New Telegraph 
•Gender parity is not rebellion but an opportunity to rewrite history, says Akiyode-Afolabi
•I was encouraged by legal icons who made a difference in leadership, Lagos NBA branch chair
•‘Genuine inclusion demands influence, participation in decision-making, access to structural power’
Women are recording visible gains in Nigeria’s legal profession, with more female leaders emerging across the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and other key institutions.
But while these milestones signal progress, they also spotlight a deeper truth: representation alone does not dismantle the structures that keep power unequal. This report by ISIOMA MADIKE examines the current shift, what it means for the profession, and what reforms are still needed to make inclusion real and lasting.
The new faces of leadership
Some achievements are too significant to ignore. Across Nigeria’s legal sector, women are increasingly stepping into spaces historically dominated by men, not as symbols, but as leaders shaping decisions and setting agendas.
One of the most notable is Mrs Uchenna Akingbade, Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Lagos Branch, the first woman to hold the position.
Akingbade described her path to the top as difficult, but defining. According to her, women often hesitate to contest elections, not because they lack ambition, but because the barriers are often informal, entrenched, and discouraging.
“Many women would rather support their male counterparts,” she said. “But I was encouraged by legal icons like Dame Priscilla Kuye, who braved the odds to make a statement in areas historically dominated by men. She gave me strength.”
The power of role models
Akingbade said Dame Priscilla Kuye remains a strong example of what is possible. Kuye served as NBA President from 1991 to 1992, becoming the first and only woman to lead the association.
From National Financial Secretary and later Vice President, Kuye rose to the highest NBA office at a time when female leadership in the profession was rare. Akingbade said Kuye’s success helped her believe a woman could lead without apology.
Inside the Lagos NBA chairmanship Six months into her tenure, Akingbade said the role has been both rewarding and demanding. The hardest part, she noted, is managing competing interests within the branch while staying anchored to the association’s mandate.
That mandate includes promoting the rule of law and improving welfare for members. So far, she says the campaign has been met with broad support across genders, including encouragement from her husband and open backing from male colleagues.
She added that she has not felt treated differently because she is a woman. “To be honest, everybody has been very supportive,” she said. “I cannot point to a time when I felt I was treated differently because I am a woman.”
A broader shift across the NBA
Akingbade’s rise reflects a broader recalibration underway across the Nigerian Bar Association. Women are now chairpersons of several NBA branches across the country, including Sokoto, Port Harcourt and Jos, as well as Ota (Ogun State), Ikorodu (Lagos State), Barnawa (Kaduna State), and Idemili (Anambra State).
This marks a departure from previous years, when men overwhelmingly controlled leadership across the NBA’s 129 branches.
While the shift is increasingly visible, a consolidated national statistic is not currently available. Still, the trend reflects what the Institute for African Women in Law (IAWL) identifies as the profession’s deeper challenge: representation without sustained retention and progression into leadership.
In its multi-country study covering Nigeria, The Institute for African Women in Law (IAWL) cites structural and cultural constraints across the pipeline, including procedural hurdles linked to the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) pathway, sexual harassment and intimidation, unspoken gender bias, caregiving burdens, limited mentoring opportunities, and entrenched patriarchal workplace norms.
The study used mixed methods, including a nationwide survey of female lawyers that received 449 responses. Progress has also extended beyond branch chairperson roles.
In April 2025, a woman was inaugurated as Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Young Lawyers Forum (NBA-YLF), Jos Branch, reinforcing that the leadership pipeline is widening at multiple levels.
Breaking the ceiling beyond the Bar
The shift extends beyond the NBA. Dr Olugbemisola Odusote was recently appointed Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, having previously served as Deputy Director-General and Head of the Lagos Campus. She became the first woman to lead the institution since its establishment in 1962.
Her appointment underscores why leadership representation matters across justice institutions. The Institute for African Women in Law argues that the legal system plays a unique role in addressing gender-based discrimination, making it crucial for women to be represented not only as participants in the profession, but also in decision-making roles.
The report adds that women’s presence in legal leadership can help counteract both actual bias and perceptions of bias, while ensuring women’s priorities are reflected in decision-making processes aligned with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 5) on gender equality.
As Director-General, Odusote is expected to provide academic leadership, administrative management, and strategic direction across the Law School’s campuses, while serving as a key liaison with the Council of Legal Education, the Body of Benchers, and the NBA.
Women leading at the highest levels
FIDA Nigeria, the International Federation of Women Lawyers, noted that Akingbade’s early priorities include engaging state authorities to secure better remuneration and improved working conditions for lawyers in Lagos.
