EFCC threatens prosecution of lawyers charging clients in foreign currencies

Michael Olumide Alabi

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has warned legal practitioners across Nigeria against charging their clients in foreign currencies, describing the practice as illegal and unethical.

The Commission also cautioned lawyers against invoking its name to impose excessive charges on clients, stressing that practitioners should not falsely represent that fees demanded from clients are required by the EFCC.

The Acting Zonal Director of the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, Ikoyi, Assistant Commander of the EFCC, ACE I Bawa Usman Kaltungo, gave the warning on Friday, September 11, 2026, in Lagos, when he received a delegation of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Lagos Task Force on Illegal Practice of Law.

According to the Head, Media & Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the delegation, led by the Head of the Task Force, Moshood Abiola, was at the Directorate on a courtesy visit and for an interactive session on issues affecting the legal profession and the administration of justice.

Kaltungo said the EFCC was concerned about the activities of some lawyers involved in illegal and unethical practices, warning that the Commission would prosecute practitioners found culpable.

According to him, the Directorate is currently handling two cases involving lawyers who allegedly charged their clients in dollars.
“We have two cases of lawyers who were found to have charged fees in dollars. This is unethical and illegal, as the Naira is the country’s legal tender,” he said.

He added that the Commission would not hesitate to take action against any lawyer found to have violated the law.

“We usually don’t want to have issues with members of the NBA. However, some lawyers are pushing us. Any lawyer we find culpable of charging clients in foreign currencies will be prosecuted,” Kaltungo said.

The EFCC official further warned lawyers against using the name of the Commission to overcharge clients.

While acknowledging that lawyers have the right to determine their professional fees, he said practitioners must not falsely claim that the EFCC was responsible for the amount being demanded from clients.

“Lawyers should stop name-dropping the EFCC to overcharge their clients. They have the right to charge their clients as much as they like, but they shouldn’t drag the EFCC into it. They should desist from all these unethical practices,” he said.

NBA seeks stronger collaboration

Earlier, Abiola commended the EFCC for its recent prosecution and conviction of a fake lawyer, describing the process as “swift and reassuring.”

He disclosed that the NBA Task Force was handling several cases involving alleged malpractice by legal practitioners and called for stronger collaboration with the EFCC to ensure that lawyers involved in criminal conduct were prosecuted.

“We appreciate the EFCC for the recent prosecution of a fake lawyer. It was swift, and we are glad that the EFCC was able to get the court to convict him,” Abiola said.

He added that the Task Force had recently encountered a case involving a lawyer allegedly engaged in malpractice and had several other cases requiring the intervention of law enforcement agencies.

According to him, closer cooperation between the NBA and EFCC would help strengthen accountability within the legal profession.

EFCC Urges NBA to Publicise Sanctions
Also speaking, ACE I Orhieoghene Adewunmi of the Department of Legal and Prosecution, Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, urged the NBA to ensure that appropriate publications were made concerning lawyers found culpable of unethical practices.

She said such publicity would assist members of the public in identifying practitioners who had been sanctioned for professional misconduct and help them make informed decisions when seeking legal services.

Meanwhile, ACE II Henry Anasoh, also of the Department of Legal and Prosecution, raised concerns about instances where some legal practitioners allegedly assist suspects in obstructing investigations or frustrating the administration of justice.

Anasoh alleged that there had been instances where lawyers helped suspects present forged documents for bail applications, including purported medical records.

He also expressed concern over cases in which lawyers approach the courts to restrain the EFCC from investigating or prosecuting their clients, including through fundamental rights enforcement suits arising from invitations issued by the Commission.

He urged the NBA to support the EFCC’s efforts to rid the legal profession of practitioners involved in criminal or unethical conduct.

Anasoh stressed that the alleged misconduct of a few practitioners should not be allowed to undermine the reputation and integrity of the wider legal profession.