Atilade sworn in as new Lagos Chief Judge

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Lagos - The newly-appointed Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Olajumoke Atilade, has been officially sworn in.

Governor Babatunde Fashola presided over the event.

Presenting the Chief Judge designate, for the oath of office, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Ade Ipaye said that due to the glorious exit of the Justice Ayotunde Phillips, it had become necessary for Lagos State to have a new Chief Judge.

 “In that regard, section 271(1) of the Constitution provides that ‘The appointment of a person to the office of the Chief Judge of a State shall be made by the Governor of the State on the recommendation of the National Judicial Council, subject to the confirmation of the appointment by the House of Assembly of the State,” he noted.

Ipaye added that the Chief Judge designate has indeed been recommended by the National Judicial Council and appointed by the Governor, that her appointment has also been reviewed, found worthy and confirmed by the Lagos State House of Assembly.

Atilade, who succeeds her sister, Phillips Ayotunde, was born in 1952 in London, England.

She spent the first seven years of her life in London, England where she attended Primary School until her parents decided to return to Nigeria.

She completed her primary school education at Ladi-Lak Institute, Yaba, Lagos. She attended Holy Child College, Ikoyi Lagos (1964-1965); Lagos Anglican Girls Grammar School, Surulere, Lagos (1966-1969) and Queen’s College, Yaba, Lagos (1970-1971).

She graduated with LLB (Hons.) in 1975 from the University of Lagos, Akoka, Yaba and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1976.

In 1977, she was posted to Benin (former Bendel State) for her NYSC, where she served as a Pupil State Counsel in the Ministry of Justice, Benin. Her working career began at the Federal Ministry of Justice, Marina, Lagos, where she worked as a State Counsel from 1977 to 1979 before she was employed as a Senior Legal Officer at the Nigerian Ports Authority in 1979 and then rose to the post of a Principal Legal Officer.

 In 1982, she transferred to the Lagos State Judiciary as a Senior Magistrate Grade 2 and rose through the ranks till she became the Chief Magistrate Admin in Apapa, Lagos between 1993 and 1996.

She was appointed as a Judge of the High Court of Lagos State in July 1996.  She has held several judicial positions during her career on the Bench.