The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has warned legal practitioners against charging clients in dollars and other foreign currencies, describing the practice as illegal and unethical.
The Acting Zonal Director of the EFCC’s Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, Ikoyi, ACE I Bawa Usman Kaltungo, issued the warning on Friday, September 11, 2026, when he received a delegation from the Nigerian Bar Association’s, NBA, Lagos Task Force on Illegal Practice of Law.
The delegation, led by the task force’s Head, Moshood Abiola, visited the EFCC office in Lagos for a courtesy and interactive session.
Kaltungo expressed concern over lawyers allegedly engaging in illegal and unethical practices, warning that the commission would prosecute practitioners found culpable.
He disclosed that the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 is currently handling two cases involving lawyers accused of charging clients professional fees in foreign currencies.
“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.
Kaltungo added that while the EFCC generally sought to maintain a good relationship with members of the NBA, lawyers involved in such practices would face legal action. “Any lawyer we find culpable of charging clients in foreign currencies will be prosecuted,” he said.
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The EFCC official also cautioned lawyers against invoking the commission’s name to impose excessive charges on clients.
He acknowledged that legal practitioners had the right to determine their professional fees but warned them against falsely claiming that charges demanded from clients were required by the EFCC. “Lawyers should stop name-dropping the EFCC to overcharge their clients,” Kaltungo said.
He urged legal practitioners to desist from misrepresenting the commission or associating it with fees that were independently determined by lawyers.
Earlier, Abiola commended the EFCC for its recent prosecution and conviction of a fake lawyer. He described the process as “swift and reassuring” and said the NBA task force had several cases involving lawyers allegedly engaged in malpractice.
Abiola called for stronger collaboration between the NBA and EFCC to ensure that legal practitioners found culpable of criminal conduct faced prosecution.
He said the task force was particularly interested in cases where professional misconduct crossed into criminal activity.
Reacting to one of Abiola’s remarks, ACE I Orhieoghene Adewunmi of the Department of Legal and Prosecution, Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, urged the NBA to publicize cases involving lawyers found culpable of unethical practices.
She said appropriate publicity would help members of the public identify practitioners who had been sanctioned for professional misconduct and make informed decisions when seeking legal services.
Adewunmi said greater public awareness could also discourage lawyers from engaging in conduct that violates professional standards.
Another EFCC official, ACE II Henry Anasoh of the Department of Legal and Prosecution, raised concerns over practices by some legal practitioners that allegedly obstruct investigations or frustrate the administration of justice.
Anasoh said there had been instances where lawyers allegedly assisted suspects in producing forged documents for bail applications. He cited cases involving purported medical records presented in support of applications for bail.
The EFCC urged the NBA to strengthen its mechanisms for addressing professional misconduct and criminal conduct among legal practitioners.
The engagement ended with both sides expressing willingness to strengthen collaboration in tackling illegal practices within the legal profession and ensuring that individuals found culpable face appropriate sanctions.
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