By Ezekiel Joshua Gwantu
Legal practitioners have been called upon to take deliberate steps as agents of change to strengthen justice delivery in Nigeria by championing reforms that combine retributive and restorative models of criminal justice.
A world renowned Scholar, Professor Muhammed Tawfiq Ladan, delivered the charge as Lead Speaker at the 2026 Nigerian Bar Association, (NBA), Gombe Branch Law Week held on Monday, 16th June 2026 at the ICC Auditorium in Gombe.
He said the week-long event, themed “Strengthening Justice Through Reforms: Lawyers as Agents of Change,” brought together judges, lawyers, law teachers, and civil society actors to examine practical ways of improving the justice system.
According to him, “real societal change requires both structural upgrades and a complete reset of professional ethics.” He warned that without both elements, reforms would remain cosmetic and unable to address delay, inequality, and public mistrust. Prof. Ladan further argued that a fair society relies on three separate but tightly linked concepts: “The Law, Justice, and the Rule of Law.”
He defined the law as “the official, written guidelines of a community” that must be public, easy to understand, and predictable so citizens can safely plan their lives and businesses. Justice, he said, means “complete fairness and equality” that treats every person the same regardless of money or power while working to repair harm done to victims. On the rule of law, Prof. Ladan stressed it “ensures that the law holds the ultimate power. No leader or politician is above the law” and requires independent judges free from political pressure.
The scholar told participants that the Gombe Law Week mapped these foundations into a threefold transformation plan. On institutional transformation, he said it “requires clear boundaries and guarding judicial independence against political overreach” and must push for strong cooperation between the Bar, Bench, and Legislature to keep institutional powers balanced and accountable.
For structural transformation, Prof. Ladan argued that “courts must modernize to remain fast and fair” through key changes like “swapping slow, manual paperwork for digital electronic filing systems.” He also maintained that criminal laws “must pivot toward rehabilitation and restorative justice instead of punishment or retributive justice.” He cited the NBA’s direct legal support visit to the Gombe Medium Correctional Centre as proof of this hands-on focus.
Prof. Ladan said attitudinal transformation demands that “legal professionals change their personal mindsets,” adding that lawyers and judges “must actively reject corruption, strictly manage conflicts of interest, and place professional integrity above financial gain.” He concluded that lawyers “cannot be passive onlookers while the justice system struggles” and must serve as the active frontline drivers of change in society.
He outlined three practical roles for the Bar. Defending human rights requires lawyers to lead the fight against societal failures, including using legal tools to tackle gender-based violence to protect human dignity and community productivity. Driving access to justice means championing vulnerable citizens through pro-bono aid and resolving hidden legal bottlenecks so the system works for everyone, not just the wealthy. Upholding professional integrity, he said, means “the Bar must first reform itself” because “by strictly enforcing ethical standards, lawyers regain the public trust required to lead national development.”
Prof. Ladan noted that Nigerian lawyers have utilized evolving case law to champion reforms across sectors. He cited Fawehinmi v. Akilu in the public sector for expanding the public’s right to challenge injustice and protect democratic integrity. In the commercial sector, he referenced CBN v. Registered Trustees of the NBA and Abu Arome v. CBN for defending the profession’s autonomy and lawyer-client confidentiality against anti-money laundering classifications.
On technology, the world renowned scholar said “tech-forward lawyers are leveraging legal-tech developments,” with advanced databases like the LawPavilion Electronic Law Report and automated legal assistants that have “accelerated case research, cleared clogged court dockets, and secured faster release dates for wrongfully detained inmates.”
He summarized the Law Week’s conclusions into three pillars. There is a trust crisis because “public trust in the justice system is low” and rebuilding it requires a visible shift from outdated mechanics to transparent, modern systems. The pillars are interconnected since “real institutional transformation is impossible without a simultaneous structural and attitudinal upgrade.” Finally, lawyers must occupy active frontiers as they “can no longer serve as neutral technical professionals” but must step into leadership as caretakers of democratic safety.
Prof. Ladan concluded that “the survival of Nigeria’s democracy hinges on the total independence of its judiciary” and that “true justice cannot be served in slow, manually operated courtrooms or by professionals who put personal financial gains over ethical accountability.” He recommended three actions: mandate integrated digital electronic filing systems across all state courts to reduce docket delays; task NBA branches with enforcing strict ethical discipline through swift sanctions for misconduct; and expand correctional legal aid by establishing permanent, branch-driven clinics to handle pro-bono bail and accelerate restorative rehabilitation.