Again, Lagos Blazes Trail in Judiciary Reform [opinion]

In view of the criticisms that the dispensation of justice in Nigeria is very slow, the Lagos State Judiciary, through the Lagos Multi-Door Courthouse (LMDC) will next week organise the Lagos Settlement Week aimed at decongesting courts of cases that can amicably be resolved out of court process.

It is increasingly recognised world wide that in many instances, there are alternative and perhaps better ways of resolving civil disputes instead of through the conventional courts. In Nigeria, unnecessary and frequent delays in judicial proceedings have often been described as the bane of administration of justice. This situation is brought about by the congestion of cases in the courts arising from avoidable factors and unnecessary adjournments leading to unusual long durations in deciding an otherwise simple case.

Lawyers have also not helped matters as they are in the habit of delaying cases especially when they discover that the pendulum may not swing in favour of their clients. They resort to legal tactics which one way or the other tend to frustrate the court from deciding the matter expeditiously.

It is against the background that the Lagos Multi-Door Courthouse (LMDC), the first court-connected ADR centre within the premises of the High Court of Lagos, in collaboration with the Lagos State Judiciary, Lagos State Ministry of Justice, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the Negotiation Conflict and Management Group (NCMG) is organising the Lagos Settlement Week (LSW). During the week, lawyers, disputants and neutrals will engage in the settlement of over 100 civil cases scheduled for mediation conferences. At these sessions, mediators will assist the parties negotiate a mutually agreeable settlement and when a settlement is reached, the Terms of Agreement are signed by the parties, their counsel and entered as a consent judgment of the High Court of Lagos by the referral judge.

Billed to commence between November 2 and 6, 2009, the LSW is aimed at decongesting the courts in Lagos State as well as impact the justice system of the state through a definitive reduction of the case load of the courts and cost within a specific time. This intervention will be achieved through the deployment of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms. And being a pilot project, the LSW is intended to establish a solid framework for judicial reform through the deployment of settlement weeks programmes in the future.

The week long event is designed by the Chief Judge of Lagos State for specific courts to clear the backlog of cases through such means, which include return to the LMDC for possible resolution through mediation, arbitration, neutral evaluation or any other Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) procedure.

The Settlement Week is intended to encourage the early settlement of cases pending litigation in the Lagos High Court and to provide satisfying solutions, timely and cost effective justice to litigants. It is also hoped that the successful implementation of the settlement week project will demonstrate the viability in ADR for justice reform and serve as a model for other states of the federation.

The LSW will have over 100 civil cases assigned to LMDC for mediation session where a mediator will help the parties negotiate a mutual agreeable settlement using the appropriate ADR mechanism for the case.

Director of LMDC, Mrs Caroline Etuk, in chat with THISDAY, noted that the goal of the Week is "to put 100 cases from selected courts in the Lagos State judiciary through the ADR mechanism for resolution and 34 courts have been designated by the Chief Judge for participation in the Settlement Week.

She said the settlement week is part of promoting public confidence in the ADR process and an excellent opportunity for the legal community to be actively involved in ADR promotion and education,. It is also meant to demonstrate the viability in ADR for justice reform and serve as a model for other states of the federation to emulate.

According to the director, going by section 3(1) (8) of the LMDC law, one of the overriding objectives of the LMDC is to promote or undertake projects or other activities including the settlement week, which in her opinion, will further assist in decongesting the courts and help to achieve the purpose for which the LMDC was established. She also hinted that the settlement week is an ADR awareness programme to promote public confidence in the ADR process and an excellent opportunity for the legal community to be actively involved in ADR promotion and education.

Etuk added that the intervention would be achieved through the deployment of ADR mechanisms, as the settlement week is intended to encourage the early settlement of cases pending litigation in the Lagos High Court and to provide satisfying solutions, timely and cost effective justice to litigants.

"The Settlement Week allows for reasonable right to self-determination which enable disputants to exercise the ability to make voluntary, uncoerced and informed decisions. This is achieveable in that the parties at the centre to the process, they are the principal actors and creators within the process; they actively and directly participate in the communication and negotiation; they choose and control the substantive; norms to guide decision-making; they create the options for settlement; and the control whether or not to settle. With respect to the legal profession, the Settlement Week offers an excellent opportunity for the legal community to be actively involved in the ADR promotion and education. It is also hoped that the successful implementation of the settlement week project will demonstrate the viability in ADR for justice reform and serve as a model for other states of the federation" she said.

