ALDRAP Honours Eminent Lawyers with ‘Blue Silk’ Rank

The Association of Legislative Drafters and Advocacy Practitioners (ALDRAP) has conferred its prestigious “Blue Silk” rank on a select group of distinguished Nigerian legal professionals in recognition of their exceptional contributions to legislative drafting, policy development, and legal scholarship.

The investiture ceremony, which attracted notable figures from the legal profession, government, and academia, marked a significant step in acknowledging excellence in non-litigation legal practice in Nigeria.

According to the organisers, the award is designed to celebrate legal professionals whose impact extends beyond courtroom advocacy into legislative work, governance, and public policy development.

The honourees were said to have undergone rigorous screening and due diligence before being found worthy of the recognition.

Among those conferred with the Blue Silk rank were Paul Usenbo, Sam Aiboni, Titilayo Elizabeth Orebiyi, Muhammed Baffa, Lawal Oluwafemi, Adebayo Akinade, Dr. Onadeko Damilola Edwards, Dr. Obraori Peters Adeila, Olorungemi Bamidele, Senibo Elisha Jaja, Yahaya Danzaria, Mrs. Chinelo Emeghara, and Kennedy Thompson, a Canada-based Nigerian lawyer.

The ceremony was held under the theme: “ALDRAP’s Blue Silks as an Innovation in Celebrating Legal Excellence of Non-Litigation Nigerian Lawyers: Senior Legislative Counsel (SELCON), Senior Counsel of Nigeria (SCN), and Senior Legal Academic (SLA).”

The event highlighted the growing importance of legislative drafting, advisory roles, and legal scholarship in shaping governance and institutional development in Nigeria.

Delivering the welcome address, President of the Nigeria Law Society (NLS), Ambassador Dahiru Aliyu, who holds the rank of Senior Counsel of Nigeria (SCN), commended ALDRAP for creating a platform that recognises the often-overlooked contributions of non-litigation lawyers.

He stressed the need for the legal profession to continue evolving in a way that reflects the significance of specialised legal roles essential to national development.

The ceremony was anchored by the Vice President of the Nigerian Law Society, Olaitan Abiodun, while the keynote address was delivered by the President of the Commonwealth Association of Legislative Counsel (CALC), Dr. Johnson Okello.

In his keynote speech, Okello highlighted international best practices in legislative drafting and called for stronger institutional reforms to improve parliamentary processes across Commonwealth nations.

He emphasised that effective legislative drafting remains central to good governance, legal certainty, and democratic accountability.