She has also been described as a leader with bold vision and integrity, committed to empowering more women in the profession. At the national level, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun was sworn in as the 23rd substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria on November 30, 2024, after serving in acting capacity from August 23, 2024.
Her tenure has reportedly emphasised account- ability, technology adoption, and reforms aimed at restoring public trust in the judiciary.
Former Chief Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar, who served from July 2012 to November 2014, remains one of the most prominent female figures in Nigeria’s judicial history. Her leadership is associated with internal reform efforts and judicial discipline.
The legacy of resistance
For many in the legal profession, Dame Priscilla Kuye’s tenure remains one of the most defining examples of courage and activism.
Her leadership was prominent during military rule and focused heavily on defending the rule of law. She notably led the Bar to Kuje Prison to secure the release of the “Kuje 5”, including Femi Falana (SAN), the late Dr Baba Omojola, the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), Olusegun Maiyegun, and the late Dr Beko Ransome-Kuti. She also challenged the detention of the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 election, Chief MKO Abiola.
Even after having her passport seized and being repeatedly invited to the Department of State Services (DSS), she continued to speak out.
Representation is not inclusion
Despite these milestones, many observers say inequality remains entrenched at the top levels of the profession. For them, the rise of a few women, however significant, does not mean the system has become equal.
Dr Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, who teaches International Human Rights Law at the University of Lagos, said token elections or symbolic appointments do not solve the deeper barriers in the legal profession.
These barriers include rigid work structures, gender stereotypes, and weak institutional support systems.
She noted that women remain underrepresented in senior positions across key courts, including the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, and High Courts. “It reduces role models and affects policy priorities,” she said.
“We need deliberate strategies that build leadership pipelines through sponsorship, mentorship, and business development training.”
She also called for policy reform across the judiciary and academia to ensure multiple qualified women are prepared for senior roles.
The pressure of culture and caregiving
Observers say the realities of legal practice also compound inequality. The profession often rewards long hours, constant accessibility, and aggressive competition.
For many women, these demands collide with expectations of caregiving. This gap, experts argue, sustains the idea of leadership as a male domain.
Akiyode-Afolabi said representation is only the beginning. Genuine inclusion, she insisted, requires influence, decision-making access, and structural power.
Institutions, she warned, too often celebrate “diversity” without dismantling systems that normalise exclusion.
What genuine inclusion requires
For Akiyode-Afolabi, the path for- ward must include changes in culture and policy. She called for gender-responsive recruitment, promotion, retention, and leadership systems.
She urged institutions to adopt transparent promotion mechanisms and gender-balanced boards, while taking practical action against discrimination and unconscious bias.
She recommended flexible work systems such as remote work and adaptable hours in faculties of law and the judiciary.
She also called for paid maternity top-ups, phased re-entry policies, and stronger paternity leave adoption to normalise male caregiving and reduce the unequal burden on women.
Male allies and power shifts
Colleagues across the legal profession, including men, have expressed support for stronger women’s leadership. Lagos human rights lawyer and founder of Mission Against Injustice in Nigeria (MAIN), Ige Asemudara, said women must have their fair share of leadership on the basis of equality.
He urged women to work hard, participate in leadership politics, and build strong academic, professional, and financial capacity.
“We must appreciate that society is coming from a patriarchal history,” he said, adding that transformation will take time and deliberate effort.
Akiyode-Afolabi also argued that male allies are essential to reform. In her view, men must recognise that gender equality is not rebellion but a chance to rewrite history and rebuild norms that treat women as subordinate.
Rethinking legal workplace culture
Even with high female enrolment in law schools, women remain underrepresented in senior leadership. Akingbade said workplace culture must shift from a “sink or swim” mentality to one that supports different working styles.
She said long-hour models often penalise women, especially those with caregiving responsibilities.
She urged firms to prioritise efficiency and results rather than time spent. She also called for flexible work arrangements, mentorship, and sponsorship programmes that enable high-potential women to rise.
Akingbade emphasised the importance of normalising parental leave for men, arguing that culture shifts only happen when shared responsibility becomes visible.
“The focus should not be on changing women to fit a male-dominated model,” she said. “It should be on changing policies that keep inequality in place.”
This piece was produced as part of the Difference She Makes: Voice and Verdict Fellowship, a journalism initiative that brings forward country stories investigating, interrogating, and reflecting solutions for women’s leadership in law.
