A strong case for the institutionalisation of virtual court sittings is being made in the Nigerian judiciary.
The move came in the wake of an earlier effort taken by the during the lockdown occasioned by the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to forestall a pile-up of cases, due to the Lockdown .
The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court had on May 18, 2020, made the new Practice Directions PD, for the period of the COVID-19, which allows virtual court sitting through video conferencing and electronic filing of cases in response to the COVID-19 protocol of physical distancing under the lockdown as part of efforts to stem the spread of the virus in the country.
It is believed that the National Assembly is currently considering a bill to amend the 1999 Constitution to specifically provide for virtual court proceedings by adding to section 36(3), which will state as follows: “Provided that nothing in this subsection shall invalidate proceedings of a court or proceedings of a tribunal relating to matters mentioned in subsection (1) of this section (including the announcement of the decisions of court or tribunal) where same is held by remote hearing or any virtual means now in existence or yet to be developed.
Section 36 subsection (4) is to be amended by addition of sub-paragraph (c) as follows: Nothing in the foregoing paragraph shall invalidate proceedings of a court or the proceedings of a tribunal relating to matters mentioned in subsection (1) of this section (including the announcement of the decisions of the court or tribunal) where same is held by remote hearing or any virtual means now in existence if yet to be developed.
While section 36 subsection of (1) is to be amended by addition of the following subsection 13: In this section, ‘remote hearing’ means proceedings or hearings of a court conducted via Zoom, Skype, Whatsapp video or any other social platform, or technological innovation.”
Renowned Maritime lawyer, Mike Igbokwe SAN who is in the vanguard of the trend of exploring the virtual court sitting procedure to fast-the speedy dispensation of justice in the post-pandemic period, believed it was high time things were done decisively.
Igbokwe, who made his views known while delivering a speech at the Mike Igbokwe (SAN) & Co Zoom Mi Webinar Series on “COVID-19 and the Nigerian Maritime Sector: Lessons and the Way Forward” recently, noted that virtual hearing should be permanent in the FHC, especially for maritime cases and applied in all its proceedings henceforth and not just for the period of the COVID-19 pandemic as revealed by the COVID-19 PD.
Igbokwe therefore argued that virtual sitting and electronic filing should be made permanent features of the Federal High Courts in the post pandemic era, given their several merits, adding that it should be made to run side-by-side with in-person or physical hearing, which has come to stay as a part of ‘the new normal’ all over the world.
The foremost maritime lawyer cited a letter by the Justice Reform Project dated April 14, 2020 and addressed to the Chief Justice of Nigeria CJN requesting for a temporary deployment and subsequent permanent technological upgrade of technology for the hearing and determination of case.
Other benefits include attracting foreign direct investment FDI, which Nigeria’s economy needs so much to grow, considers as a paramount consideration, the nature and speed of dispute resolution mechanism in a country.
He also said: With the introduction of e-filing and virtual hearing in the FHC, the time has come for the introduction of teleconferencing in the hearing and determination of urgent maritime applications. For instance, an applicant for the ex parte arrest of ship or other property or interim application for mareva injunction, should after e-filing the processes, be able to make from his office or home, an audio or telephone conference with the Judge of the Federal High Court in his office or home, during which the application can be heard and determined one way or the other”.
Segun Fatuase
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