Section 233 Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL) Lagos

Section 233 Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Lagos State, as amended in 2021, is about Non-appearance of defendant’s counsel. It provides as follows:

(1) Where the legal representative of the defendant ceases to appear in Court, the Court shall after a reasonable period of non-appearance enquire from the defendant if he wishes to engage another counsel arranged by him or a counsel engaged by way of legal aid.

(2) The Court shall allow the defendant to make his own arrangement if he indicates to do so.

(3) In circumstances where a defendant fails or is unable to secure legal representation, the Court shall have power to order that the defendant be represented by way of legal aid.

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