From March 18-20, 2025, Juritrust

Centre for Socio-Legal Research and Documentation engaged with the Plateau State Justice Sector at Crispan Hotel, Jos, to examine and enhance the implementation of the Plateau State Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL) 2018.

On 17th March, 2025, the Honourable Chief Judge of the High of Plateau State, Hon. Justice David Mann welcomed members of Juritrust centre, the lead Researcher, Prof. Adedeji Adekunle SAN and Director of Studies, Mr. Olugbemi Jaiyebo in his office and gave them a brief tour round the High Court. Prof. Adekunle commended the Plateau State for having a standard Family Court which is a one-off unique feature any state can have.

DAY 1

The 3-day program which held at Crispan Hotel, Jos officially kicked off on 18th March, 2025 with a one-day engagement with the Justice Sector Reform Team. It was a strategic session with the Justice Sector Reform Team (JSRT), including magistrates, the Ministry of Justice, the Nigerian Police, Correctional Services, the NBA, and Legal Aid. This meeting focused on key legal issues such as lay prosecution, confessional statements, case management, plea bargains, witness protection, and sentencing. The discussion also incorporated gender mainstreaming and disability inclusion to align with best practices in justice. The Honourable Chief Judge, Hon. Justice David Mann, in his opening remarks, emphasized the importance of legal reforms in upholding due process and ensuring an effective justice system and beckoned on all stakeholders to continue to strive to ensure the standard of justice doesn’t fall. The Attorney General of the State was duly represented by Mrs Shetak Beeklang. The insights and deliberation left all participants with a call to be more intentional with complying with the law as well as fostering co-operation amongst all stakeholders. (INSERT PICTURES FROM DAY ONE)

DAY 2

The final two days focused on engaging only the Honourable Judges of the High Court of Justice, Plateau State, with discussions on admissibility of evidence, case management, sentencing guidelines, and gender-sensitive criminal justice reforms. The Hon. Chief Judge in his opening statements addressed the issues of lack of technology and lack of knowledge on compliance with law amongst law enforcement bodies as one of the crucial challenges faced within the justice system. In the course of deliberation on presentations made, the Hon. Judges noted that case management is inevitable and more efforts will be done to ensure cases are dispensed with speedily. Also, of importance is the need to examine the law from the gender equality and social inclusion perspective. It is obvious that more work needs to be done in terms of structural renovations and legal provisions to ensure justice is accessible and inclusive within the state. The engagement concluded with closing remarks from Mr. Olugbemi Jaiyebo, Director of Studies, who expressed gratitude to the Chief Judge, Justices, and JSRT members, emphasizing that the insights gained would drive meaningful legal reforms in the state. 

#LegalReform #JusticeForAll #ACJL2018 #JuritrustCentre #PlateauStateJustice

The Behavioural Insights and Ethical Norms in Justice

Administration Research Study (the Study) is an interdisciplinary study of corruption in the Nigerian judicial sector. The Study is an initiative of the Juritrust Centre for Socio-Legal Research and Documentation (the Juritrust Centre). The Study is part of a larger project on the implementation of the ACJA and Anti-corruption laws by the Juritrust Centre with the support of the MacArthur Foundation. The Study duly acknowledges that the anti-corruption fight needs reform champions in critical sectors, including the Judiciary. However, it emphasizes the importance of ethics and demands behavioural change among actors and players in the judicial sector. It also acknowledges the shortcomings of technical legal training that focuses exclusively on legal frameworks and ignores the social and ethical milieu in which judicial activity exists. The Study is thus adopting behavioural change strategies and ethics to address the problem of corruption in the judicial sector. The following is an overview of the study. A detailed report of the study will be published by the Centre later this year.

Following the enactment of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2022 and the Administration of Civil Justice Law 2022 in Delta State the Delta State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Isaiah Bozimo, Esq

convened a workshop for a broad range of actors and stakeholders. The workshop which held from the 10th to the 12th of May 2023, centred around the innovations and fundamental aspects of the two laws which are already being acknowledged as trailblazers in the country’s legal framework.

The workshop was attended by the Chief Judge and the Honourable Judges of the High Court of Delta State and the first and second days of the workshop x-rayed the Administration of civil Justice Law and the Administration of Criminal Justice Law respectively.

