New legal year: Bishop urges judges, lawyers to uphold fairness
Judiciary
AN Anglican bishop has urged judges and lawyers to uphold integrity, fairness and accountability, saying their offices are trusts requiring faithfulness and responsible service.
Bishop of the Diocese of Lagos West, Right Rev. James Odedeji, gave the charge on Monday at the 2026/2027 New Legal Year Special Service for the Lagos State Judiciary.
Odedeji delivered the sermon, titled “Faithfulness,” at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Marina, Lagos, taking his text from 1 Corinthians 4:2, which requires stewards to remain faithful.
He said judicial and legal offices were positions of trust that should not be treated as personal possessions, while urging practitioners to remain conscious of their responsibilities.
He said the commencement of a new legal year provided an opportunity for members of the judiciary and legal profession to reflect on responsibilities attached to their offices.
According to him, judges and lawyers must look beyond their wigs and gowns and remain conscious of decisions’ impact on lives, liberty, property and reputations of citizens.
“We are stewards and not owners. Whatever position the Lord has given to us is borrowed,” he said.
He said office holders remained custodians of the responsibilities entrusted to them, rather than owners of the positions they occupied.
The bishop cited the biblical account of a young man who lost the head of a borrowed axe in the River Jordan, saying it illustrated responsible stewardship.
He also quoted John 3:27, which states that “a man can receive nothing except it is given to him from God.”
Odedeji said judicial office, legal briefs and clients’ confidence were trusts demanding faithfulness, adding that decisions made during the legal year could affect lives, liberty and property.
“A judicial office is a trust. A brief entrusted to a lawyer is a trust. The confidence of a client is a trust,” he said.
He said the liberty, property, reputation and sometimes life of another person were influenced by decisions made within the legal year, adding that higher office carried greater responsibility.
The bishop cautioned against allowing authority to become an instrument of domination, saying people occupying positions of power must treat others with dignity and humility.
He urged judges and lawyers to remember that there was a higher authority before whom everyone would ultimately be accountable, regardless of position or professional standing.
“There is a judge above every judge, there’s an authority above every authority, there is a court from which no appeal is possible,” he said.
Odedeji said that unlike human courts, God could not be manipulated, intimidated, bribed or deceived by eloquence or technicalities.
He urged practitioners to maintain integrity in their duties and warned against compromising it in pursuit of favourable outcomes.
“A person may win a case and still lose his integrity. A person may obtain judgment in his favour and still stand condemned in his own conscience,” he said.
The bishop called for impartiality in justice administration, warning against systems where justice was determined by wealth, status or influence, rather than fairness and the law.
Citing Leviticus 19:15, he urged legal professionals not to oppress the poor or favour the wealthy, but to administer justice fairly and without discrimination at all times.
He said, “Justice must not be sold. Justice must not be distorted. Justice must not depend on status. Justice must not become available to those who can afford it.”
Odedeji also urged lawyers to combine professional competence with good character, saying their reputation and legacy would outlive their time in office.
He said, “A powerful advocate without conscience can turn the law into instruments of oppression. Therefore, let your competence be impressive, but let your character be unquestionable.”
He urged members of the judiciary and legal profession not to measure success solely by positions attained, but by faithfulness in discharging their responsibilities.
Odedeji concluded by urging judges and lawyers to remain humble and conscious of their ultimate accountability to God, regardless of the authority entrusted to them.
He said, “Your office is a trust, your authority is an assignment, your position is temporary, your decisions have consequences, your character matters, your conscience matters, and your ultimate accountability is to God.”
He urged them not to become so familiar with the law that they lose reverence for justice, or so occupied judging others that they forget they too will be judged.
The Chief Imam of Lagos Central Mosque, Sheikh Sulaiman Abu-Nolla, urged judges, magistrates, lawyers and public officials to make justice, fairness and accountability foundations of their responsibilities.
He spoke while presiding over the new legal year service for Muslim lawyers and judges at the central mosque, urging practitioners to renew their commitment to justice.
He warned against allowing personal relationships, wealth, social status, religion or political connections to influence the administration of justice, saying citizens deserved equal and fair treatment.
The Deputy Governor, Mr Obafemi Hamzat, said the state government had pledged continued support for the judiciary to improve access to justice and strengthen the justice system.
Hamzat was represented by the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Lawal Pedro (SAN), who delivered the deputy governor’s remarks at the event.
The deputy governor said an effective justice system was essential to sustaining the rule of law, protecting rights and supporting Lagos State’s economic development.
He said the government would continue to invest in justice-sector infrastructure, professional development and measures aimed at expanding access to justice for residents across Lagos State.
He identified delays in case disposal as a major area requiring continued attention, saying an efficient justice system required cooperation among all relevant stakeholders.
According to him, responsibility for an efficient justice system extended beyond the judiciary to the executive, legislature, legal profession and the public, requiring collective commitment.
He said every justice-sector reform must ultimately protect rights, resolve disputes and strengthen public confidence in the justice system, while ensuring citizens receive timely and effective remedies.
The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, called for greater public understanding of the law, including indigenous languages for explaining legal processes.
Obasa said the judiciary remained critical to society’s stability and development, urging the arms of government to work together to ensure transparent and understandable justice processes.
The Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Kazeem Alogba, pledged that judges and magistrates would continue upholding the rule of law and discharging their responsibilities diligently.
Alogba urged lawyers and members of the public to channel complaints against judicial officers through appropriate procedures, while encouraging constructive criticism to improve the justice system.
He called for greater cooperation between the Bench and the Bar, saying both remained key participants in the administration of justice and should work together.
NAN
A.I
Sept. 21, 2026
Tags: Right Rev. James Odedeji