Fako Lawyers Refresh Skills In Legal Procedures

By Macdonald Ayang Okumb

Barrister Agbor Balla: The Visionary FAKLA President

     Over 300 lawyers based in Fako Division have upgraded their knowledge on issues of legal practice and procedure under the Cameroon judicial system.

This was during a one day symposium that took place last Friday 23 October in Buea, organised by the Fako Lawyers Association, known by the acronym, FAKLA.

     The symposium that was opened by the President of the South West court of appeal, Chief Justice Bechem Eyong Eneke, had four main subjects namely; criminal procedure, civil procedure, execution of court judgments and the OHADA law and practice.

     Limbe-based senior barrister Ngale Monono delivered one of the four exposes on; “the law and practice of adoption in the common law jurisdiction of Cameroon.” FAKLA president, barrister Felix Nkongho Agbor, agreed that Barrister Monono’s presentation was insightful given that “the issue of adoption is a very thorny one especially given the fact that there is a difference between what is happening in the civil law jurisdiction and what is happening in the common law jurisdiction.”

     One of the vice presidents of the court of appeal, Lord justice James Agbor Eyong, talked on “instituting and perfecting an appeal against a criminal judgment and seeking bail for the convict pending hearing of the appeal.”

His colleague of the same court, Lord Justice Martin Mbeng Ako, delved into the “provisional execution and stay of execution: the law, practice and procedure”

     Meanwhile the attorney general of the appeal court, Lord Justice Emile Essombe, talked elaborately on the OHADA law and practice with focus on “recovering a debt/securing the delivery or restitution of specific personal property.”

On this presentation, FAKLA boss, said the attorney general did a wonderful job because this “is a law we are just coming to grasp with because it was conceived in French and the English translation is not up-to-date.”

     After each of the four presentations, there was a question and answer session during which participants cleared some of their doubts. At the end, FAKLA president, Barrister Balla said this of the symposium; “What happened today was part of our continuous legal training, when I was campaigning to be FAKLA president; I said in my campaign manifesto that we shall engage in continuous legal education and training for our members. This is just the first in a series of conferences that we shall be holding; and this will help not only lawyers but law students, judges and magistrates of the bench.”

     Some of the participants confessed that they had become more knowledgeable in issues of their legal practice, which according to barrister Balla, “is helpful to the legal profession and also it would trickle down to the clients because the more knowledgeable the lawyers and judges are, the better for the client because they will brief them well and decisions from the judges would also be good.”

     Apart from Fako lawyers, representatives from the Meme lawyers as well as the North West lawyers associations were also present.