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Critical Assessment of Trial De Novo and Its Implications for Justice Delivery in Nigeria
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Critical Assessment of Trial De Novo and Its Implications for Justice Delivery in Nigeria
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Journal Article
Critical Assessment of Trial De Novo and Its Implications for Justice Delivery in Nigeria
2025
Overview
The Nigerian judicial system plays an essential role in ensuring justice, fostering public trust, and upholding the rule of law. However, certain procedural practices within the system, such as trial de novo, have drawn significant criticism for their inefficiencies and adverse effects on justice delivery. The objective is to analyse the impact of a trial de novo on the judicial system and its broader implications for nation-building. This study adopts a doctrinal approach, using both primary and secondary sources. The research analyses the legal and institutional frameworks to understand the impact of trial de novo on the judiciary and the broader justice system. The study reveals that trial de novo contributes to a backlog of cases in the Nigerian judiciary, leading to significant delays in the administration of justice. These delays increase the costs of litigation for parties, erode public trust in the judiciary, and foster lawlessness and self-help. Additionally, the principle undermines judicial efficiency and the competence of judges, as it disregards prior case records. The study also shows that trial de novo hurts economic growth, especially when it comes to business disputes and social cohesion because it makes unresolved community conflicts worse. The study concludes that trial de novo, while intended to safeguard fairness, has become a significant hindrance to the efficient functioning of the Nigerian judicial system. It contradicts the constitutional mandate for timely justice and negatively affects the nation-building process by eroding trust in judicial institutions, hindering economic development, and fostering social unrest. A number of suggestions were made, such as changing the laws to limit the use of trial de novo, especially in situations where excellent records are available, and switching to a continuity approach, which lets cases go forward using records from previous cases in case a judge is transferred or retires.
