Nigeria, Oct. 27 -- Oghogho Akpata runs a law firm that has produced six Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) even though he is not one himself.

The SAN rank, a Nigerian equivalent of the King's Counsel (KC) or Queen's Counsel (QC) in the United Kingdom, is the most prestigious rank conferred on lawyers in Nigeria as a mark of distinction.

Officially the pinnacle of attainment in legal practice in the country, the rank is reserved for lawyers who are at least 10 years in the Nigerian bar and have distinguished themselves through exceptional advocacy or academic erudition with remarkable contributions to the development of the Nigerian law.

It grants recipients exclusive privileges in court, such as the right of first audience and the dist...