The sessions for the first day examined Pre-litigation Requirements and Costs, Active Case Management. Alternative Dispute Resolution and Interim Remedies Reference (IRR) and the role of Information Technology within the justice system. The sessions were facilitated by senior lawyers which included Mrs Funke Adekoya SAN and Babatunde Fagbohunlu SAN

Similarly, the criminal justice sessions were helmed by an array of industry stalwarts. Prof. Yemi Akinseye George, SAN, provided a comprehensive overview of the new provisions within the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2022. Chino Obiagwu, SAN, dissected the Case Management provisions, while Prof. Festus Emiri, SAN, elucidated on the Sentencing and Restitution provisions.

The concluding day broadened the scope of participation to include a diverse range of stakeholders. This included Magistrates, Presidents of Area Customary Courts, Court Registrars, State Counsel from the Ministry of Justice, Legal Aid Council, representatives from the Department of State Services, Nigeria Correctional Service and officers from the Nigerian Police Force.

In his closing remarks the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of Delta State, Isaiah Bozimo, Esq.underscored the commitment of the Ministry of Justice to continuous capacity building for staff. True to his words he unveiled detailed implementation workbooks for the Civil and Criminal Justice Laws of Delta State which are designed to guide application of the laws and the adoption of best legal practices in their implementation.

JURITRUST Centre for Socio Legal Research and Documentation invites submission of short articles from VOLUNTEER CONTRIBUTORS who are interested in sharing their perspectives on salient issues in the administration and development of the Nigerian Criminal Justice System, comparative systems and related issues.

The Centre engages in researching and tracking of legal, developmental and governance issues. It publishes a monthly newsletter that features short articles which undertakes in-depth analysis of anti-corruption and criminal justice matters.

Submitted works should focus on arrest and pre-trial matters, trial and interlocutory matters, sentencing and ancillary orders, corruption and money laundering, electoral crimes, criminal justice reform, restorative justice, sexual and gender based violence, human rights and other matters related to criminal justice system.

All Volunteer Contributors should-

1. write and submit original articles-

• in simple and clear English
• 3-5 pages using Times New Roman, Font size 13 and 1.5-line spacing.
• that are not in breach of copyright or intellectual property.
• that have not been published elsewhere before submission to editor.

2. not plagiarise or copy and paste the works of other writers from other sources.

3. approach any topic or issue from a balanced point of view.

4. ensure articles are topical, timely or of recent happenings and developments in the socio-legal sphere.

5. not make defamatory allegations or attack any personality or organisation.

6. assign publishing rights to Juritrust Centre to publish and republish the article on its website in any way it deems fit. NOTE: This is without prejudice to right of author to publish elsewhere subject to an acknowledgement of where the article first appeared.

7. not claim to represent the Centre or its views unless employed to do so.

Please note that submitted articles –

1. will be published subject to positive report from reviewers;
2. are entirely on a voluntary basis. The Centre does not pay nor receive payment for the work; and
3. must be accompanied by the author’s full names, description and mailing address.

If you are Interested in submitting an article or being a JURITRUST Volunteer Contributor, please send a sample of original article to publications@juritrustcentre.org

The Centre is conducting a study on Behavioural Insights on Ethical Norms in the Justice Administration. As part of the project, the Centre undertook an interdisciplinary

study of corruption in the Nigerian judicial sector with the support of the Macarthur Foundation which progressed into the coding and analyses of field data phase this December, 2022.

Pre-Data Collation Workshop for Researchers May 2022

Dr Kole Shettima Director MacArthur Foundation addresses Researchers at the Workshop in May 2022

The Study duly acknowledges that the anti-corruption fight needs reform champions in critical sectors, including the Judiciary. It also acknowledges the shortcoming existing literature on anti-corruption that focus exclusively on legal frameworks and ignores the social and ethical milieu in which judicial activity exists. The Study is thus adopting behavioural change strategies and ethics to address the problem of corruption in the judicial sector.

