The Fate of International Maritime Arbitration under Nigerian Law

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ABSTRACT

The Fate of International Maritime Arbitration under Nigerian Law

Onyekachi Kenneth Ugwuokpe*

Disputes often arise from cross-border business engagements and, lack of confidence of foreign businesses in the competence and integrity of nationalistic adjudicatory frameworks like the court systems, has worked to sustain international commercial arbitration as a favoured alternative. Also, globalization has led to an increased awareness of the interdependence of all nations, and a genuine desire by states to co-operate among themselves on many fronts, including but not limited to the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards. Nigeria is not an exception in this regard. This paper sets out to examine Nigeria’s current international arbitration law regime with emphasis on the tensions between the provisions of Nigeria’s Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1988 and the Admiralty Jurisdiction Act, 1991 relating to the international maritime arbitration clauses and awards. In doing this, references will be made where necessary to the laws and practices of international commercial or maritime arbitration in other nations for a better appreciation of the peculiarity or otherwise of Nigeria’s maritime arbitration laws.

Keywords: International Maritime Arbitration, Arbitral award, Globalisation, Foreign Judgment.

*LLB (HONS) BL Nigeria, LL.M (Dalhousie). This paper is largely based on the author’s 2015 Major Paper in Maritime Law Course at the Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, Halifax, supervised by Prof Aldo Chircop. The author is grateful to the Dalhousie University Faculty of Graduate Studies, Schulich School of Law and the Law Foundation of Nova Scotia for
the funding for the LLM program.

THE GRAVITAS REVIEW OF BUSINESS & PROPERTY LAW VOL.10 NO.3