Nigeria, Oct. 13 -- The ritual of the "Call to Bar" is the formal ceremony for the admission of new entrants into Nigeria's legal profession. The responsibility for administering it resides in the Body of Benchers (BoB), a statutory entity described by law as "a body of legal practitioners of the highest distinction in the legal profession in Nigeria."

The solemnity of the Call to Bar is guaranteed by the presence of members of the BoB who administer the ceremony resplendent in ceremonial gowns supposed to testify to their high distinction in matters legal. The criteria for the determination of this threshold requirement of "highest distinction" antecedent to membership of the BoB are, however, opaque.

The ceremony itself is usually an ...