NOUN Graduates Reject Law School Admission Discrimination, Petition AGF
THECONSCIENCE NG reports that 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 programme.
The petition, jointly 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 “discriminatory” and a violation of their constitutional rights.
According to the graduates, the National Open University of Nigeria (Amendment) Act, 2018, recognizes NOUN law degrees for professional legal training. They pointed out that previous cohorts of NOUN graduates have been admitted to the Nigerian Law School based on this provision.
In their words:
“We bring to your kind attention, Your Excellency, that our right to equal legal education has been jeopardized by the recently released Nigerian Law School 2025/2026 Bar Part II vocational training admission list, which entirely excludes NOUN law graduates from applying to be trained as barristers and solicitors of Nigeria.”
The graduates argue that this exclusion violates Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees freedom from discrimination and equal treatment under the law. They expressed concern that many among them have waited for over five years to proceed to Bar Part II training, with some already advanced in age and others having sadly passed away while waiting to fulfill their professional dreams.
“This has become a national crisis,” the petition stated. “Law graduates from other Nigerian universities are routinely admitted to the Nigerian Law School, while NOUN graduates are left out. This goes against the constitutional principles of equality, fairness, and justice.”
As a solution, the petitioners proposed that at least 600 NOUN law graduates be allocated across the seven campuses of the Nigerian Law School to help clear the backlog. They noted that earlier batches of NOUN graduates who were admitted had performed commendably, demonstrating both competence and readiness for the legal profession.
The petition called on the Attorney General to intervene by engaging the Council for Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School to urgently resolve the issue.
“We earnestly seek your intervention to ensure the Council for Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School develop an immediate admission action plan that accommodates these over 4,000 graduates into the Bar Part II programme within the shortest possible time,” it read.
To support their request, the petitioners cited relevant legal frameworks, including the NOUN (Amendment) Act, 2018 and the Legal Education (Consolidation, etc.) Act (Cap. L10, Laws of the Federation, 2004), which stipulate that law graduates from accredited Nigerian universities are eligible for Law School admission.
They warned that continued exclusion would amount to institutional discrimination and a breach of their fundamental rights.
The petition concluded by highlighting the impressive performance of previously admitted NOUN graduates, stating:
“The commendable academic and professional track record of the first set of NOUN law graduates admitted into the Nigerian Law School stands as clear evidence of our readiness and capacity for legal training.”
The petition has been formally submitted to the Attorney General, as the graduates now await decisive action from the relevant authorities.
