Thirty-four lawyers nominated for appointment as judges of Nigeria’s Federal High Court have been disqualified after failing an integrity screening conducted by the National Judicial Council (NJC), according to a report from BusinessDay. The affected candidates were drawn from a total of 62 nominees and were dropped following the review of petitions and complaints submitted during a public feedback process introduced under new guidelines approved by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun.
Sources familiar with the process said only 28 nominees were cleared and forwarded to the NJC for interviews scheduled ahead of its January 2026 meeting. Confirming the development, NJC Director of Information, Kemi Ogedegbe, said the Council would meet between January 13 and 14 to deliberate on the appointment process, stressing that the NJC would not compromise on integrity or merit, and that only candidates found worthy after interviews would be recommended for appointment.