Lawyer salary in Nigeria swings wildly, from barely-there starting pay to six figures at big firms
A lawyer's salary in Nigeria typically ranges between ₦15,000 and ₦5 million monthly. This figure varies widely based on employer type, location, years of experience, and area of practice. Junior advocates and newly appointed advocates are often on the lower end of this salary scale.
Source: UGC
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Key takeaways
- The average lawyer's salary in Nigeria lies between $75,000 and $500,000 monthly.
- Lawyers in small general firms earn up to ₦80,000, and those in elite commercial firms can earn up to ₦4.5 million.
- The salaries of government lawyers across salary scales in Nigeria range between ₦120,000 and ₦3.3 million.
- Government lawyers' salaries in Nigeria are dictated by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).
How much is a lawyer's salary in Nigeria?
A lawyer's salary in Nigeria is shaped by four main factors: the size and reputation of a law firm, civil service grade, years of experience, geographical location, and area of specialisation. The size and reputation of a practice play the most significant role in compensation for lawyers in Nigeria.
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Lawyers at small general practice firms in secondary cities earn between ₦80,000 and ₦150,000, while attorneys in Nigerian capital cities such as Lagos can earn between ₦500,000 and ₦2 million.
Source: UGC
How much does an entry-level lawyer get paid in Nigeria?
In small and mid-tier firms, junior lawyers' salaries in Nigeria start from as little as ₦15,000 to ₦50,000 and ₦250,000 monthly.
According to Nairametrics, an entry-level lawyer working at private firms such as Perchstone & Graeys earns about ₦150,000, while one-year post-call lawyers can earn as much as ₦350,000. At Banwo and Ighodalo, remuneration for recently qualified lawyers ranges from ₦200,000 to ₦350,000 net, with benefits and bonuses.
How much does a top commercial firm lawyer get paid in Nigeria?
According to Payscale and Glassdoor, corporate lawyers' salaries in Nigeria at top commercial firms in Lagos range from ₦250,000 to ₦600,000 monthly, with senior associates earning above ₦600,000.
Other prestigious firms such as ǼLEX, a full-service commercial and dispute resolution law firm, offer salaries that range from ₦3,960,000 to ₦4,560,000 per annum.
Source: UGC
Additional benefits at ǼLEX include a 13th-month salary, leave allowances, bonuses, HMO, pensions, and subscriptions to professional memberships. At Aluko & Oyebode, monthly remuneration packages include health insurance, mental health support for employees and dependents, as well as recreational and fitness amenities.
How much does a government lawyer get paid in Nigeria?
Government lawyers' salaries in Nigeria range between ₦120,000 and ₦3 million monthly, depending on specific ministries, parastatals, seniority, and whether they work at the state or federal level. Here is a summary of remuneration as per the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) in 2026.
Type of lawyer | Basic monthly salary in Naira |
Chief Justice of Nigeria | ₦3.3 million |
Justice of the Supreme Court | ₦2.4 million |
President of the Court of Appeal | ₦2.4 million |
State judicial heads and judges | ₦1.9 million |
Federal judicial heads and judges | ₦1.8 million |
What determines a lawyer's salary in Nigeria?
In 2022, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) launched a remuneration committee, whose mandate was to regulate lawyers' salaries. In a statement recorded by the Guardian, the association's president, Olumide Akpata, said
The Committee (Remuneration Committee for the Nigerian Bar Association) is to design a workable and enforceable framework under which lawyers will (i) charge the right fees for their legal services using acceptable and realistic metrics and (ii) ensure that those fees, when earned, trickle down, in terms of reasonable living wages and emoluments, to those who work with, or for, the lawyers.
How to become a lawyer in Nigeria
Source: UGC
Once qualified, lawyers in Nigeria take up various types of legal practice, including corporate law, transactional law, litigation, family law, property law, intellectual property law, and criminal defence. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to become a lawyer in Nigeria.
Step 1: Complete secondary school
When applying to any law school, aspiring candidates must meet the following JAMB requirements for law;
- Five SSCE/WAEC/NECO credit passes for O'Level in English language, mathematics, literature in English, and two other arts or social science subjects like government or economics.
- Have the JAMB UTME subject combination in Use of English, literature in English, government or history, arts, or social science subject.
- Must meet UTME cut-off points
Step 2: Earn a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree
To earn a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree in Nigeria, you must complete a five-year course and complete 12 core subjects at a Nigerian university.
Step 3: Attend and complete Law School
Graduates must spend a year at the Nigerian Law School before taking and passing the final exams. Candidates who completed their LLB at international universities must first complete a Bar Part I course.
Source: UGC
Step 4: Sit for and pass the Bar Final examination
Once all mandatory academic sessions and court or chamber externships have been completed. Candidates must sit for final exams to earn a qualifying certificate from the Council of Legal Education.
At this point, law graduates often proceed to complete the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme.
Step 5: Enrol on the Roll of Legal Practitioners
Successful law graduates must complete the online registration on the Supreme Court Enrollment Portal. The registration process includes paying a statutory enrolment fee and submitting all qualifying certificates to the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
Step 6: NBA registration and branch enrollment
Legal practitioners will receive a unique Supreme Court Enrollment Number (SCN) once enrolled on the Roll of Legal Practitioners. They must then visit the NBA portal, register, and pay the Bar Practising Fees.
To complete NBA registration, they must visit their selected local branch secretariat, complete registration, and pay the required fees.
Which type of lawyer gets paid the most?
A handful of specialisations consistently sit above the rest, as the highest-paid types of lawyers in Nigeria in 2025 earn anywhere from ₦800,000 to ₦5,000,000 per month. These include oil and gas, corporate law, arbitration, and intellectual property lawyers.
How much is a criminal lawyer's salary in Nigeria?
Criminal lawyers typically earn ₦200,000 to ₦1,000,000 per month, with earnings depending heavily on whether they work for government, private firms, or high-profile clients. At the bottom of that range sit public defenders.
How much does an oil and gas lawyer earn in Nigeria?
Energy law is the most lucrative legal specialisation in Nigeria, driven by the dominance of the oil and gas sector in the national economy. At top energy and petroleum firms in Nigeria, such as G Elias & Co, Imperial Law Office, and F.A. Garrick & Co, senior associates earn between ₦15 million and ₦21 million per year.
A lawyer's salary in Nigeria is a reflection of years of experience, speciality, employer type, and location of practice. Senior attorneys in government positions and those in private firms, such as those in the oil and gas industry, are on the higher end of the earning spectrum, while junior lawyers often earn the least.
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Proofreading by Kola Muhammed, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
