PROSPECTS AND CHALLENGES OF ARBITRATION UNDER THE ARBITRATION AND MEDIATION ACT 2023

The Arbitration and Mediation Act 2023 was enacted during a period of significant challenges that undermined arbitration’s role as a viable alternative to litigation. An understanding of prospects and challenges of the Act is appropriate as it is the policy of the Nigerian government to make the country a preferred seat for commercial arbitration. The aim of this paper is to examine prospects and challenges of arbitration under the Act. The methodology adopted is doctrinal. Provisions of the Act that strengthen the legal framework for arbitration include: recognition of electronic communication, immunity for arbitrators and arbitral institutions. Others are - consolidation of arbitral proceedings, the Arbitral Review Tribunal, and third-party funding. Gray areas clarified by the Act include statutes of limitation and abolition of error of law on the face of the award. Challenges include increased costs, low levels of awareness and manpower constraints