In business or even as part of life, there are bound to be misunderstanding and breach in some agreements which may be intentional or due to some unforseen and unavoidable factors. In such situations, the conflict may need the help of the law to get it resolved.
Atimes, people need to reach legal agreements when embarking on new business ventures or partnerships. And in such circumstances, parties need legal representation.
As a party in a matter, you have some obligations to the person representing you legally while your lawyer is also duty bound to serve you in some particular areas.
What your lawyer owes you as duty includes maintaining high code of ethics and professional conduct as provided in the Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC), created in 2007 which spells out lawyers’ duty to clients, the court, the profession and even to other lawyers.
A lawyer owes the client information; he must update you of developments in the case. He cannot make the client ignorant of what is happening and what steps are being taken. He must get their views on issues that are beyond the discretion of the lawyer.
Your lawyer must give you time and attention. He must deploy his expertise to get justice for his client and all his efforts in specific cases must be consistent with the best interest of the client.
Your lawyer must be truthful and tell you clearly what to expect and when the case is likely not going to be in your favour and advise you on the best step to take to settle such cases or the likelihood of mediation and out of court settlement
Also, your lawyer must attend all hearings if the case gets to court. Your lawyer must not take up your case if he’s not competent in that particular field.
Your lawyer must not encourage or support you as a client to engage in illegality just to win a case or make money. He must advise against illegality or fraud.
But lawyers are human and can consequently break the rules of engagement. When this happens and you can prove negligence, professional misconduct or other forms of malpractice, you can make a complaint to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) as it has a specific committee; Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC), to examine and determine any case where it is alleged that a lawyer has misbehaved in the course of duty and give appropriate sanctions.
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