The Federal Government (FG) has backtracked on its earlier statement concerning the legal aspects of the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership signed with the United Kingdom on Tuesday, News About Nigeria reports.
This comes after Nigerians raised concerns about the perceived one-sided nature of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the UK.
Nigerian Minister for Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite, took to X (formerly Twitter) to issue a retraction, stating that there is no legal agreement allowing UK-licensed lawyers to practice in Nigeria.
She acknowledged the earlier report’s error and clarified that there is no such provision or agreement in the MoU.
Uzoka-Anite reiterated that Nigeria does not have a Mutual Recognition Agreement with the UK, adding that no commitment has been made under the MoU or elsewhere to allow UK-licensed lawyers to practice in Nigeria.
The minister acknowledged that the discussion on cross-jurisdictional practice between Nigeria and the United Kingdom is still ongoing among stakeholders within the legal practitioners’ community in Nigeria and that this was reflected in the MoU.
“As it currently stands, foreign licensed lawyers (including those licensed in the UK) cannot practise in Nigeria, as categorically stated in the MoU.
“We recognise that cross jurisdictional practice between Nigeria and the United Kingdom is still an ongoing conversation amongst relevant stakeholders within the legal practitioners community in Nigeria, and this was reflected in the MoU,” she said.
Earlier statements from the UK’s Department of Business and Trade and a tweet from Nigeria’s Minister of Trade and Investment had indicated that Nigeria was signing a deal to remove barriers preventing UK lawyers from practicing international law in Nigeria.
The Nigerian Bar Association condemned the purported agreement, describing the initial statement by the minister as “ridiculous, unpatriotic, and uninformed.”
