LSP137: Professional Misconduct

Upon being called to the Bar, an individual becomes a lawyer and enters the legal profession. Within this profession, certain standards of conduct are not just encouraged but mandated. These standards are delineated by the Rules of Professional Misconduct for the legal profession (RPC), a foundational legal framework that prescribes the accepted code of behavior for lawyers.

The principle of law, as held in NBA v Iteogu (2006) 13 NWLR (Pt. 996) 219 is that what amounts to professional misconduct is not defined in the rules of professional conduct (RPC). The court further held that any conduct of any legal practitioner in relation to his practice of the profession in relation to his client that runs contrary to rules or any breach of the rules may amount to misconduct, and any conduct that constitutes an infraction of the acceptable standard of behavior or ethics of the legal profession, or any conduct which connotes conduct so despicable and morally reprehensible as to bring the legal profession into disrepute, will amount to professional misconduct.

The general responsibility of a lawyer, as provided in Rule 1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners, is that a lawyer shall uphold and observe the rule of law, promote and foster the cause of justice, maintain a high standard of professional conduct, and shall not engage in any conduct which is unbecoming of a legal practitioner. This responsibility includes attending to the client’s inquiry.