Dr Sesan Peter, Analyst and Prof Victor Adetula, Project coordinator at the workshop

Dr Suzzie Oyakhire Member PMC and Juritrust Lead Prof Adekunle compare notes at the May workshop

The first phase of the Study surveyed through the use of semi structured interviews perceptions, opinions and viewpoints of Judicial Officers and other stakeholders in the judicial sector on the scope, forms and social context of corruption in the Nigerian judiciary. 18 state judiciaries collaborated with the Centre on the Project which aims to also share preliminary results with the collaborating states in experience sharing interactive sessions planned for the second phase of the project. Prior to the deployment of the Researchers to start the survey, they were invited to Abuja for a two-day training workshop. The training workshop held at Blue Springs Hotel, Abuja in May 2022. The training workshop was intended to educate the Researchers on the Study’s objectives, to familiarize the Researchers with the research tools to be used during the interviews and to also communicate the appropriate manner to be adopted by the Researcher when seeking and conducting the interviews.

The project will lead to the publication of a research report on the findings of the Study which is expected to aid in the understanding of the issue of corruption in the Nigerian judicial sector.

In spite of the innovations introduced in ACJA 2015, several of its provisions remain unimplemented or poorly implemented due to serious

constraints such as lack of infrastructure, logistics, personnel, for particularly inadequate understanding and appreciation of the dynamics of the key provisions of the law. 

The Juritrust Centre, regards as strategic the organisation of intensive capacity building for relevant Stakeholders including Judges and Magistrates on the implementation of the Law, if the objectives of the enactments are to be realized.

Participants at the Ekiti ACJL Workshop 2022

In line with this, Juritrust organised a series of training workshops on the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 and anti-corruption for Magistrates in Cross River State (20-21 June); Sokoto and Kebbi States (27 -28 June); Bauchi and Plateau States; Ekiti State (4^th – 5^th July) and Oyo and Ogun States (21- 22 July

The sessions involved presentations with the sole purpose of building better understanding of the administration of criminal justice. Such presentations gave overviews of the Administration of Criminal Justice Laws (ACJL) in these States along with current developments/ innovations. It also allowed for information and experience sharing through interactive sessions on topics like Non-Custodial Sentencing, Magisterial Visits to Detention Facilities-Sharing Experience, Plea Bargain Agreement in Magistrate Court and the ACJL and Complementary Criminal Statutes which was led by the Centre’s Lead Researcher, Professor Adedeji Adekunle, SAN

Some members of the Faculty at the Oyo/Ogun ACJL Workshop with the Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice A. Ladipo.

Sessions also revealed similar and peculiar challenges faced by judges and magistrates such as Security of the Magistrates especially those in rural areas; Non-cooperation from the police; and the dearth of infrastructure and resources facilitate effective Criminal justice administration.

Magistrates at the ACJL Workshop in Ekiti state. 4-5 July 2022

A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and Department of Public Prosecution of the Federal Ministry of justice (DPP-FMOJ) was formally

launched on the 28^th of November 2022. The SOP is the outcome of a collaboration between the ACJMC Sub-committee on Investigation and Prosecution, GIZ, , FCT Magistrates, RoLAC, NIALS and some CSOs including CSLS and JURITRUST.

The SOP draws strength from the Constitution, ACJA 2015, Police Act 2020 and provides step by step guidelines on  NPF-DPP-FMOJ cooperation aimed at – (a) promoting early engagement of a law officer of the DPP-FMOJ to guide NPF officials on ingredients relevant to establish an offence under investigation for a prosecution-led-investigation; (b) early notification and engagement of a prosecutor from the DPP-FMOJ in investigation of cases the DPP-FMOJ is solely empowered to prosecute and; (c) encouraging police prosecutors to be part of DPP-FMOJ team during prosecution for an investigation-led-prosecution.

Furthermore, the Standard Operating Procedure emphasizes the importance of utilizing liaison officers and the need for consistent joint trainings between investigators and prosecutors to exchange knowledge on common issues and share lessons learnt.

The development and adoption of a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) became necessary when a gap between investigators and prosecutors of the NPF and DPP-FMOJ was discovered by the Investigation and Prosecution Sub-Committee of the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC) inaugurated in December 2017, by Hon. Justice Ishaq Bello the former Chief Judge of the FCT to enhance inter-agency cooperation amongst law enforcement agencies. This in turn led to the inauguration of an NPF-DPP-FMOJ focal group by Hon. Justice Husseini Baba-Yusuf, in May 2022 to formalize bilateral cooperation between NPF & DPP-FMOJ.

