By Dayo Benson & Oamen Areguamen

LAGOS – Constitutional lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay, SAN, has described lawyers who offer bribe to Judges on behalf of their clients as agent of corruption of judges, even as former Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Prof Yemi Osinbajo SAN, disagreed with Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Dahiru Musdapher, over plea bargain.

Both Sagay and Osinbajo spoke at the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Ikorodu Annual Law Week 2011 7th Chief Babatunde Olusola Benson SAN Annual Public Lecture entitled: “The Rule of Law: The Foundation are Shaking.

According to Sagay, “what I have observed is that lawyers lack courage to tell their clients when they have bad cases irrespective of the amount the clients may want to pay them, adding that rather, they go to court to seek adjourment and then compromised judges in the process, pointing out that lawyers who indulge in such act were “agents of corruption of judge.”

Osinbajo, who was the guest lecturer at the event, disagreed with the CJN who described plea bargain as another form of corruption, saying any authority given a power of discretion might misuse it.

He argued that high profile corruption cases had been resolved through plea bargain, pointing out that the question to ask was whether plea bargain was working.

On lawyers who brought frivolous applications to court, he said if there was a sanction of withdrawal of lawyer practising license in place, those who were fond of doing it would sit up.

Speaking on the same vein , Lagos State solicitor- general Mr. Lawal Pedro SAN, said lawyers who brought frivolous application to court should be sanctioned either by a statue prescribing punishment for such act or by the NBA .

Former secretary general of NBA Mr. Dele Adesina SAN, on his part described lawyers who give bribe to judges as the black sheep of the legal profession . He lamented that a lot of people now regarded lawyers as part of the problem in the judiciary rather than part of the solution.