Customary Courts
E292606
Customary Courts are grassroots-level judicial bodies in Nigeria that apply indigenous customary law to resolve local civil and family disputes, particularly in rural communities.
All labels observed (2)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Customary Courts (Nigeria) | 2 |
| Customary Courts canonical | 1 |
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
court
ⓘ
customary court ⓘ |
| administeredBy | state governments of Nigeria ⓘ |
| appealTo |
Customary Courts of Appeal of the States
ⓘ
surface form:
Customary Court of Appeal (state level)
High Court ⓘ
surface form:
High Court of a state (in some cases)
|
| appliesCustomsOf | particular ethnic groups ⓘ |
| appliesLaw | indigenous customary law ⓘ |
| boundBy |
Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
ⓘ
surface form:
Nigerian Constitution (supremacy of constitution)
|
| costCharacteristic | relatively low-cost proceedings ⓘ |
| country | Nigeria ⓘ |
| decisionBasis |
community norms
ⓘ
local customs ⓘ |
| emphasises |
conciliation
ⓘ
restorative solutions ⓘ |
| excludesJurisdiction | serious criminal offences ⓘ |
| focus |
application of customary law
ⓘ
dispute resolution ⓘ |
| formalisedDuring | colonial period ⓘ |
| hearsCasesFrom | local community members ⓘ |
| historicalOrigin | pre-colonial indigenous dispute resolution institutions ⓘ |
| jurisdiction |
civil disputes
ⓘ
family disputes ⓘ local disputes ⓘ |
| languageOfProceedings | local languages ⓘ |
| legalSystem | Nigerian legal system ⓘ |
| level | grassroots-level ⓘ |
| linkedTo |
Customary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory
ⓘ
surface form:
Customary Court of Appeal (Nigeria)
|
| mayBePresidedOverBy |
lay judges
ⓘ
traditional leaders (depending on state law) ⓘ |
| mustNotContradict | constitutional human rights ⓘ |
| objective | reflect community values in adjudication ⓘ |
| primaryFunction |
administer customary justice
ⓘ
resolve local disputes ⓘ |
| proceduralStyle | less formal than higher courts ⓘ |
| recognisedBy | Nigerian state laws ⓘ |
| roleInAccessToJustice | provide accessible justice in rural areas ⓘ |
| servesPopulation | ethnically diverse communities ⓘ |
| subjectTo | oversight by higher courts ⓘ |
| typicalLocation | rural communities ⓘ |
| typicalMatters |
chieftaincy matters
ⓘ
divorce ⓘ inheritance ⓘ land disputes ⓘ marriage issues ⓘ |
| usesEvidenceRules | flexible rules of evidence ⓘ |
| variesBy | state legislation ⓘ |
Referenced by (3)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
subject surface form:
Magistrates’ Courts (Nigeria)
this entity surface form:
Customary Courts (Nigeria)
subject surface form:
Area Courts (Nigeria)
this entity surface form:
Customary Courts (Nigeria)