Besides, she stated that all hands are on deck to ensure that dispute resolution specialists on the LMDC panel of neutrals, lawyers and retired judges who are invited to participate as facilitators in the project are well prepared.

Also, a judge of the Lagos High Court, Justice Opeyemi Oke, said the settlement week will handle cases such as the banking and insurance related dispute, landlord and tenant matters, property disputes, debt recoveries, libel and slander, administration of estate, employment and trade disputes, construction disputes, accident and tort disputes, medical negligence, contract enforcement, family dispute, succession disputes as well as small claims.

Justice Oke, who is also the Acting Chairman of the Governing Council of LMDC, lamented the duration cases take in conventional courts without the desired result and stated that after the settlement week, there would be greater awareness on the need for ADR to settle certain disputes. The judge, who also chaired the Fast Track Rule Committee where the Fast Track Rule, adopted by the Lagos State Judiciary, was produced to enhance quick delivery of justice, stated that there was need for a new commitment in the decongestion of cases in courts

In preparation for the settlement week, the Chief Judge has designated certain courts to participate in it and assignment of cases from the cause list of these designated courts are sent to a Dispute Resolution Officer who will in turn screen them for suitability and amenability to ADR.

After the screening, parties in any case and counsels in the selected cases are notified of the choice of their matters and are expected to notify the Settlement Week Administrator of their willingness and unwillingness to participate in the programme. Besides, lawyers are required to review their pending cases in the High Court of Lagos State and submit an enclosed data form for each case they feel is appropriate for mediation or other ADR modes of dispute resolution during the settlement week.

After the preparation of a week long dockets from cases submitted, parties and their counsels who received a notification for the participation in the settlement week will be required to submit a case data form and return the form to the settlement week administrator who will in turn list the case data in the settlement week docket.

According to Etuk, scheduled cases will be assigned to Neutrals and designated venues within the High Court of Lagos State and the LMDC for the appropriate ADR process. She further highlighted the process of ADR which include the Neutrals and facilitators reviewing the joint statement prior to the settlement conference.

The mediator is also expected to explain the process, his role, the use of joint and separate session, confidentiality and make disclosure relative to personal or professional relationship. At the settlement week, each party will have an opportunity to briefly present its viewpoint but there is no need for either party to present evidence or documentation of any kind.

The mediation process will pass through different sessions before the completion of the case. After the opening statement by the mediator, the opening by the parties involved in the suit, there are other sessions which include joint session. This session will be used to ask questions, make proposals or counter-proposal and engage the other side in dialogue either directly or through the facilitator.

Another session include separate session where the facilitator may decide to talk with the parties privately, in caucus or in separate session. The purpose of the separate sessions is to explore possible options for settlement that the parties may be reluctant to discuss directly with the other side.

The next stage is the separate sessions where parties in cases may instruct the facilitator that a specific settlement option or specific information is to remain confidential and the facilitator is bound not to release the information given in confidence.

The final is the agreement stage where an agreement is reached, and the mediators will convene both on sides to review the primary elements of the agreement whereby the agreement will be reduced to writing and returned to the court of the referral judge who will then enter it as a consent judgement.

Throwing more light on the functions of the LMDC, Etuk said the central mission of the courthouse, provides enhanced, timely, cost-effective and user-friendly alternatives to litigation in resolving disputes. According to her, "'multi-door' refers to the alternatives to litigation in resolving disputes available at the LMDC. Hence, instead of the traditional "mono-door" of litigation leading to the courtroom, the LMDC has five alternative and supplementary doors or options, by which disputants can resolve their disputes, namely: mediation arbitration, conciliation, early neutral evaluation and hybrid processes".

In a nation with adversarial justice system such as Nigeria, the LSW reflects a shift from the notion of advocacy which promotes adversarial tactics where positional and right based argument are offered, while compromise and settlement, if ever explored, are pushed to the last minutes. The effect of this is a winner-takes-it justice. On the contrary, the Settlement Week will promote a participatory process in which participants are involved in the process of the resolving their disputes. This definitely is not without great benefits to the stakeholders of the justice system, that is, the disputants, the legal profession and the judiciary.