HE loves what he does with passion and that is evident in his regular appearance in courts.At 87, Prince Olayimika Oye Sobodu still wears the wig and gown, sauntering the corridors of courts with his briefcase in hand. Yet, with a close observation, it is obvious that age has definitely slowed down this quintessential octogenarian law practitioner. But for him, there is no retirement until it is finally over.Sobodu, who celebrated his birthday on December 12, does not hide his love for the law profession. According to him, the interest to study law began at quite a young age when he was still in secondary school.'In fact, the thought of becoming a lawyer came to me when I was still in secondary school. I was in Baptist Boys' High School, Abeokuta in January 1940 and left on December 15, 1944. Olusegun Obasanjo and Prince Bola Ajibola and the late Moshood Abiola left the school eleven years after I had left. These people left in 1955/56. So you can imagine the difference', he stated.But then, those were still thoughts until he began to work as a court clerk and observed very closely the allure of legal practice from the finest of lawyers at that time.And fate has a way of bringing to fruition our heart desires. So it was that Sobodu eventually found himself working as a judicial clerk on February 13, 1945 immediately he left secondary school. His first place of posting was at the Botanical Gardens- the Magistrate's Court at Ebute Metta. When the urge to study law became too much for him, he resigned on November 3, 1954 at the then Supreme Court, Ibadan in order to fulfill his lifetime dream. The present High Courts were known as Supreme Courts then.His words: 'I was inspired by Sir Adetokunbo Ademola whom I was working with at that time. Ademola was a High Court judge then. Later, when I went to England for my law study, he was made the Chief Justice of Nigeria but all the while, he encouraged me to go for law.'He was called to Bar, to the English Bar, the middle temple on July 12, 1960. He practiced for almost 18 months before he came back to Nigeria and got enrolled in Nigeria in November 1961 and since then, he has been in private legal practice.He had his professional tutelage in Nigeria at the Chambers of Olujide Somolu, who later became a Justice at 68, Strechan Street, Ebute Metta, Lagos.'I was the only one managing the chambers to the extent that it began to arouse jealousy from other senior colleagues because I was young. But before I went for law, I was already in the judiciary as I earlier said. So that gave me some advantage to the extent that I knew everything about the courts and the judiciary system.'Justice Somolu was appointed a Judge when I just returned from England to join the chambers. According to what he told me, he also heard the announcement of his name on his way to the Ilaro High Court. It is not like now when people go and lobby to be appointed as judge. He said that as soon as he heard the announcement, he handed his brief over to another lawyer because once you were announced as judge, you could no longer appear in court to bow before another judge. It was about two or three weeks after his appointment that I joined the chambers. I met two lawyers there but they did not stay long afterwards,' he disclosed.Sobodu stated that at that time that he was in Somolu's chambers, there were a few lawyers and people who patronized lawyers based on proximity to their residence. He said: 'I inherited the goodwill of Justice Somolu. So that made me to have plenty of work to do. From the time I joined the chambers, I can recall that it was not up to 10 cases that I lost.'In the past 50 years, I have handled over 10,000 cases ranging from the High Courts, Appeal Courts and the Supreme Court. And if I have done such number of cases with minimal losses, then I can thank my God with all sense of humility that I am successful.'In 1963, he set up his own chambers at No. 7, Apapa Road, Ebute Metta, very near the Botanical Garden's Magistrate's Court. Later, he relocated to No. 27, Martins Street, Lagos.In 1972, he left that place to his present location now at Tejuosho Street, Surulere.He recalled with emotion, a matter he handled that later involved him appealing against a judge's decision.'I was the lawyer in the case I stood in for my client. But when it came to matter of payment of fees, I had agreed with my client's children because my client died before the case ended. I had agreed with my client's children that a particular amount would be paid to me. So after the case, the judge now said, look Mr. Sobodu; you have to cut your fee into half because some of the children of your late client are not comfortable with it. I said well, that is their own palaver because it was a signed agreement. However, the judge went on his own to cut the fees into half and I went on appeal. Justice Mustapha Akanbi, Justice Olayinka Ayoola and Justice Moronkeji Onalaja gave judgment in my favour. 