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7 Beijing L. Rev. 430 (2016)
Customary Law, Social Development and Administration of Justice in Nigeria

handle is hein.journals/beijlar7 and id is 432 raw text is: Scientific *@ Research Publishing Beijing Law Review, 2016, 7, 430-442 http://wwwsci rp.org/iournal /bir ISSN Online: 2159-4635 ISSN Print: 2159-4627 Customary Law, Social Development and Administration of Justice in Nigeria Matthew Enya Nwocha Faculty of Law, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, Nigeria Email: nwochaenyaeni@gmail.com How to cite this paper: Nwocha, M. E. (2016). Customary Law, Social Develop- ment and Administration of Justice in Ni- geria. Bei/ing Law Review, 7, 430-442. littp//dx doi~org/10.4236/blr.2016.74034 Received: November 25, 2016 Accepted: December 27, 2016 Published: December 30, 2016 Copyright © 2016 by author and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Abstract Customary law is the law that captures the norms, traditions and rules of behaviour of the people. It is the law propelled by the worldview, beliefs, philosophies and value system of the people. In traditional societies, customary laws were largely unchal- lenged save by compelling innovations that re-channeled aspects of the practices of the people and subsequently altered its traditions. Since the introduction of English law in the administration of justice in Nigeria about a century ago, customary law has been fighting for breath and a large chunk of it has not survived the conflict that was the necessary outcome of the contact. This paper has discussed the nature of jus- tice that the hybrid legal system has produced. It has answered the question whether the judicial system that yields legal justice has produced social justice as well. It has also made projections into the future of customary law and examined the imperatives of a smoother marriage of convenience between the borrowed English legal system and native law and custom so as to achieve justice that is real and answers to the needs of the society. The topic is discussed under six sub-heads, namely: Introduc- tion; conceptual analysis; application of customary law in Nigeria; customary law and justice; customary law and arbitration; and conclusion. Under conceptual analysis, the meaning, sources and progressive development of customary law have been ex- amined including their relationship with the English common law. On the applica- tion of customary law, the standard requirements for the validity and enforcement of the law have been discussed critically. The capacity of customary law to produce both legal and social justice has been evaluated under the sub-head of customary law and justice while the content, context and legal status of customary arbitration and cus- tomary awards have been treated under customary law and arbitration. The co-rela- tion between customary law and social development was examined and practical policy formulations suggested for enhancing the role of customary law in social de- velopment. The conclusion summarized salient points raised and evaluated in the work and projected the capacity of customary law to play a more pro-active role in the administration of justice in Nigeria when and after obvious negative tendencies DOI: 10.4236/blr.2016.74034 December 30, 2016

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