An agenda for the new Chief Justice of Nigeria, By Odinkalu, Ojukwu, Erugo & Obono

Amid the greatest crisis of judicial authority since Nigeria’s independence in 1960, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on 23 August 2024 swore in an Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN). For the new Chief Justice, this challenge is also an opportunity to articulate an agenda for reform that can restore public trust in the judiciary. Such an agenda must address the following:

• ensuring merit-based judicial appointments;
• addressing the problem of abuse of interim injunctions, ex-parte orders, and conflicting judgments;
• enhancing judicial discipline and accountability;
• addressing the crisis of political cases, election petitions, and judicialization of politics; and
• reform of the Supreme Court.

1. Judicial Appointments

The National Judicial Council (NJC), which oversees judicial appointments and is led by the CJN, has been severely criticism for mishandling judicial appointments. In 2020, for instance, it authorised 15 vacancies for…