber Crimes Act. The Legislature should be up and doing as regards effecting a better framework of laws, by putting out bills on new and budding matters as they interact with law (technology even more so) as well as revising already existing laws to give fresh impetus to some of these matters.
Law Firms; Law firms and Chambers play a very crucial role in determining the orientation of Lawyers. It would serve immeasurably if these firms and chambers delve into these new waters with a view to diversification or specialization. Also, persons opting to open new chambers and firms could well consider going outside the traditional scope of practice.
Conclusion
There will be no robot apocalypse - at least not one as fascinating as the overenthusiastic neoteric or paranoid conservative would paint. Lawyers will not all run out of jobs much as society will not become self governing. But the coming years will tell on traditional legal practice; will erode a lot of mechanical work from the profession and will fizzle out the need for as many (traditional) lawyers. On the other hand it will open the market for a new category of Lawyers; lawyers who are consultants, analysts, advisors, developers, innovators, industry-men - Lawyer 2.0!
The mainstream is already choked, there are too many lawyers, wearing the same attire, possessed of the same gears, doing the same things. If this was not bad enough, there are more lawyers waiting to be gurgled out from the Law School, poised earnestly to do exactly the same things - possessed of the same gears and hoping for different results. In the end, legal practice becomes a blood-fest in the same run-of-the-mill areas, while viable alternatives exist. Lawyers are no favourites of mathematics, but anyone really can do the arithmetic.
If that is not enough inspiration, the threat of disruption gleefully peddled by the waiting 4th Industrial revolution should be. At this rate, and if the stagnation continues, traditional law practitioners stand a risk of becoming obsolete relics of a past time. That should be reason enough to build new capacity as lawyers, and especially as young lawyers, who have all their best yet in front of them.
Law will never change society, as it is by its nature reactionary, and so is Law Practice. Ideally, society changes, and law follows suit. Well, society is changing.
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