Expert Urges Nigeria To Embrace Online Dispute Resolution

An Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) expert, Mubarak Nurudeen, has proffered a solution to the problem of court backlogs in Nigeria.

Nurudeen, during an interview with LEADERSHIP, said online dispute resolution (ODR) should be employed by Nigeria’s government to solve the problems associated with court backlogs.

Backlogs of cases in courts have long been a challenge for legal systems around the world, particularly in Nigeria, where cases often take years to resolve.

” These delays not only undermine access to justice but also strain economic growth by making dispute resolution slower and more costly for individuals and businesses alike,” he said.

Nurudeen, who noted that court backlogs have long been a challenge for legal systems, particularly in the U.S. and Nigeria, added that ” in the U.S, federal courts had over 371,000 pending civil cases as of March 2023, with nearly 20,000 remaining unresolved for more than three years. The situation is even more severe in U.S. immigration courts, where the backlog has exceeded 1.6 million cases, resulting in more than four years of average wait times.

” In Nigeria, the situation is similarly dire, with around 200,000 unresolved cases clogging the system.”

Nurudeen explained that civil disputes, especially those involving land matters, can take 10 to 20 years to resolve, creating a serious deterrent for businesses and foreign investors.

He posited that ODR provides an innovative and scalable solution to the challenges.

He added: ” By utilising technology such as video conferencing and digital case management, ODR allows disputes to be resolved more quickly and affordably. ”

He noted that some U.S. states have succeeded with ODR programmes, such as Utah and Michigan, where small claims and family court matters are processed more efficiently.

He pointed out that in Utah, over 12,000 disputes have been resolved since 2018 through various online dispute resolution mechanisms.

While ODR adoption in Nigeria is still in its early stages, Nurudeen points to emerging platforms like SettlementHub as promising alternatives to traditional litigation.

He suggests that if Nigeria shifted just 25% of its current backlog to ODR platforms, resolution times could drop from five to ten years to less than a year.

Nurudeen said that the economic benefits of ODR are undeniable, noting that ” in the U.S, it could save litigants and courts billions of dollars annually, while in Nigeria, a wider adoption of ODR could improve the ease of doing business and attract more foreign investment.”

He emphasised that ODR is not only a solution for reducing court backlogs but also a powerful tool for modernizing the legal system and supporting economic growth in both countries.