AN APPRAISAL OF CUSTOMARY LAW ARBITRATION AS ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION MECHANISM IN NIGERIA

Human interaction is in coexistence with conflict which is attainable to individual differences arising from the varying preferences, basically the court is the constitutionally recognized institution charged with the responsibility of resolving disputes, the court however has proven to be unsatisfactory due to its expensiveness and time consumption, this necessitated, the inculcation of disputes resolution mechanism otherwise known as alternative dispute resolution. Von Savigny, a German jurist and the founder of the historical school of jurisprudence was of the opinion that law found room in the spirit (Volksgiet) and conscience of the people basically their custom and tradition. This conveys the idea that law is more than a simple collection of disparate rules, cause the law expresses and reflects the whole cultural outlook of the people governed by it. Ontology means the philosophical understanding of the nature of beings, existence or reality s well as the basic classifications of beings and their interactions. African concept of ontology finds expression in its system of justice dispensation and gives meaning to its notion of custom and norms as a means of regulating law. Statutorily custom is explained to mean a rule which from young usage has gained the force of law. Customarily, the need to adopt traditional means of resolving disputes in situations where the courts are not easily reachable has given greater impetus to customary law arbitration in line with the organic and dynamic nature of the society. The mode of data collection was the primary and secondary mode which is still part of the doctrinal and empirical methodology employed in this work. The empirical methodology or primary sources, relies on observation and experimentations not theory, this is done by collecting information relating to the universe by first hand study. The doctrinal methodology or secondary source consist of research which are carried out bases on legal propositions i.e., case laws, statutory authorities, journal, legal and non-legal text books etc., During the production of this work the researcher encountered monetary issues, issue of limited time and electricity issues as these were the important things needed during the production of this work. An appraisal of customary law arbitration as a mechanism for alternative dispute resolution mechanism in Nigeria seeks to address the initial reluctance not to cast serious aspersion on the adequacy of customary arbitration in Nigeria. This work recommends customary arbitration as a valid means of settling disputes which should not be observed cause of the modern arbitration