SUNUSI MUSA: How focus propelled young Nigerian lawyer to Senior Advocate rank
When the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), chaired by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, announced on Thursday, September 29 2022, that 62 Nigerian lawyers have been elevated to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), many were satisfied that Sunusi Musa, a Kano-born but Abuja-based lawyer was among them.
At the age of 44, and with 17 years of legal practice, Sunusi Musa has accomplished the ultimate career desire of most legal practitioners in Nigeria; to be conferred with the privileged rank of SAN.
Relatively young, compared to others who also clinched the privilege, a cursory peek at his antecedence will reveal that he did not get to the height of legal practice in Nigeria on a platter of gold.
Described by those who know him as “Highly focused, confident, dedicated and committed lawyer with strong sense of values, passion for the truth and the thirst for justice, Sunusi comes across as a person committed to uphold and utilize the full strength of the law to help those in need find trust and solace in the Nigerian justice system.
A motivated and enthusiastic lawyer, Sunusi has years of relevant experience in litigation and legislative drafting. And to prepare him for the tasks ahead, he has three post graduate qualifications in law, teaching and management.
Born in Kano State io the 28th of February, 1978, Sunusi began his educational sojourn at Kofar Na’isa Special Primary School (1984 – 1988) before he proceeded to 1989- 1991 Government Junior Secondary Schools, Warure for his Junior Secondary School education (1989- 1991), after which he went to Government Secondary School, Gwale (1992- 1994) for his Senior Secondary School education. Between 1995 and 1997, he went to Kano State College of Arts and Science where he obtained his SSCE certificate.
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He then began his foray into legal education at Kano State Polytechnics between 1998 and 2000 where he got his Diploma in Law before he moved to Bayero University, Kano to obtain his Bachelor of Law degree (2000-2005). In 2005, went to the Nigerian Law School for his Bar studies, after which he was called to the Nigerian Bar as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
In his desire to be educationally grounded, Sunusi went to the University of Maiduguri for a Post Graduate Diploma in Education (2008 -2009), and followed it up with a Post Graduate Diploma in Management (2010 – 2011) at the same university.
Between 2014 and 2016, he has crossed to the other side of the Niger to obtain his Masters in Legislative Drafting from the University of Benin.
In all these, Sunusi has continued to set his pace at the law practice front, having been a leader of various litigation teams that handled various matters at conventional courts and specialized tribunals where he successfully conducted to completion, seven Supreme Court, eight Court of Appeal and more twenty-five trial courts cases.
He was a member of the team that represented the victims of Apo shootings by the Military and State Security Services and secured judgment against the Nigerian Government at Community Court of ECOWAS in 2013, and another at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory.
He was a member of the team that represented the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party of Bayelsa State and secured the upholding of his return as the duly elected governor of Bayelsa State in 2016.
He was also a member of the federal government prosecution team of the forgery case against Sen Abubakar Bukola Saraki and three others in 2015.
He was a member of the Committee for the review of the Medical and Dental Practitioners Act 2015, and member of the legal team that defended the Kaduna State Governorship Election Petition from Tribunal to the Supreme Court in 2019.
He was a member of the legal team that defended the Kano State Governorship Election Petition at the Tribunal in 2019.
He has drafted bills and motions for members of the National Assembly; has been a prosecutor at Medical and Dental Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal; has been a consultant to the Senate Committee for the Review of the 1999 Constitution from 2020 to date; was a senior legislative aide to Bashir Baballe, a member, Federal House of Representatives, Abuja, Nigeria; and has remained a proprietor at Aliyu & Musa Legal Practitioners and Consultants from 2007 to date.
With training and proficiency in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) from DCON Consulting, Abuja, he went to Delhi, India for another training at the Legislative Drafting Bureau for Parliamentary Studies and Training (BPST) Indian Parliament.
To his credit are a number of paper presentations and publications.
Sunusi is happily married with three children.
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SUNUSI MUSA: How focus propelled young Nigerian lawyer to Senior Advocate rank