The legal system of Nigeria
Africa's largest legal market and a genuinely tripartite system. English common law received before independence sits alongside customary law and, in twelve northern states, codified Sharia applied by dedicated Sharia Courts of Appeal. Thirty-six states each legislate on residual matters, so commercial, land and family answers vary by state.
Legal tradition
Nigeria belongs to the mixed (common law, customary law, sharia) tradition. Africa's largest legal market and a genuinely tripartite system. English common law received before independence sits alongside customary law and, in twelve northern states, codified Sharia applied by dedicated Sharia Courts of Appeal. Thirty-six states each legislate on residual matters, so commercial, land and family answers vary by state.
How power is divided
Federal separation between the President, a bicameral National Assembly and the judiciary, replicated at state level. The Exclusive, Concurrent and Residual Legislative Lists allocate competence between the federation and the 36 states.
Where law comes from
- Constitution
- Supreme; section 1(3) voids inconsistent law.
- Federal Acts
- National Assembly legislation on Exclusive and Concurrent List matters.
- State laws
- State assemblies legislate on Concurrent and Residual matters.
- Received English law
- Common law, doctrines of equity and statutes of general application pre-1900.
- Customary law
- Applied where not repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience.
- Sharia
- Personal status and, in twelve northern states, codified criminal provisions.
The legal profession
A fused profession: a law degree, the Nigerian Law School and call to the Bar admit a single legal practitioner who both advises and appears. Senior Advocate of Nigeria is the senior rank.
Law by topic in Nigeria
- Data Protection & PrivacyThe Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 created a statutory commission and replaced the 2019 regulationThe NDPA 2023 is Nigeria's first primary data protection statute, superseding the NDPR 2019 issued by NITDA. It establishes the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, requires a lawful basis for processing, mandates data protection officers for higher-risk controllers, and provides for sanctions calculated on gross annual revenue.
- Immigration & NationalityImmigration Act 2015 with expatriate quota control and ECOWAS free movementThe Immigration Act 2015 replaced the 1963 Act. Employing a foreign national requires an expatriate quota granted to the employer, then a Subject to Regularisation visa converted to a CERPAC residence card. ECOWAS nationals enter visa-free for 90 days under the 1979 Protocol.
- Tax LawThe Nigeria Tax Act 2025 consolidated the federal tax statutes and replaced CITA and PITANigeria's 2025 tax reform package replaced the Companies Income Tax Act, Personal Income Tax Act, VAT Act and others with the Nigeria Tax Act, and created the Nigeria Revenue Service in place of FIRS. Company tax is 30% for large companies with a 0% rate for small companies, and VAT is 7.5%.
- Family LawStatutory, customary and Islamic marriage run in parallel with different consequencesThe Matrimonial Causes Act governs statutory monogamous marriage and its dissolution on irretrievable breakdown. Customary and Islamic marriages are separately valid, may be polygynous, and are dissolved in customary or Sharia courts. Which regime applies determines succession, custody and property rights.
- Constitutional LawFederal supremacy under the 1999 Constitution, with twelve states applying Sharia penal codesThe Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) is supreme; any inconsistent law is void to the extent of the inconsistency. Legislative power is split between the Exclusive, Concurrent and Residual lists. Chapter II socio-economic objectives are expressly non-justiciable, while Chapter IV fundamental rights are enforceable in the High Courts.
- Business & CorporateCAMA 2020 modernised Nigerian company law and legalised single-member companiesThe Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 replaced the 1990 Act. It permits single shareholder/single director private companies, abolished the authorised share capital concept in favour of issued share capital, introduced limited partnerships and LLPs, and created a statutory rescue regime with administration and CVAs.
- Civil ProcedureState-by-state High Court rules, with front-loading of evidence and mandatory ADR screeningCivil procedure is governed by the rules of each State High Court rather than a single national code. Modern rules such as the Lagos State High Court Civil Procedure Rules 2019 require front-loading — statement of claim, witness statements on oath and documents filed together — and route cases through ADR before trial.
- Human RightsJusticiable Chapter IV rights plus a directly applicable African CharterChapter IV of the Constitution guarantees civil and political rights enforceable in the High Courts. The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights has been domesticated by statute and is directly applicable in Nigerian courts, which is how socio-economic claims blocked by s.6(6)(c) have sometimes been advanced.
- Criminal LawThree penal regimes: Criminal Code in the south, Penal Code in the north, Sharia codes in twelve statesThere is no single Nigerian criminal code. The Criminal Code Act governs the southern states, the Penal Code Act the northern states, and twelve northern states additionally apply Sharia Penal Codes to Muslims. The Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 unified federal procedure and abolished holding charges.
- Employment & LabourLabour Act for 'workers' only, with the National Industrial Court as the specialist forumThe Labour Act protects manual and clerical 'workers' but excludes administrative, executive and professional staff, whose terms rest on contract. The National Industrial Court of Nigeria has exclusive jurisdiction over labour disputes and applies international best practice and ratified ILO conventions directly.
- Property & LandThe Land Use Act vests all land in state governors and replaced ownership with rights of occupancyThe Land Use Act 1978 vested all land in each state in the Governor, held in trust for the people. Private parties hold statutory or customary rights of occupancy rather than freehold, and the Governor's consent is required for any transfer, mortgage or sublease — the central friction in Nigerian conveyancing.
Found something out of date on Nigeria?
Corrections are reviewed against the primary source before anything changes.