The Body of Benchers has admitted 6,009 new legal practitioners to the Nigerian Bar, with The Guardian’s Law Editor, Joseph Onyekwere, and former President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Engr. Adekunle Olumuyiwa Mokuolu, among those formally called to the Bar.

The four-day July 2026 Call to Bar ceremony commenced on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, at the Body of Benchers Complex in Abuja and will conclude on Friday, July 10, marking the formal enrolment of the successful candidates as Barristers and Solicitors of the Supreme Court of Nigeria after completing their legal education at the Nigerian Law School.

Among the notable inductees is Mokuolu, a distinguished engineer and infrastructure expert whose transition into the legal profession follows a remarkable career spanning engineering, infrastructure development and public policy.

Before pursuing law, Mokuolu served as President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) from 2018 to 2019 and was a member of the Governing Board of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI).

He also served on several national policy committees, including the Vision 20:2020 Central Working Group on Physical Infrastructure, the Ministerial Committee on the Implementation of Executive Order 5, and the Nigerian Economic Summit Group’s Infrastructure Policy Commission.

Mokuolu is the founder of the Engineering Infrastructure Development Initiative (EIDI), a non-governmental organisation dedicated to promoting infrastructure development, and has chaired several government technical committees, including the Ogun State Committee on the Review of Contracts and Projects awarded between 2009 and 2019.

Also among the newly enrolled lawyers was The Guardian’s Law Editor, Joseph Onyekwere, who joins the legal profession after years of distinguished journalism covering the nation’s judiciary, legal affairs and the administration of justice.

The chairman of body of benchers ( BoB) Olorogun Albert Akpomudje, SAN, charged the new wigs to follow the roles of professional conduct and embrace mentorship.

He also charged the new lawyers to shun get rich syndrome and embrace diligent and hard work as a route to success.

Earlier, the Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, Dr. Olugbemisola Titilayo Odusote presented the results of the December 2025 Bar Final Examinations, revealing that 7,601 candidates sat for the examinations.

According to the breakdown, 212 candidates graduated with First Class Honours, 1,216 obtained Second Class Upper Division, 2,958 earned Second Class Lower Division, while 1,617 graduated with a Pass.

She explained that the 6,009 lawyers called to the Bar comprise 6,000 successful candidates from the December 2025 Bar Final Examinations, two backlog candidates from the February 2025 Bar Finals, and seven candidates from previous Call to Bar exercises.

The Nigerian Law School assured the Body of Benchers that it would continue to uphold the ethics, standards and integrity of the legal profession through rigorous legal education and professional training.