'According to him, the opportunity to become a judge had also beckoned but he refused to accept it.When the late Justice Olajide Olatawura was to be appointed a judge, Justice Adetokunbo Ademola called me and asked who was senior between meand Olatawura. I said I was the senior. He told me that no matter the pressure that might be mounted on him, he would not agree, that I should take up my seniority. I told him that I did not like to be a judge because I learnt from his own experience what Judges went through.'There was a time he left Ibadan to Abeokuta to see his late father and an ordinary staffer in the administration department queried why he left without taking permission from him. So I said within me that I could not withstand that insult.Adetokunbo laughed and asked: 'Is that all' And I said, yes that I didn't want any junior officer to query me.'He disclosed that before he left to study law, he was a senior to Olatawura in the office as a clerk. 'So I said to myself that I didn't want to be at loggerhead with somebody who was my junior earlier. And up till the time that Olatawura died, he used to call me Oga. There was a day he nearly embarrassed me. That day, some of his colleagues in the Supreme Court were there and I greeted them and he said 'Oga' and one of his colleagues turned back and asked why he was calling me Oga' He replied that I was his senior as a clerk and that by virtue of that, I was his Oga, no matter what position he might have attained. So my decision not to take the position of judge from him that time made me happy,' he said.For the position of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Sobodu said he didn't think it was necessary to get it.'I don't envy that position because whatever they are able to do, I think I also earn my own living.Right now, I can't be traveling to Abuja and opening offices here and there.As a Senior Advocate, you have to open up offices in different locations were processes could be filed. My assessment is that that position has been abused right now. I believe that most of the Senior Advocates have abridged that position.'Look at the election cases! Lawyers charge millions of naira and that is against our code of conduct. The code says that you must not charge fees that are not commensurate with your service. Some of them come to court with 10 to12 juniors just to create the impression that 'for your case, I have engaged all these juniors whereas they don't pay them commensurate fees.' Some of them have even contravened our Code of Conduct', he stated.He advised younger lawyers to embrace hardwork as a matter of priority and equally join chambers of experienced lawyers for their tutelage because, according to him, most of the junior lawyers believe that they can start off like that. He stated that the situation where lawyers leave school to start off chambers without gathering experience for a period of time, is telling on the profession.According to him, this situation is the reason some of them speak bad grammar at the courts. His words: 'When a case is completed and some monetary compensation is awarded, those kind of lawyers would be saying; 'I ask for cost'. There is nothing like that in the legal term because that will include the money you used to file the summons, the money you used to invite your witnesses and compensation, for the energy you used to prosecute the case. That is why it was known as costs, not cost. Also, some of the young lawyers ' I don't know whether they take it from their seniors, usually say 'counsels'. There is no plural for counsel. If they are hundred lawyers, they are counsel.'Also, judges and magistrates are also making the mistake in some of the words they use. They say: 'discharged and acquitted'. But it should be acquitted because you first acquit some body of the guilt of the offence before you discharge him not to come back. When you have discharged somebody, it means that he is free to go, so what are you acquitting him off again'' he queried, adding that such amounts to paradox.He also picked holes with some of the legal terms in use today. He said: 'The latest introduction to our criminal prosecution where they say 'plea bargaining' is abnormal, there is nothing like that in our criminal system. I am glad that the Chief Justice of Nigeria has condemned it.'He told the Guardian that the secret of his good health at his present age 'is the eating of fruits, vegetables, waters and regular exercise.He was born on December 12,1924 in Ipewu to the royal family of the late Samuel Olanipekun Sobodu, a chief clerk of the Native Court and the late Adeola Sobodu. His father, the late Pa Sobodu was before his appointment a native chief clerk and a clerk in John Holt Plc. His father graduated from the Kings College in 1918.Sobodu attended St James' Anglican primary School, Ipewu, near Sagamu and left in December 1939 before proceeding to the Baptist School.'When I was in Baptist Boys' High School between 1940 and 1944, I led my class. I was always first in the class. I can still recall some of my colleagues. There is one Samuel Ojo Babalola, he is now at Ibadan. Some of my senior colleagues in the school are Liba Name who was in Daily Times and Chief Kehinde Sofola. These people were one year senior to me', he said.Sobodu attended the University College London and the Inns of Court, Lincoln.His hobbies include football, reading of religious or legal books as well as Newspapers. He is a devout member of the Anglican Communion.He got married in 1950 and has five surviving children including a lawyer, a medical doctor, an accountant and a practising nurse.
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