Are we measuring excellence in the Nigerian legal profession too narrowly? I read an article titled “The SAN Title Needs Reform: Time for an Honorary Track” by Stephen Kola-Balogun, and it got me thinking. Every year, we celebrate lawyers elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria. Rightly so. It is a prestigious recognition, and those who earn it deserve their flowers. But I have a question. Can a lawyer transform an entire industry, structure billion-naira transactions, influence government policy, build institutions, shape legal education, or redefine how businesses operate and still be considered less accomplished because their work does not revolve around courtroom advocacy? Think about it. A lawyer who spends decades defending clients in court makes a valuable contribution to the justice system. So does the lawyer who helps a company avoid a dispute through sound legal advice, structures an investment that creates hundreds of jobs, or develops legal frameworks that influence an entire sector. One contribution may be visible in a courtroom. The other may never make the news. But both can have far-reaching consequences. This is where I find the conversation about the SAN rank particularly interesting. We often tell young lawyers that there is more to law than litigation. We encourage them to explore corporate practice, technology, finance, intellectual property, academia, policy and other emerging areas. Yet, if our highest professional recognition is perceived as being largely accessible through one career path, what message are we inadvertently sending about the value of other forms of legal excellence? Are we encouraging diverse legal careers while maintaining a system that appears to rank them differently? To be clear, I am not suggesting that the standards for becoming a SAN should be lowered. If anything, the standards should remain rigorous. My argument is that the criteria for recognising excellence should evolve alongside the profession itself. Perhaps the conversation should not simply be about creating an honorary title. It should be about developing credible, transparent and equally demanding pathways for recognising exceptional contributions across different areas of legal practice. Because the ultimate purpose of legal excellence should not be to accumulate titles. It should be to make a meaningful contribution to justice, business, society and the development of the profession. A title should recognise excellence, not inadvertently define its boundaries. And perhaps the question we should be asking is this: If a lawyer can spend 30 years transforming the legal profession outside the courtroom but has no realistic pathway to its highest rank, is the problem with the lawyer’s career choice or with how we define professional excellence? #NigerianLaw #SAN #LegalProfession #FutureOfLaw