Lagos CJ swears in Nwadioke, others as notary public

The Chief Judge (CJ) of Lagos State, Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade has sworn in the Publicity Secretary of the Lagos branch of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Mr. Emeka Nwadioke as a Notary Public of Nigeria.

Also sworn in was the former associate of The Guardian, Mr. Gbolahan Gbadamosi and other lawyers.The appointment was made pursuant to the Notaries Public Act Cap. N141, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and is one of the coveted ranks in the legal profession.

Only senior lawyers who have been admitted to the Nigerian Bar for at least seven years prior to the day of appointment and who scale through the very rigorous screening process to test their professional ability and integrity are appointed as Notary Public.

Each applicant must also be vouched for by several judges of the High Court of the state, where he/she practices to be successful. Notaries public are by law deemed as officers of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. In many countries of the world, a document can only be accepted internationally if it has been notarized or formally authenticated and its genuineness and value verified and certified by a Notary Public.

While the appointment was made by former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mahmud Mohammed (GCON) through an instrument under his hand dated August 9, 2016, Nwadioke and others were last Thursday sworn-in on behalf of the CJN by the Lagos CJ, Justice Atilade.

Nwadioke, who was also a former associate of The Guardian has an upper honours degree in Mass Communications from then Anambra State University of Technology, Enugu and an MBA from the University of Lagos. He also obtained Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws degrees from the University of Lagos.

Apart from being the publicist of the Lagos branch of the NBA, Nwadioke, a publisher, is currently the spokesman of the Otu Oka-Iwu (Law Society), an umbrella body of lawyers of Igbo extraction.