The Senate on Thursday passed a bill seeking to establish an independent agency to recover, preserve, manage and dispose of assets linked to unlawful activities, in a move lawmakers said would strengthen Nigeria’s anti-corruption framework and improve accountability in the management of recovered properties.
The upper chamber also passed the Legal Practitioners Act (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill, 2026, after considering and adopting the reports of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters.
The two bills—the Legal Practitioners Act (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill, 2026 (SB. 965) and the Proceeds of Crime Act (Amendment) Bill, 2026 (SB. 343)—scaled third reading during Thursday’s plenary after lawmakers considered the committee’s recommendations.
Presenting the reports, Chairman of the committee, Senator Adeniyi Adegbonmire, said the Legal Practitioners Bill seeks to repeal the existing Legal Practitioners Act, Cap. L11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and replace it with a modern legal framework to strengthen the regulation of the legal profession.
On the Proceeds of Crime Act (Amendment) Bill, the lawmaker said the proposed legislation seeks to address longstanding concerns over the management of assets recovered from criminal activities by creating a dedicated agency to oversee the process.
Speaking after the passage of the Proceeds of Crime Act (Amendment) Bill, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the new agency would ensure that recovered assets are managed transparently and in the interest of the Nigerian people.
“Now we have an agency that will manage those properties for the benefit of Nigerians. I also thank my colleagues for rising to the occasion and seeing the need to conclude this,” he said.
The passage of the bill comes amid recurring concerns over the custody, maintenance and disposal of assets recovered by anti-graft agencies, with stakeholders repeatedly calling for a centralised and transparent framework to prevent abuse, duplication of responsibilities and the deterioration of recovered properties.
Both bills will now be transmitted to the House of Representatives for concurrence before being forwarded to the President for assent.
