NIGERIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Abubakar Anafi, Larry Nkwor, Justice Uka-Ofor and Ayomide Abiodun, G Elias
have residual jurisdiction to hear and determine any civil proceedings in which the existence or extent of a legal right, power, duty, liability, privilege, interest, obligation or claim is in issue. The National Industrial Court is focused exclusively on labour, employment
between 5 and 24 months. For inferior courts, it typi- cally takes between 3 and 9 months. 1.3 Court Filings and Proceedings Court proceedings in Nigeria are generally open to the public, except for reasons such as public defence, public safety, public order, public morality, welfare of minors, or to protect the privacy of the parties. Some rules of the courts now make provisions for an e-filing system. Similarly, court filings are accessible to the public, as they are considered public records. Applications for official copies of the filings may be granted upon the payment of nominal fees. The courts may, however, refuse to approve an application to obtain a court filing that contains personal informa- tion, proprietary trade secrets, commercial or financial information, or that is in the public interest. If the need arises for court proceedings to be kept confidential, an application may be made to the rel- evant court to invoke its statutory powers to exclude members of the public from the proceedings. 1.4 Legal Representation in Court Only persons called to the Nigerian Bar and enrolled in the Supreme Court of Nigeria may appear in any Nigerian court. This is subject to the payment of an annual practising fee. Foreign lawyers may be allowed to appear in court only if they obtain a warrant from the Chief Justice of Nigeria upon the payment of a fee. Such warrant can only be used for the proceeding in respect of which it is issued.
and related matters. The Inferior Courts
Beneath the courts aforementioned are inferior courts such as magistrate/district courts, which deal with less serious civil and criminal matters at the lower level. In Northern Nigeria, there are Sharia courts that apply Islamic law in personal and family matters, while customary courts in Southern Nigeria handle cases based on indigenous customs and traditions. Each level of inferior court operates within its designated jurisdiction, and higher courts within the same state review the decisions of these inferior courts by way of hearing appeals. With the exception of the courts in the Federal Capital Territory, the inferior courts are usually established by state (rather than federal) laws. The Federal Courts and Tribunals The Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the Federal High Court, the National Industrial Court, the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, the Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory and the Cus- tomary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory are all federal courts. There are also specialised tribu- nals such as election tribunals, the Investments and Securities Tribunal, the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the Competition and the Consumer Protection Tribunal. The Commercial Courts, Family and Probate Courts, and Small Claims Courts While no special courts are established as adminis- trative courts, some courts are designated as com- mercial courts, family and probate courts, and small claims courts. Certain subject-matter falls exclusively within the jurisdiction of the different courts already stated above. For example, state High Courts handle family/probate cases, while the magistrates’ courts act as small claims courts. Timeframe The amount of time it takes for a matter to get to trial from the commencement of proceedings depends on the court. For superior courts, it typically takes
2. Litigation Funding 2.1 Third-Party Litigation Funding
The applicable common law of champerty and main- tenance considers third-party funding as tortious conduct. Hence, the prevailing view is that Nigerian law prohibits litigation funding by a third party to the extent that English common law does so. (The exact limits of English common law on this point are not entirely clear). However, third-party funding is permis- sible in arbitration. See the Arbitration and Mediation Act, 2023 (AMA), Section 61.
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