Lignin contributes to residual COD in wastewater after biological treatment. Available methods for removal of recalcitrant material like lignin, e.g. chemical oxidation and coagulation, are associated with heavy operational expenses. Stringent discharge requirements demand new cost-effective methods for removal of recalcitrant COD. Adsorption is an important mechanism for lignin removal in biological wastewater treatment. A study of lignin, using activated carbon as a model adsorbent, was performed to learn more about the adsorption behaviour of lignin. At the adsorbent dose 4 g/L and an initial lignin concentration of 0.5 g/L, 77% of the lignin was removed after six hours. The adsorption kinetics was found to follow the pseudo second-order rate expression and no temperature dependency could be observed in the temperature range studied.