Presidential Aide Daniel Bwala Wins N40 Million Lawsuit Against National Assembly

Presidential spokesman Daniel Bwala has secured a legal victory against the National Assembly in a case involving unpaid legal fees. The Abuja High Court, in a ruling delivered on Thursday by Justice M.M. Adamu, ordered the legislative body to pay Bwala the sum of N40 million for legal services rendered in 2022.

The lawsuit, filed under the case number FCT/HC/CV/905/2024, arose after Bwala accused the National Assembly of failing to pay the agreed professional fees for two separate legal cases he handled on their behalf. According to court documents, Bwala was engaged via letters of instruction dated March 31, 2022, to represent the National Assembly and then-Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila in two suits: *FHC/MU/CS/26/22* and *FHC/AB/CS/318/2022*.

Bwala stated that he charged N20 million for each of the cases, a total of N40 million, which he said covered filing court processes, court appearances across jurisdictions, and prosecuting the cases to conclusion. Despite delivering on the brief, he claimed the National Assembly failed to honour the agreed payment, prompting him to issue a pre-action notice and bill of charges before filing the suit.

In its defence, the National Assembly acknowledged assigning Bwala to represent them but disputed the amount claimed. They argued that the standard rate for such constitutional matters was N6.67 million per case, asserting that the appropriate total payment should be N13.36 million.

The court, however, sided with Bwala on the claim for the full N40 million, rejecting the Assembly’s lower valuation of his services. It declined to award additional reliefs, including Bwala’s request for N15 million in suit costs and 10 percent interest on the judgment sum.

When contacted, Bwala welcomed the court’s decision, saying he resorted to legal action after efforts to resolve the matter with the National Assembly’s new leadership were unsuccessful. The National Assembly has not responded to inquiries about whether it plans to appeal the judgment.