34 lawyers fail integrity test for judges’ appointment

Thirty-four lawyers have been dropped from the process of being appointed judges to the Federal High Court of Nigeria after failing an integrity test introduced under new guidelines approved by the National Judicial Council (NJC).

The integrity test, endorsed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, is aimed at eliminating persons of doubtful character from being appointed as judicial officers.

The affected lawyers were among 62 applicants earlier shortlisted for the Federal High Court bench but were disqualified following petitions submitted against them during the screening.

Sources at the NJC disclosed that only 28 nominees who received a clean bill of health during the test would now appear before the council’s interview panel next month.

A source said the 62 applicants earlier passed the Computer-Based Test (CBT) conducted by the Federal High Court, after which their names were forwarded to the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).

In line with established procedures, the FJSC applied the integrity test policy by publishing the names of the 62 nominees on September 17, 2025, inviting members of the public to submit feedback on their integrity, reputation and suitability for judicial appointment.

One of the petitions alleged that a female nominee demanded and received bribes in the course of her official duties. The matter was referred to the Police Service Commission (PSC) for investigation. At the conclusion of its probe, the PSC reportedly established that the nominee demanded and received a bribe of N1m in relation to a court matter that passed through her office.

Based on findings from that petition and several others, the FJSC upheld only 28 nominations, forwarding their names to the NJC, while dropping the remaining 34 for failing the integrity test.

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