When looking for a lawyer in Nigeria to assist you with your legal issues, you'll notice that there are several types of lawyers who specialise in addressing specific matters. Because the legal area is so complex, not all lawyers are competent in dealing with a specific legal matter. Some lawyers specialise in a particular area of law, while others do not.
Different Types of lawyers in Nigeria
There are various types of lawyers and the practice of law is a fairly broad discipline. However, it is worth noting that once a lawyer is qualified to practise law in Nigeria, there are no constraints on the subject of law in which he or she can specialise. So lawyers in Nigeria can choose whatever areas they want to practise in.
Recently, there has been a trend in Nigeria of lawyers deciding to specialise in specific areas of law. This is pretty encouraging because one of the advantages of specialising in a specific subject is that it leads to significantly better knowledge.
The following are a few areas of law in which Nigerian lawyers have begun to specialise:
Debt Recovery Lawyers
Lawyers who mainly work on debt collection in Nigeria fall under this category. A debt collection lawyer can represent you as either a creditor or a debtor. He can assist you in devising tactics to recover the money you have loaned out or to shield yourself from overzealous creditors, and he can also handle the paperwork for you or represent you in court.
This is mostly in relation to financial debts, and the services of this type of lawyer are typically used by banks to recover money due by delinquent debtors. These lawyers are paid on a contingency basis based on the amount of money they are able to perform debt collection in Nigeria and get the money back from debtors for the clients.
Corporate Lawyer
The job of this type of lawyer is to ensure that commercial deals are legally binding such as company incorporation in Nigeria. They inform corporations and corporate officers of their duties/responsibilities and legal rights.
In order to do so, they must be familiar with aspects of contract law, tax law, accounting, securities law, bankruptcy, intellectual property rights, licencing, zoning laws, and the law specific to the business of the corporations for which they work. This type of lawyer also deals with company incorporation and regulatory issues, as well as primarily focusing on obtaining permits, licences, registrations, and so on.
Real Estate Lawyers
Lawyers in Nigeria are always open to this form of law. This is due to the fact that it is mostly uncomplicated, and lawyers are required for property purchases. And, as is well known, any transaction requiring the transfer of interest, such as land/property, necessitates the use of a lawyer.
Lawyers in this jurisdiction charge a percentage of the transaction's value as their fee. Any type of lawyer, regardless of specialization, can be involved in this area of practice.
Employment Lawyers
Lawyers in Nigeria specialising in Labour and Employment Law in Nigeria are involved in issues such as non-payment of salaries, harassment, unjust dismissal at work, and so on.
Because the National Industrial Court has exclusive jurisdiction over employment-related cases, employment lawyers are well acquainted with its procedures.
Transactional Lawyers
These lawyers advise individuals and organisations on legal difficulties arising from their business dealings such as debt collection in Nigeria or company incorporation in Nigeria. Many transactional attorneys prefer this type of employment because it is less combative than litigation.
Lawyers in Nigeria that specialise in this field typically work for large commercial law firms. They work on issues such as Public-Private Partnerships, Project Finance, Mergers and Acquisitions, and so on. They mostly collaborate with other multinational legal firms.
This is a very lucrative field of specialisation for these lawyers. It's also difficult to break into because the clients are large conglomerates, foreign banks, and investment banks.
The Bottom Line
Based on the information presented above, it is evident that there are several sorts of lawyers available in the legal market. As a result, if you require legal assistance in dealing with a problem, it is always a good idea to select a good lawyer who specialises in the field of law in question. By doing so, you can have peace of mind knowing that someone is willing to use their knowledge, skills, and expertise to help you avoid legal issues. We at Kafui & Partners have expert lawyers in Nigeria who deal in various fields according to their respective domains.
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