In line with advancing Criminal Justice, the Centre in collaboration with MacArthur Foundation held a 3-day Regional Conference on Criminal Justice Administration

from the 1st to 3rd of November 2022. The theme of the Conference was ‘CONSOLIDATING REFORMS IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND ITS ADMINISTRATION – BEST PRACTICES’ with the key objective of facilitating exchange of knowledge and experience between attendees with reference to several practical options and best practices in the Criminal Justice system in other jurisdictions.

Cross-section of delegates at the Regional conference Nov 1-3, 2022

There were five sub-themes and each sub-theme was worked on in the different sessions where speakers, stakeholders, invited guests all shared their perspective and gave recommendations. The sub- themes were anti- corruption trials, case management, pre-trial detention, non-custodial punishment and Restorative justice.

Some Resource Persons at Regional Conference on Criminal Justice 1-3 Nov. 2022

Guest speakers from Nigeria and other jurisdictions namely Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and South Africa.

At the recently concluded regional conference of November 1-3, 2022 on Criminal Justice Administration in Nigeria, themed Consolidating Reforms in Criminal Justice and its Administration in Sub-Saharan Africa, several practical options were show-cased as

best practice deployed in other jurisdictions to combat challenges faced in the administration of criminal justice. The Conference was organized by the Juritrust Centre for Socio Legal Research and Documentation and featured experts from Nigeria and other countries namely Ghana, Kenya, Uganda South Africa and Rwanda

Discontinuance Of Judge

One of the issues in focus was the delay occasioned when a judge is unable to continue with a trial because of incapacity or where the judge is elevated to a higher judicial office.  Recall that the Supreme Court had in UDE JONES UDEOGU V. FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA & ORS (2016) LPELR-40102(SC

invalidated section 396(7) of the ACJA 2015 which provided that an elevated judge may be granted leave to conclude such proceedings and directed that the trial in the instant case which commenced in 2007 should begin de novo. Noting that in many such cases witnesses may no longer be available or evidence destroyed thus making a renewed trial difficult, the Conference examined best practices in place in other African jurisdictions which have eliminated such challenges of delay by trial de novo. 

Justice Nicholas Abodaki, of the High Court of Ghana observed that a proper case management technique could avoid such challenges. He said for example the court cannot adjourn cases for more than 14 days. Additionally he said the practice in Ghana is that the new judges adopt existing records of proceedings of a case when they take over such cases. While this practice used to be limited to summary proceedings it has been extended to criminal trials generally.

Justice Eva Luwata of the Ugandan Court of Appeal, Uganda affirmed that it is good practice that when a judge is elevated, the cases must continue. However in criminal cases, if trial involves assessors and the trial was not completed at the time of elevation it is started de novo. The law is that a judge who begins a trial should finish the trial and it can be subject to appeal. But in civil case, the practice is that a new judge simply reads the record and continues from there.  In civil matters, you don’t have to go de novo, but it is different in criminal matters due to the nature of the criminal cases.

Weighing in on the discussions Mr Henry Emore, Director Legal Department in the ICPC, pointed out that  S.38 of Evidence Act provides that previous proceedings can be relied upon if the judge is no longer there.  However, in practice, he added that 99% of Nigerian judges are not disposed to applying the provision as it deprives them of the opportunity to evaluate testimony or the demeanour of witnesses.

Case Tracking and Identity Management

On the delay in justice process and challenge in case management, Oluwafunke Adeoye, Executive Director, Hope Behind Bars Initiative, in her presentation on Leveraging Technology as a Tool for Reducing Pretrial Detention in Africa: Lessons from Kenya drew attention to technology as a complementary effort of automation in speeding up the justice process. Using Kenya as a case study intervention for poor case management, she mentioned the role of case management technology in terms of electronic filing, electronic case search, electronic case tracking  and use of verification and identity management technology for thorough verification of suspects/ criminals at point of arrest. She encouraged the synergy between available technologies and already existing measures such as BVN, NIN for the justice system.