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| Justice Kudirat Motonmori |
In the polished new headquarters of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) in Area 3, Garki, Abuja, on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, Chief Justice of Nigeria Justice Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun delivered a message that cut through the ceremonial pomp of a legal year opening and building commissioning. Heavy caseloads, she declared, can never justify impatience, discourtesy, or inadequate attention to the matters before the courts.
“The volume of cases before a court can be demanding but pressure must never become an excuse for impatience, discourtesy or inadequate attention to the matters placed before the court,” the CJN said. “Every case represents real people, real businesses, real livelihoods and, sometimes, circumstances of considerable personal hardship. The parties may not always obtain the outcome they seek but they are entitled to know that their cases have been heard carefully, fairly and impartially.”
The remarks, delivered during the 2026/2027 Legal Year Ceremony that doubled as the formal commissioning of the NICN’s purpose-built headquarters at No. 1 Hon. Justice Babatunde Adejumo Street, go far beyond a routine exhortation. They speak to a deeper crisis of capacity, public trust, and institutional culture in Nigeria’s judiciary at a time when the country is already bracing for the intense scrutiny that will accompany the 2027 general elections.
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A Court Built for Workers’ Rights, Now Carrying a Growing Load
The NICN occupies a specialised and increasingly vital niche. Established in 1976 under the Trade Disputes Decree and elevated to a superior court of record by the National Industrial Court Act 2006 and the Constitution (Third Alteration) Act 2010, it holds exclusive jurisdiction over labour, employment, trade union, industrial relations, and related workplace matters. From unfair dismissals and discrimination claims to collective bargaining disputes and questions arising from digital platforms, remote work, and evolving employer-employee obligations, the court is often the last institutional line of defence for ordinary Nigerian workers and businesses navigating an uncertain economic climate.
President of the NICN, Justice Benedict Kanyip, reported that the court disposed of 2,236 cases across its judicial divisions in the preceding 12 months—a tangible reduction in its historical backlog. Yet the achievement itself illustrates the pressure: the volume remains substantial, and new forms of work continue to generate novel disputes.
The CJN herself noted that the specialised nature of the court places a particular premium on judges remaining current with rapid changes in labour and employment law.
The new headquarters, bringing Abuja-based judges under one roof for the first time in a modern facility, is more than a physical upgrade. Attorney-General of the Federation Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), represented at the event, framed it as institutional building—creating the structures, systems, and professional culture required for an increasingly important judicial responsibility. The real measure of the building’s value, he observed, will be the quality, efficiency, and fairness of the justice administered within its walls.
Backlogs, Delays, and Eroding Confidence
Kekere-Ekun’s warning does not exist in isolation. Nigeria’s superior courts have long grappled with severe congestion. Earlier data pointed to more than 243,000 pending cases across the superior courts, with individual matters sometimes lingering for years or even decades. The Federal High Court and Court of Appeal have faced particular strain, prompting legislative moves to expand judicial numbers and greater emphasis on case management, electronic filing, virtual hearings, and digital tracking.
In June 2026, the CJN had already sounded the alarm at a National Judicial Institute workshop, stressing that justice delayed is often justice denied for the ordinary litigant and that endless adjournments, procedural abuse, and weak docket control undermine public confidence and deter investment. Her latest intervention shifts the focus from systemic tools to individual judicial temperament and courtroom culture.
Public confidence, she emphasised, is earned daily—not only through the substance of decisions but through the manner in which proceedings are conducted: how judges listen, treat counsel and staff, and explain their reasoning. Judicial office, she reminded the gathering, is both a privilege and a profound responsibility. Authority derives from the Constitution and the law; it is not a personal entitlement.
Impartiality Under the Microscope
The timing of the remarks carries added weight. With the 2027 general elections approaching, the CJN specifically addressed the possibility that some NICN judges may be appointed to election petition tribunals. Such assignments, involving politically sensitive disputes that attract intense public attention, demand “an even greater degree of impartiality, restraint and detachment.” Nothing in a judge’s associations, public engagements, or other conduct should create a reasonable perception of political alignment or predisposition. Conduct, whether on the industrial court bench or a tribunal, will be closely scrutinised.
She extended parallel admonitions to the Bar. Lawyers remain indispensable partners in the administration of justice, yet the right to criticise judgments does not extend to personal attacks on judges, deliberate misrepresentation of proceedings, or attempts to pressure the court through public opinion. Genuine concerns should be channelled through institutional mechanisms. Forum shopping and parallel proceedings that risk conflicting orders must be resisted; the appropriate forum is determined by law, not by strategic calculation of favourable outcomes.
Temperament as Infrastructure
What distinguishes this intervention is its insistence that judicial temperament is itself a form of institutional infrastructure. Physical buildings, digital tools, and additional judges matter, but they cannot compensate for a culture in which pressure translates into short-tempered hearings or cursory consideration. In labour matters especially—where a delayed or poorly handled case can mean prolonged unemployment, collapsed businesses, or unresolved workplace trauma—the human stakes are immediate and visceral.
Kekere-Ekun, Nigeria’s second female Chief Justice (sworn in substantively in September 2024 after serving as Acting CJN), brings a career trajectory that lends weight to the message. Born in London in 1958 to a Lagos family with deep public-service roots, she rose through the Lagos magistracy and High Court, the Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court. Her emphasis on diligence, patience, and intellectual discipline reflects both personal formation and a clear-eyed reading of the judiciary’s current vulnerabilities.
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The Path Forward
The NICN’s progress in clearing cases offers a modest proof of concept: focused effort can yield results. Expanding that success across the judiciary will require sustained investment in manpower, technology, welfare of judicial officers and staff, and—crucially—a cultural recommitment to the idea that every litigant, regardless of the size of the docket, is entitled to careful, fair, and impartial hearing.
As Nigeria’s courts prepare for another high-stakes electoral cycle, the CJN’s warning serves as both a moral compass and a practical directive. Pressure is real. Caseloads are heavy. Yet neither can be allowed to erode the dignity of the judicial process or the confidence of the public that depends upon it.
In the end, the authority of the courts rests not only on the Constitution but on the daily conduct of those who wear the judicial robe. That confidence, as Justice Kekere-Ekun reminded her audience, must be earned afresh every single day.
Samuel O. Sulaimon is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Naijapiz. He covers News, Sports, Finance, Faiths, Education, Technology.
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