The Senate has passed for second reading two executive bills seeking to increase the number of judges in Nigeria’s superior courts, as part of reforms aimed at reducing case backlogs and speeding up justice delivery.

According to a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio at plenary on Tuesday, President Bola Tinubu requested amendments to the Court of Appeal Act and the Federal High Court Act.

The first bill proposes raising the number of Court of Appeal justices from 70 to 110. The second seeks to increase Federal High Court judges from 70 to 90.

President Tinubu said the expansion is necessary due to rising workloads and case complexity at both courts. He argued that more judges would improve the judge-to-case ratio, enhance adjudication speed, and strengthen access to justice.

Beyond numbers, the Court of Appeal amendment also includes provisions for virtual and audio-visual hearings, clarification of judicial ranking and seniority, plus the creation of an Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre within the court to settle some appellate matters outside litigation.

The Federal High Court bill is expected to allow greater specialization in technical areas like terrorism cases, financial crimes, taxation, intellectual property and maritime law, which now form a large part of the court’s docket.

After scaling second reading, Senate President Akpabio referred both bills to the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters for further legislative work and public hearing.

Sources: Channels TV, Daily Trust, Punch, President Tinubu’s letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio