By Bimbo Adenrele
The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee, LPDC, has barred an Abuja based lawyer, Everestus Chinedum Ugwuowo from practising law in Nigeria for five years over his indictment in a N29M property fraud.
The five years suspension handed down to him by LPDC was sequel to his guilt of professional misconduct in a petition of Infamous Conduct filed against him by one Mrs Grace Dauda.
LPDC in its Final Direction delivered after listening to the defrauded woman and Ugwuowo, faulted the lawyer for collecting the sum of N29 million from the woman for the sale of a four bedroom property located in Gwarimpa Estate in Abuja, in 2017, when he did not have the authority of the house owner to sell the said property, and for failing to make refund to the applicant since 2017, till last month when the verdict of the court was delivered.
A five-member panel led by Justice Ishaq Bello, a former Chief Judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and LPDC Chairman concluded that the action of Ugwuowo violated the rules guiding the practice of the legal protection and must be punished accordingly.
“We the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee hereby find the Respondent, EVERESTUS CHINEDU UGWUOWO, ESQ with Enrollment No. SCN042446, a legal practitioner whose name is on the Roll of Legal Practitioners liable of infamous conduct in the course of his practice as a legal practitioner as set out in the Application of the Applicant contrary to Rules 1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners, 2023 and punishable under Section 12(1) of the Legal Practitioners Act Cap. L11 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 (as amended).
“We are satisfied that the proper Order to make in the circumstances is to DIRECT as follows: That the Respondent, EVERESTUS CHINEDU UGWUOWO, ESQ. be and is hereby suspended from the Roll of Legal Practitioners and from engaging in the business of practicing law for a period of FIVE YEARS from the date of this DIRECTION.
“The Respondent, EVERESTUS CHINEDU UGWUOWBO, ESQ is also directed to refund the sum of N29 million only to the Applicant within 30 days from the date of this Direction.
“The Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court is hereby DIRECTED to effect the above Order and to make a notation of this DIRECTION against the name of the Respondent, on the Roll of Legal Practitioners.
“This Order shall forthwith be brought to the attention of the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court.
“We further order that NOTICE of this DIRECTION be immediately brought to the attention of the Respondent (the presence of the Respondent physically or electronically at the proceeding of this Committee where this DIRECTION is read shall be deemed to be sufficient personal service) and by publication in any edition of a daily newspaper and also by publication in the Federal Gazette as required by law.
“Copies of this Direction must also be served on the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) who will take steps to notify the General Council of the Bar, National Executive Committee and other organs of the NBA of the Direction of this Committee.
“We also DIRECT that the entire Judgment encompassing this Direction shall be brought to the attention of their lordships, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, President of the Court of Appeal, the Honourable Chief Judges of the High Court of the FCT, Federal High Court, the High Court of all other States of the Federation and National Industrial Court of Nigeria”, it added.
