"Remember the Hunter's Dog' By Adesina Ogunlana

Judges in a way, are like wine.

They come in different colours and bites. For some time now, I have been appearing regularly before His lordship, Mr. Justice Mufutau Olokkoba, of the Ikeja High Court, Lagos.

The Olokooba court has one important quality, that is not too common these days in so many other courts - wide intellectual ventilation. Unlike some judicial arenas, where the only wise head is the presiding judge and who declaims from an Olympian height of exclusive sagacity to an audience of dunces, the Olokooba court allows muscular, even vigorous mental jousting on legal issues and procedures between the bench and the bar. And, it is important to note that the honourable judge does not always win.
So it is safe to state that the Justice Olookoba court is a bar-friendly court. Occasionally however, the Judex sometime has cause to reprimand lawyers for one indiscretion or the other.
Last Tuesday, 6th October was one of such few days of reprimand. I hardly spent five minutes watching proceeding before I knew that a particular lawyer, had it coming to him.
The counsel’s statements and tone, and methinks, general countenance and comportment appeared to suggest a certain risible but subdued arrogance or an evasive insouciance.
The hearing in the matter at hard was almost over, when the counsel finally got the court’s goat. What happened was this the opposing counsel had suggested a date, to which suggestion, the counsel in question, retorted “but I have asked for a short date”.
The honourable Justice response went thus:-

“Oh so because you have asked for a short(er) date, you must get that date? Lawyers should refrain from conducting themselves or acting in a way that would belittle the courts; when a lawyer drags a judge down by telling his clients, “oh don’t mind the judge, he is this, he is that, he is only shooting himself in the leg. This is because when you lower the dignity of the judge, thinking that you are promoting yourself, you are actually lowering your own dignity.
It is like the case of the Hyena and the (hunter’s) dog. Any time the dog barks, the hyena would run away. Ordinarily the dog is food for the hyena, but the hyena runs because it believes that behind the dog is the hunter who can kill him.
But the dog keep asking him not to run away. He will say a lot of things about that the hunter is not even with him (the dog) or that the hunter does not always have his gun with him. Of course the dog is only harming himself, because the hunter is his protection.
If lawyers treat the court with courtesy and respect, who is that litigant that will misbehave to the court? When you see a lawyer bowing to the court or tip-toeing (so as not to make a noise with his shoes) there, the litigant cannot behave any how in court. But these days, you see lawyers, especially lady lawyers walking ka, ko, ka, ko in court.
In those days in my village, if you dare to cough one mile to the court house, even if you had tuberculosis, but things are changing now and it is not good.
Lawyers should know that they are the only professionals who are treated with so great respect by those who engage them. Yes you are the only professionals like that - people will pay you to do a job for them and they will still be prostrating for you. They are doing that because of their respect for the court, so you shouldn’t now rubbish the same court, because you’ll otherwise be shooting yourself in the foot.”

Happily the judge’s message was well received, as the lawyer in question immediately sober and repentant. Said he, “I apologise to the court and I am sorry if I had given the impression that I have no respect for the court. That is not the situation my lord. Indeed I hold the court in great esteem”
And, there, ladies and gentleman that was the end of the matter.