Two of Liberia's most prominent lawyers, Cllrs. Benedict Sannoh and A. Ndubuisi Nwabudike, risk being barred from practicing law through 2025 after the Liberian National Bar Association announced they failed to pay their annual license fees.
The revelation, amounting to about US $360 in unpaid dues, was revealed in an Oct. 3 letter from the LNBA Secretariat to Cllr. Amara Sheriff of the International Law Group, representing Hans Armstrong, a British national pursuing enforcement of a US$430,920 judgment.
The disclosure has thrown into question the status of Sannoh and Nwabudike's representation of Activa International Insurance Company, which is fighting to avoid liability in a high-stakes debt dispute before the Debt Court for Montserrado County.
LNBA Confirms Lawyers Not in "Good Standing"
Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines
"We have delved into the archives of the LNBA and found Counsellors Benedict Sannoh and A. Ndubuisi Nwabudike are not in good standing with the LNBA and as such are not licensed lawyers for 2025," the Bar Association wrote.
The confirmation followed a request from Armstrong's lawyers to determine whether the two defense counsels had met the Supreme Court-mandated licensing requirement.
Under Rule 5 of the Supreme Court's General Rules, all lawyers must obtain their annual licenses by the second Monday of March each year or be prohibited from appearing before any court or tribunal.
Stakes High for Activa Insurance
Activa is facing potential shutdown and the arrest of senior managers if it fails to pay the US $430,920 judgment awarded to Armstrong in July 2025.
Although not a party to the original equipment-rental dispute between Citadel Mining Services, a Ghanaian subcontractor of Western Cluster, and Armstrong, Activa became involved after it posted a US$750,000 indemnity bond in Citadel's favor -- a move approved by Judge James Jones.
The bond led Judge Jones to lift a stay order on Citadel's equipment, but when the final judgment was enforced on July 14, sheriffs reported that Citadel's offices in Monrovia and operations in Bomi County had been shuttered and management could not be found to satisfy the debt.
Armstrong's lawyers then petitioned the court to hold Activa liable for the debt, a request the court granted -- sparking the current legal showdown.
Possible Courtroom Fallout
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
If Judge Jones accepts the LNBA's finding, he could disqualify Sannoh and Nwabudike from further participation in the case, potentially nullifying filings they submitted on Activa's behalf -- a move that would severely weaken the company's defense.
The Supreme Court has long held that any pleading filed by an unlicensed lawyer is a legal nullity, citing precedents as far back as Sherman v. Sherman (1881) and Buchanan v. Raymond Concrete Pile Co. (1971).
Veteran Lawyers Under Scrutiny
Cllr. Sannoh is a former attorney general and justice minister, a law professor at the Louis Arthur Grimes School of Law and head of Sannoh & Partners.
Cllr. Nwabudike, a senior partner at the same firm, is a former chair of the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission, whose controversial 2020 nomination to lead the National Elections Commission was withdrawn after questions arose about his citizenship.
It remains unclear whether Judge Jones will heed the LNBA's warning -- but the outcome could reshape one of the most closely watched commercial disputes of the year.
