Market Intelligence

The third quarter of 2026 brought significant activity across Nigeria’s dispute resolution landscape – from Compos Mentis’ own expansion into institutional ADR, to landmark Supreme Court rulings on banking mergers, maritime jurisdiction, and legislative powers, as well as notable developments in data protection and international commercial arbitration. This edition of the Dispute Resolution Digest covers the key developments.

In modern commercial contracts, arbitration clauses are commonly included as the parties’ preferred dispute resolution mechanism, given its advantages of confidentiality, flexibility, efficiency, neutrality, and access to specialist adjudicators. However, the effectiveness of such clauses ultimately depends on their drafting precision. An arbitration clause intended to be mandatory may be construed as permissive if poorly drafted or paired with a jurisdiction clause, thereby allowing a party to bypass arbitration, contrary to the parties’ intention.

One of the issues facing various legal systems across the world is striking a balance between the finality of judgments and upholding substantial justice. While the society requires an end to litigation, the pursuit of justice also demands that parties should not be barred from reopening concluded cases merely because they have attained finality

When a healthcare provider's negligence causes you harm in Nigeria, the law provides clear pathways to accountability and compensation. Understanding the four essential legal elements—duty of care, breach, causation, and damage—is critical to building a successful medical malpractice claim. This guide walks you through the statutory rights, procedural requirements, and strategic steps needed to navigate Nigeria's complex medical negligence framework.

Can a party claim general damages for breach of contract in East Africa, or must all losses be precisely calculated and proven? This analysis examines how Kenyan and Ugandan courts determine when compensation for unquantifiable harm is appropriate, revealing a gap between legal principle and courtroom practice.

The Supreme Court of Nigeria has ruled that judgment debtors cannot file motions to set aside garnishee orders nisi, declaring such applications unknown to Nigerian law. This decision in Vitachem (Nig.) Ltd. v. DSM Sinochem Pharm. I.P. Ltd. fundamentally reshapes enforcement practice by clarifying that the only lawful response to a garnishee order nisi is a counter-affidavit to show cause, not a freestanding motion to set aside.