Proceedings at a Magistrate Court in Port Harcourt were briefly disrupted on Thursday, March 11, 2026, after the court discovered that a lawyer who reportedly died in December 2025 had been recorded as appearing before it earlier this year to handle a case.
The incident came to light when a matter was called for hearing and the lawyer representing the litigant failed to appear in court.
Upon inquiry, the litigant informed the court that his lawyer had died in December, 2025.
The revelation left the presiding Senior Magistrate, Kingsley Briggs, visibly surprised, prompting him to review the court’s record book.
The records, however, indicated that the same lawyer had appeared before the court during proceedings on February 10, 2026, to represent the litigant in the matter.
Addressing the litigant, Magistrate Briggs recalled that the court had considered issuing a bench warrant against him during the February sitting due to his absence.
He explained that the warrant was not issued after the lawyer pleaded that his client was ill and required medical attention.
Based on that submission, the court granted an adjournment and fixed the case for March 11, 2026.
To clarify the situation, the Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Emmanuel John, Port Harcourt Branch, who was present in court, suggested contacting the deceased lawyer’s family.
A relative, who was subsequently reached confirmed that the lawyer had indeed passed away in December 2025.
The family member further disclosed that the lawyer was allegedly strangled in his apartment in Oyigbo, Rivers State, last December, adding that the police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding his death.
It was also gathered from the NBA Vice Chairman that a photograph of the deceased lawyer was presented to the litigant, the court clerk and the presiding magistrate for identification.
All three individuals confirmed that the lawyer in the photograph was the same person they had referred to during the earlier proceedings.
The development left the court seeking further clarification on how the late lawyer’s name came to be recorded as present during the February proceedings.
