Justice Kudirat Motonmori Kekere-Ekun (CFR) has been recommended by the National Judicial Council (NJC) to become the next Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN). The recommendation was made to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday, August 15.
Kekere-Ekun is set to take over from Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, who will step down on August 22, 2024.
Here are some things to know about her:
1. Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun was born on May 7, 1958.
2. Her late father, Senator Hassan Adisa Babatunde Fasinro, was a lawyer and a former Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
3. She attended Queens College in 1970 for her secondary school education.
4. She obtained her LL. B in 1980 from the University of Lagos and was called to the Nigerian Bar on 10th July 1981. She received her LL.M. from the London School of Economic and Political Science in November 1983.
5. She worked in private practice for some years before joining the Lagos State Judiciary as Senior Magistrate II in 1989.
6. She rose to the position of State High Court Judge and was appointed on July 19, 1996.
7. She was Chairman of the Robbery and Firearms Tribunal, Zone II, Ikeja between November 1996 and May 1999.
8. She also served as a member of the committee that drafted the High Court of Lagos State (Civil Procedure) Rules 2004 from April 2002 till December 2002.
9. In September 2004, she was elevated to the Court of Appeal where she served in five different Divisions across the country and as a presiding Justice of two Divisions of the Court (Makurdi & Akure).
10. She was one of the first three judges of the Lagos State High Court selected to try offenses relating to financial crimes and laundering under the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Establishment Act, 2004, and the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
11. Kekere-Ekun was elevated to the Supreme Court of Nigeria as the 5th female Justice of the Court in June 2013.
ALSO READ: Meet Omolola Oloworaran, The New Acting DG Of The National Pension Commission + 11 Facts To Know About Her
12. In 2020, Kekere-Ekun was on the seven-member panel that declared Hope Uzodinma as the lawful candidate of Imo State.
13. She is a recipient of numerous awards including the Merit Awards of the Lagos State Judiciary.
14. She was conferred with the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) by President Muhammadu Buhari in October 2022.
15. She belongs to several professional associations and groups, including the National Association of Women Judges and the International Association of Women Judges.
16. She is married to Akin Kekere-Ekun (OFR) and they are blessed with three children.