NIGERIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Olasupo Shasore, Mofiyinfoluwa Enitan, Ibukun Fasoro and Bamidele Ikusika, Africa Law Practice NG & Company
11. Review of an Award 11.1 Grounds for Appeal Recourse Against Arbitral Awards in Nigeria: Setting Aside Rather Than Appeal Under Nigerian law, particularly at Section 55 (3) of the AMA, there is no right of appeal from an arbitral award in the traditional sense of appellate litigation. Instead, the AMA provides limited grounds on which a party may apply to set aside an award before the court of the place where the award was made, such as where a party to the arbitration agreement was under some incapacity; the arbitration agreement is not valid under the law to which the parties have subjected it; or the award is in conflict with Nigeria’s public policy. Notably, according to Section 55 (5) of the AMA, an application to set aside an arbitral award has a statu - tory limitation period of three months. Procedure for Applications to Set Aside Award Applications to set aside must generally be made within three months from the date the party received the award. Courts typically take a restrictive approach, intervening only where the specified statutory grounds are clearly met. The AMA introduces two new features that create additional, party-driven options. First, parties to a domestic arbitration may agree that an award can be appealed to the court on a question of Nigerian law. This right of appeal, however, is strictly limited to legal questions and depends entirely on party agreement. Second, the AMA establishes the option of an Arbi - tral Review Tribunal (a fresh arbitral tribunal that can reconsider an award before any recourse to court). This mechanism only applies if the parties expressly opt into it in their arbitration agreement or in writing. 11.2 Excluding/Expanding the Scope of Appeal Party Autonomy and the Scope of Challenge to Arbitral Awards in Nigeria The principle of party autonomy is fundamental and widely respected. However, when it comes to exclud - ing or expanding the statutory grounds for setting aside an arbitral award, the law draws a clear bound - ary. Parties cannot contractually expand the scope of appeal or challenge beyond what is provided in
the AMA. Conversely, parties can agree to exclude certain challenges or restrict their right to seek to set aside an award, provided such an agreement itself does not violate mandatory provisions of the Act or public policy. Separately, the new Arbitral Review Tribunal under the AMA provides an internal mechanism for reviewing awards within the arbitral process itself. Parties can opt into this by express agreement, thereby expand - ing the opportunities for correcting errors before an award becomes final. 11.3 Standard of Judicial Review Standard of Judicial Review of the Merits of a Case Under Nigerian law, courts generally adopt a defer - ential approach to the merits of an arbitral award. Judicial review is not an opportunity for the courts to reassess the facts, evidence or substantive rea - soning of the tribunal. Instead, courts focus strictly on the statutory grounds for setting aside or refusing recognition and enforcement of an award, as provided under the AMA. The courts will not conduct a de novo review of the dispute or substitute their own assessment of the merits for that of the tribunal. Even where an applica - tion is brought to set aside an award or resist enforce - ment, the review remains limited to issues such as procedural irregularity, excess of jurisdiction, breach of natural justice or matters of public policy. Nigeria’s Ratification of the New York Convention Nigeria is a signatory to the 1958 New York Conven - tion on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, having ratified it on 17 March 1970. The country applies the Convention based on two standard reservations. • Reciprocity reservation – the Convention applies only to awards made in other contracting states. • Commercial reservation – the Convention is lim - ited to disputes arising out of legal relationships, 12. Enforcement of an Award 12.1 New York Convention
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