CONTENTS OF THIS PAGE   

• CHARACTERISTICS
• CRIMINAL & CIVIL LAW
• PUBLIC & PRIVATE LAW
• SOURCES OF NIGERIAN LAW
• COURTS
• OTHER LINKS

CHARACTERISTICS

• At the Federal level, there is a general federal legal system that is applicable throughout the country.
• At the lower levels, each state (including Abuja) has it's own legal system.
• Also, local customs are applicable laws in some states.

CRIMINAL & CIVIL LAW

CRIMINAL LAW

• felony
• misdemeanor
• simple offense

CIVIL LAW

• contract breach: a contract is an agreement that is enforceable by law. If it is broken, the party that breaks it has to compensate the other party for damages.
• tort: a civil wrong independent of an agreement. Once again, the party at fault has to compensate the other party.
• breach of trust: a trust is the relationship which arises when someone who holds a certain property has an obligation to deal with it for the benefit of another person.

PUBLIC & PRIVATE LAW

PUBLIC LAW

• Criminal Law: the part of the law that deals with crimes being committed and punishment of those crimes.
• Constitutional Law: the part of the law that deals with
  • the structure of different parts of the government
  • the relationship between them
  • their principal functions
• Administrative Law: the part of the law that deals with the functions of the different government agencies.
• Revenue Law: the part of the law that controls taxation and other sources of government revenue.

PRIVATE LAW

• Law Of Contract: when a written agreement is violated.
• Law Of Tort: when a non-written agreement is violated.
• Law Of Trust: when someone is supposed to deal with property for the interest of someone else.
• Law Of Property: this controls title or interest in property.
  This can be further divided into:
  • real property (like real estate)
  • personal property, which can be further divided into:
    • tangible property (property that can be touched, like stocks, etc.)
    • intangible property (property that can not be touched, like copyrights, etc.)
• Company Law: the part of the law that governs the association of different people having a common object like a business undertaking.
• Partnership Law: governs the agreements between two or more people who have agreed to carry on a business and share the profits and losses in predetermined proportions.
• Commercial Law: controls trade and commerce.
• Family Law: deals with family issues such as marriage, parent-and-child relationships, custody, adoption, etc.
• Law Of Succession: governs how property is passed on after someone dies.
• Private International Law: deals with cases that involve more than one legal system.
• Law Of Evidence: relates to proof that is provided in a court room.
• Law Of Remedies: governs the remedies given by the court for an offense.
  • Damages: when money is offered as compensation for the offense.
  • Mandatory Injunction: when the court orders an individual to perform a certain act.
  • Prohibitive Injunction: when the court orders an individual NOT to perform a certain act, or to STOP performing a certain act.
  • Specific Performance: when the court orders someone to fulfill an obligation.

SOURCES OF NIGERIAN LAW

1. Nigerian legislation
2. English law which consists of:
   1. the received English law which was introduced into Nigerian law by Nigerian Legislature, and consists of:
      1. the common law
      2. the doctrines of equity
      3. statutes of general application in force in England on January 1, 1900
      4. statutes of subsidiary legislation on specified matters
   2. English law made before October 1, 1960 (independence day) and extending to Nigeria (and was introduced into Nigerian law by the English Legislation, and must be repealed by the appropriate authority in Nigeria before it is no longer applicable in Nigeria, regardless of it's applicability in England).
3. Customary law
4. Judicial precedents: the principle of law on which a judicial decision is based.

LEGISLATION

• Statutes: laws enacted by the Legislature (which is a part of the government). This further consists of:
  • Ordinances: laws passed by the Nigerian Central Legislature before October 1, 1954.
  • Acts: an enactment made by the Federal Legislature before January 16, 1966.
  • Laws: any enactment made by the Legislature of a region or having effect as if made by that Legislature, or any subordinate legislation.
  • Decrees: an enactment made by the Federal Military Government.
  • Edicts: enactment made by a military governor, or by the administrator of the former east-central state.
• Subsidiary Legislation: laws enacted in the exercise of powers given by a statute.

CUSTOMARY LAW

1. By Proof: proving it to the court
2. By Judicial Notice: obvious facts that don't need to be proved

COURTS

• Superior Court: Courts that have 'unlimited' jurisdiction.
• Inferior Court: Courts whose jurisdiction limits depend on the type and value of the subject matter.
• Court of Record: A court which has the power to punish contempt.

• SUPREME COURT: This is a superior court of record, and the highest level of courts in Nigeria. It can hear appeals from the Federal Court of Appeal.
• FEDERAL COURT OF APPEAL: This is a superior court (of record). It is mainly a court of appeal, and has exclusive jurisdiction to hear appeals from the State High Courts, the Federal Revenue Court, and other courts as specified by law.
• COURTS OF RESOLUTION: This is a court mostly in the northern states, and it has the jurisdiction to resolve conflicts between the High Court and the Sharia Court of Appeal., or to decide which court has jurisdiction in cases where both decide that they do not have the jurisdiction.
• SHARIA COURTS OF APPEAL: This is a superior customary court of record which hears appeals from the Upper Area courts in cases that involve Muslim personal law.
• FEDERAL REVENUE COURT: This court operates in at least 4 Judicial divisions, and in the end, covers the entire country. The area of each division is determined by the president of the court. Most of it's cases have to deal with matters of revenue.
• STATE HIGH COURTS: These are courts set up in each state. If customary and area courts exist in the state, the High courts do not deal with Customary laws. Their jurisdiction is usually determined by the subject type and the monetary value. They can hear appeals from the lower courts.
• MAGISTRATE COURTS: Every state has a magistrate court. The magistrates in each state are divided into a number of classes, and the classification determines the level of jurisdiction and the powers that each magistrate owns. Magistrates are appointed, and the rules and classifications can differ from state to state.
• DISTRICT COURTS: These courts exist in some of the Northern states. Their jurisdiction involves civil cases dealing with monetary issues within a certain value.
• CUSTOMARY AND AREA COURTS: These courts exist in many states, and deal with issues that are covered in the customary law. They are under the control and supervision of the Minister of Justice of the state. They have unlimited civil jurisdiction in cases of family law, and criminal jurisdiction in a few areas.
• JUVENILE COURTS: Some states have special courts that are established for the trial of young offenders, and for the welfare of the young. They mainly consist of a magistrate and some other members.
• CORONERS: A coroner is a person that can hold inquests on the body of a deceased person who seems to have died a violent or unnatural death, or a body that belong to any other class specified by the appropriate Coroner's law. Coroners can be Magistrates or other people. The main purpose would be to investigate the cause of death.
• NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURTS: These courts deal with trade disputes (any dispute between employees, or between employees and their employer) and collective agreements (disputes between different organizations and/or employers).
• MILITARY COURTS: These courts exist in some parts of the country, and their jurisdiction is limited to members of the military.
• TRIBUNALS: These are bodies performing judicial or quasi-judicial functions. They have been determined by the legislature to be experts in a particular area of the law, and are given permission to deal with a certain area of the law.

OTHER LINKS

• Nigeria-Law.org
• Law Overview
• Nigeria Law Firms
• Martindale-Hubbell Lawyer Locator: Once there, you can search just in Nigeria if you wish.
• EagleLink: Find a lawyer
• Lawyers Committee for Human Rights
• FindLaw: Nigeria
• Alex Scott & Partners
• Homepage of Michael Opeyemi Bamidele
• Bamidele Law Consortium