Justice Mohammed Uwais, a former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), has passed away at the age of 89.
His family confirmed that the respected jurist died on Friday, June 6, 2025, in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
Born on June 12, 1936, Uwais served as Chief Justice of Nigeria from 1995 until his retirement in 2006, leaving behind a legacy of integrity and reform in the Nigerian judiciary.
Following his retirement from the Supreme Court, he was appointed by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to head the Electoral Reform Committee.
During this time, he led a high-profile review of Nigeria’s electoral process, culminating in what became one of the most widely discussed electoral reform reports in the country’s history.
Uwais was called to the Bar by the Middle Temple in London in 1963, after completing his legal studies at the University of London.
His legal career began in public service as a State Counsel and later Senior State Counsel from 1966 to 1970.
He went on to serve as a Judge of the High Court and Chief Judge of Kaduna State between 1973 and 1976.
In 1977, he was elevated to the Court of Appeal, and in 1979, he was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court.
In 1995, he became Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council, overseeing key reforms and upholding the independence of the judiciary.
Justice Uwais also served in several distinguished national and international roles.
He was Chairman of the Nigerian Body of Benchers (1993–1994), and led the Board of Governors of the National Judicial Institute (1995–2006).
His leadership extended to multiple national panels, including the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the Awards of Contracts by the Military Government of North Central State (1976) and the Jimeta Disturbances Tribunal in Gongola State (1984).
Internationally, he was part of a Commonwealth team for the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the deaths of senior army officers in Sri Lanka (1993).
Justice Uwais held honorary positions across the legal world.
He was Honorary President of the World Jurist Association in Washington D.C., an Honorary Fellow of the Society for Advanced Legal Studies in London, and a Board Trustee of the Global Legal Information Network Foundation (GLIN), also in Washington D.C.
He chaired the Nigerian Electoral Reform Committee from 2007 to 2008, further cementing his role as a key figure in the development of Nigeria’s democratic institutions.
In 2011, he was appointed Chancellor of Umaru Musa Yaradua University in Katsina State.
Justice Mohammed Uwais is remembered as one of Nigeria’s most influential legal minds, whose career spanned decades of service, reform, and leadership in the judiciary.
