More than 4,000 law graduates from the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) have petitioned the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi SAN, over their exclusion from the 2025/2026 Nigerian Law School Bar Part II vocational training admission exercise.

The petition, signed by the group’s president, Adefowora Adedeji, and secretary-general, Samuel Udofia, describes the exclusion of over 4,150 qualified NOUN law graduates as “discrimination” and a violation of their constitutional rights.

The graduates stressed that the National Open University of Nigeria (Amendment) Act, 2018, recognised NOUN law degrees for professional legal training, enabling previous sets of NOUN graduates to gain admission into the Law School.

“We bring to your kind attention, Your Excellency, our rights to equal legal education have been jeopardised in the just-released Nigerian Law School 2025/2026 Bar Part II vocational training admission exercise, which excluded the NOUN law graduates from applying for the professional program of being trained in the Law School as barristers and solicitors of Nigeria this year,” the petition read.

The graduates argued that the exclusion contravenes Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom from discrimination and equal rights for all citizens. They highlighted that many of them have been waiting for more than five years to proceed to Bar Part II, with some already advanced in age, and others having died before fulfilling their professional aspirations.

“This has become a national crisis. Law graduates from other Nigerian universities are given the right of admission to the Nigerian Law School, while excluding us. This is against the constitutional principles of equality, fairness, and justice,” the petition added.

The petitioners proposed a practical solution, suggesting that at least 600 NOUN law graduates be distributed across the seven campuses of the Nigerian Law School to address the backlog. They noted that earlier sets of NOUN graduates admitted into the Law School had performed well, demonstrating competence and readiness for professional legal training.

The petition urged the Attorney General to impress upon the Council for Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School to take urgent steps to resolve the matter.

“We earnestly seek your intervention to impress upon the Council for Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School the urgent need to address our matter. Specifically, we are requesting an immediate admission action plan that will accommodate these over 4,000 graduates into Bar Part II within the shortest possible time,” it stated.

The graduates reinforced their request by citing relevant laws, including the National Open University of Nigeria (Amendment) Act, 2018, and the Legal Education (Consolidated, etc.) Act (Cap. L10, Laws of the Federation, 2004), which provides that law graduates from Nigerian universities are eligible for Nigerian Law School admission. They warned that continued exclusion would amount to discrimination and an infringement on their fundamental rights.

“Lastly, the commendable performance of the first NOUN law graduates admitted into the Nigerian Law School—who have distinguished themselves academically and in character—stands as clear evidence of our readiness and capacity,” the petition concluded.

The petition has now been submitted to the AGF for urgent intervention, as the graduates await action from the Council for Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School.(The Guardian)