The Nigerian
Bar Association, NBA, Africa’s largest body of lawyers with over 100,000
members, will be holding its 59th,Annual General Conference scheduled
to hold from August 23rd – 29th, 2019, at the Eko Hotel
& Convention Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The Conference, which is one of Africa’s largest gathering of
lawyers will have the theme; FACING THE FUTURE, a theme that is most relevant
at this point in the history of our country, the Bar and Bench .
World leaders, citizens
and institutions worldwide are concerned about what the future holds. The
rapidity of innovations and change in the political, business and professional
space is perhaps more pronounced in our generation than ever before.
 Nations worry, not about the inevitability of change, but about the
capacity to predict, navigate and transform institutions to positively manage
the present and future in a way that nourishes sustainable growth in wealth
generation, freedoms, peace and security.

According to the Technical Committee for Conference Planning (TCCP). “One of the challenges facing the
legal profession today is not just the effect of globalisation and technology
but also its attendant disruption in almost every fibre of the society.
Artificial intelligence, block chain, financial technology, cloud computing and
electronic documentation are a few of the technologies that have directly
impacted and would continue to impact the manufacturing and services sector
including legal and justice sub-sectors. The legal practitioner’s task
therefore, while appreciating the inevitability of the disruption, is to
anticipate the depth of its impact and understand the need for strategic
retooling in order to explore the opportunities inherent in the disruption.”

The Conference
seeks to stir up conversation about our future as Legal Practitioners viz-a-viz
emerging global trends and local realities as well as ensure lawyers
individually discover the path to navigate the unforeseen future of legal
practice. Also the Paul Usoro, SAN led NBA administration has introduced several
dynamic innovations to this conference aimed at ensuring capacity building for lawyers
and making it the best NBA conference ever for delegates.

The List of
innovations introduced by the NBA President to ensure the coming NBA Conference
is different from the norm include –

1.      Appointing some of the best minds into the
Technical Committee for Conference Planning (TCCP)
The
Chairman of the TCCP is Gbenga Oyebode, MFR, Chairman Management Board at Aluko
& Oyebode and most certainly one of Nigeria’s most prominent lawyers. The
Co – Chairman is Olumide Akpata, Partner at Templars and also past Chair of the
Nigerian Bar Association’s Section on Business Law.  Others include the Chair persons of the NBA
Sections – Mr. Seni Adio SAN, Chairman NBA SBL; Mrs. Miannaya Essien SAN, Chairperson,
NBA SPL; Dr. Paul Annanaba, SAN, the Chairman SPIDEL and Professor Kanyinsola
Ajayi of Olaniwun Ajayi & Co.

2.     Sessions are driven by the various NBA
Specialist Committees

During
previous NBA Annual General Conferences, general interest issues drove the
sessions, however, the 59th #NBAAGC is driven by over 40 NBA
Specialist Committees including the Committees on –

         
Energy, Natural Resources & Environment

         
Intellectual Property

         
Law and Individual Rights

– Civil Litigation/ Professional Development

         
Economic Development

         
Corporate Counsel

         
International Trade Law

  Law Firm Management and Professional Development

         
Accountability and Governance  

The aim of
allowing Committees drive the sessions is to ensure that lawyers who attend the
sessions are able to learn new things and actually develop their legal skills.

3.     Structured after the IBA Conference

The NBA AGC
2019 is moduled after the IBA Conference, the International Bar Association is
the global voice of the
legal profession

and is the foremost organisation for international
legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies.
The IBA Annual Conference
serves to
advance the development of law and its role in business and society and to
learn from the experience of others.

4.      Most number
of Past NBA Presidents playing active roles

This NBA AGC 2019 will
have the most number of past NBA Presidents playing active roles at the
conference. Mr. J. B Daudu, SAN will chair the session on the Code of Conduct Tribunal:
A Clash of Judicial and Executive Powers; Mr. Austin Alegeh will chair the
session on Trade in Legal Services: Current Realities and Future Possibilities
and other past NBA Presidents playing active roles include Chief Bayo Ojo, SAN,
Mr. A. B Mahmud, SAN Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN and Mrs Priscilla Kuye.

5.     Introducing dynamic discussion topics

The TCCP has introduced several
dynamic and highly debated topics into the sessions scheduled to hold during
the NBA AGC including topics on social media culture; incursion of Multi –
Disciplinary firms; Brexit and African Trade; Challenges of Democracy in
Nigeria, Bullying and Sexual Harassment in the Legal Community, 10 Things No
One Knew At Law School, Space the Final Frontier, Medical Negligence and the
Rule of Law to mention a few.

About 12,000 Lawyers will
be converging at the 2019 NBA AGC and it promises to be one of the best
conferences ever.

@Legalnaija