Kakande Chrispus

I was in Court today for my cases and I witnessed an interesting episode before my cases were called. A young lawyer was sent to court by her principal for a matter that was slated for trial. The lawyer on the other side is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria with over 50years of experience. When the matter was called, the young lawyer stood up to inform the court that her principal was in his way to court to handle the matter as she was not briefed to proceed with the trial. Immediately, the court told her to start looking at the file as the matter must proceed. The court stood the matter down for like 2hours. When it was recalled again, the young lawyer’s principal was not still in court and the SAN was prepared to proceed. The SAN put his witness in the box and tendered all the documents. When it was now the turn of the young lawyer to cross examine the witness, she stood up with confidence and said: my Lord, we will like to take a short adjournment to enable us cross-examine the witness. In the interest of justice, I plead to the court to allow us come back. Clearly showing hesitation to adjourn the matter, the court called upon the SAN to respond to the young lady’s application for adjournment. Some of us in court were already thinking the SAN would insist the young lawyer must proceed, so as to gain an unfair advantage in the case, as cross examination is a crucial part of the case. The learned SAN stood up and said: my Lord, I was in this lady’s position 51years ago. My principal gave me a file for a case for trial and when the matter was called upon, clearly I wasn’t ready to go on, I stood up to ask for an adjournment. Thanks to the senior counsel on the other side, who extended grace to me to concede to an adjournment. So it is my turn to extend the same grace to another younger lawyer, and I hope in the future, when she also finds herself in similar situation, she will extend the same grace to the junior lawyer. So my Lord, I will not be objecting the her application for adjournment. Everybody in court including the young lawyer immediately wore a wide smile on their faces. It was a sigh of relief for the young lawyer. Then the judge said to the young lawyer: thank your luck that the SAN extended grace to you, and now I don’t have any option but to grant your request for an adjournment. The judge added however that: the tenacity of the lady not to go on was impressive. But admonished her to always be familiar with the facts of the case and be ready to proceed regardless of whether the principal was coming to court or not.