Eminent Nigerian lawyers have continued to pay tribute to the late former Chief Justice of Nigeria(CJN), Justice Mohammed Lawal Uwais who died in the early hours of Friday, June 6, 2026 at the age of 89.
One of the early persons to pay tribute is human rights lawyer and former President, Nigerian Bar Association(NBA), Dr Olisa Agbakoba SAN. Others include human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa SAN, Abiodun Owonikoko SAN, and anti corruption lawyer and law teacher, Dr Wahab Shittu SAN.
He once returned N5 billion to the Federal Government, excess from the judiciary budget – Agbakoba
My Lord Justice Muhammed Lawal Uwais was a gentleman par excellence!!!He came to the Supreme Court at a very early age and became one of the longest serving Justices of the Supreme Court and finally translated as Chief Justice of the Federation. He was a member of the old school of Supreme Court Justices and in very good company with Aniagolu Eso Idigbe Obaseki Nnamani Oputa JJSC etc. CJN Uwais was known for his extreme frugality and accountability with Judicial Funds , once returning 5 Billion Naira to the Federal coffers. It was my great honour to appear before him and his passing is a great loss. I express my deepest condolences to Mrs Maryam Uwais and all of the Family on the loss of the CJN. May his memory be a blessing as his Lordship rests eternally.
Federal Government should implement Uwais Report on reform of INEC – Adegboruwa
I join all Nigerians and the world to celebrate the life and times of one of Nigeria’s foremost jurists, Honourable Justice Muhammad Lawal Uwais, former Chief Justice of Nigeria. My Lord was called to the Bar by the Middle Temple, London, in 1963 after graduating from the University of London. He served as a State Counsel and Senior State Counsel (1966-1970), before his appointment as a Judge of the High Court, and later Chief Judge, of Kaduna State (1973-1976). In 1977, he was appointed a Justice of the Court of Appeal, and in 1979 as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. In 1995, he was appointed Chief Justice of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council.
Justice Uwais has served as Chairman, Nigerian Body of Benchers (1993-1994), and as Chairman, Board of Governors of the National Judicial Institute of Nigeria (1995- 2006). He was Chairman of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the Awards of Contracts by the Military Government of North Central State (1976); Chairman of the Jimeta Disturbances Tribunal, Gongola State of Nigeria (1984); and a Commonwealth Member of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the deaths of senior army personnel, Sri Lanka (1993).
He was the Honorary President of the World Jurist Association, Washington D.C; Honorary Fellow of the Society for Advanced Legal Studies, London; and a Member of the Board of Trustees, Global Legal Information Network Foundation (GLIN), Washington D.C. He was Chairman of the Nigerian Electoral Reform Committee (2007-2008); and was appointed Chancellor of Umaru Musa Yar’adua University, Katsina, Katsina State in 2011.
The Honourable Justice Mohammed Lawal Uwais served Nigeria as a jurist with distinction, leveraging on his exalted office to preach unity, to deliver justice to those deserving and to promote integrity on the Bench. My Lord rose from his humble background in Zaria to join the highest court of the land with an unblemished record of diligence in service. As the longest serving jurist in the Supreme Court, My Lord deployed his wealth of experience to unite the Bench and Bar, rising ultimately to the peak of his career as the one of the longest serving Chief Justice of Nigeria from 1995 to 2006. His sojourn in the court was characterized by excellence, delivering landmark judgments and making worthy contributions to the judgments of others.
However, the defining moment of My Lord’s positive impact upon our nation was when he turned in the report for electoral reforms which contained fundamental ideas for sanitizing our political space. The best way to honour this great jurist is for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to revisit the Uwais Panel Report for the reform of INEC and to implement the reforms contained in the said report.
How Uwais encouraged late Gani Fawehinmi to apply for SAN one more time – Shittu
Former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mohammed Uwais chose an auspicious time to exit this world. He died on the day we were all celebrating Eid Mubarak, a day which also fell on a Friday remarkable for Juma’h prayers for Muslims worldwide.
This double coincidence may be because he was a good man- one of the finest of our jurists. In my view,however,what is significant about his passing is not just the timing of his exit, but what he stood for while alive.
The question is, how will the departed be remembered?
Three events in our nation’s history offer insights about the quality of his contributions in our collective consciousness.
First, he was a huge lesson in judicial integrity.This attribute offers a model of distinction and example for our judex.On this index, he shone like a thousand stars and offers a lasting example of how to be a judex. The second example was his role in the elevation of late Chief Gani Fawehimmi SAN, as a senior Advocate of Nigeria. It will be recalled that late Chief Gani Fawehinmi SAN applied many times for the exalted rank unsuccessfully, and at a time resolved never to apply again. It was the departed CJN Uwais who persuaded Gani not to give up and even encouraged him to pick the form again in the year the erudite lawyer adorned the silk.This showed CJN Uwais as an encourager of excellence. History will always remember this gesture to the Great Gani considering the contributions of the duo to our jurisprudence.
The third notable contribution of late CJN Uwais was his additions to our electoral jurisprudence. The Uwais committee on electoral reforms made profound recommendations that undoubtedly redefined and improved significantly our electoral jurisprudence and the conduct of elections in our country. History will never forget his unique role in this regard.
These three major contributions are very significant.
In addition, the jurist delivered many landmark decisions through the cases. The law reports are replete with his profound and incisive judgments.These cases litter the pages of our law reports and shall remain forever reference points for erudition and sound jurisprudential justifications. He also remains our longest serving Chief justice of Nigeria till date.
And so with his exit yesterday, the Nation has not only lost one of its finest jurists, but also a real human-being. Farewell, Honorable Justice Mohammed Uwais,former chief Justice of Nigeria, and quality judex of high and historical stature.
We mourn.
Uwais, the only Nigerian Justice of the Supreme Court to openly declare his assets upon retirement – SAN
Inna lilahj wa inna ilaehi ra’jiun . May Allah (swt) grant the late Hon Justice Muhammed Lawal Uwais retired Chief Justice of Nigeria, Aljanat Firdaus . I bear witness by Allah to whom my soul shall return at His pleasure that Justice Uwais was dignity- and integrity- personified, both on and off the bench. I will forever cherish the blessing of my path crossing his for my own good . The only Justice of the Supreme who ( in his valedictory speech on 12june , 2006) openly declared his assets from his days at elementary school with details of his Bank account, starting from Barclays Bank DCO till his retirement in 2006 on reaching mandatory age of 70 years . He was the most influential personality in my career path at the Bar . And now that he has answered the home call, he will remain a legend with an unblemished record as a jurist and mentor.
Dear readers, we really need your support to keep on serving you with authoritative, truthful, and juicy stories everyday. For your support, please reach out to the editor @gavelinternational66@gmail.com