BY ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH & ONOZURE DANIA

Lagos—Lagos State Chief Judge, Justice Ayotunde Philips,  yesterday, revealed that the state government would soon commence the construction of a special court to address disputes arising from commercial matters to safeguard investments in the state.

Justice Phillips who spoke the mind of the state government at a Stakeholders Forum on “Fast Track Rules and Procedure” by the Lagos State Judiciary in collaboration with Justice for All, a project of the British Council, noted this will go a long way to diabuse investors’ mind on delay of justice delivery system in Lagos State.

This was coming as the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Ade Ipaye advised lawyers to shun practice of filling frivolous application, only to delay court proceedings.
Justice Phillips in her address said when the court finally commence proceedings, it will solely adjudicate over commercial disputes in order to attract more foreign investors to the state.

Phillips said the idea behind the fast track court was to reduce the time spent on litigation to a period not exceeding nine months from the commencement of the action till final judgment.
According to her, the government is locating the court in Tapa, in Lagos Island, the heart of the Lagos commercial hub where it will adjudicate over matters relating to revenues, mortgages and other commercial cases.

She solicited the support of all stakeholders in the justice sector, especially lawyers to partner with the judiciary towards making it a success.
In his take, Mr Ipaye, noted that speedy resolution of commercial disputes was important for economic development.

He said: “Investors are looking for a justice system that works. They are looking for where they can confidently invest with the expectation that when there are disputes, those disputes can be speedily addressed.”