By TAIYE AGBAJE

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, on Wednesday warned judges against giving inadequate attention to matters before their courts due to the volume of cases.

Kekere-Ekun gave the warning at the 2026/2027 Legal Year Ceremony of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the new legal year coincided with the commissioning of the NICN’s Headquarters located at Area 3, Abuja.

The CJN urged the judges to continue to approach their work with diligence, patience and intellectual discipline.

“The volume of cases before a court can be demanding but pressure must never become an excuse for impatience, discourtesy or inadequate attention to the matters placed before the court.

“Every case represents real people, real businesses, real livelihoods and, sometimes, circumstances of considerable personal hardship.

“The parties may not always obtain the outcome they seek but they are entitled to know that their cases have been heard carefully, fairly and impartially,” she said.

According to her, judicial office is a great privilege, but it is also a profound responsibility.

“Every judge must remain conscious that the authority of the court is derived from the constitution and the law, and that the confidence which the public places in the judiciary must be earned afresh every day.

“The manner in which a judge conducts proceedings, listens to parties, treats counsel and staff, and ultimately gives reasons for a decision is as important to public confidence as the decision itself,” the CJN added.

She said the specialised nature of the NICN also places a particular premium on keeping abreast of developments in labour and employment law.

“The workplace is changing rapidly. New forms of employment, digital platforms, remote working arrangements, workplace technologies and evolving understandings of the rights and obligations of employers and workers will continue to present novel questions for adjudication.

“The court must remain intellectually prepared to meet these challenges, while ensuring that its decisions remain firmly anchored in the constitution, applicable legislation, binding precedent and established principles of judicial reasoning,” she said.

Also speaking, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, said the occasion was not just about physical expansion.

“It is also about the deliberate building of an institution, with the structures, systems and professional culture required to discharge an increasingly important judicial responsibility,” he said.

Fagbemi, who was represented at the occasion, said judicial leadership is measured principally by the quality of justice administered and the jurisprudence developed.

Speaking, the President of NICN, Justice Benedict Kanyip, said the court is a key institution to which all turn when workplace rights and obligations are threatened.

“It is a key institution entrusted with the responsibility of meting out labour justice according to the law.

“As an institution for labour justice, we are expected to remain impartial in all circumstances.

“For this reason, judicial independence, which applies to all courts, remains fundamental to the effective dispensation of labour justice,” he said.

“We recognise, however, that it is as sacred as it is, judicial independence comes with enormous responsibility,” Justice Kanyip said. (NAN)

•PHOTO: From Left: President of Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem; former CJN, Justice Dahiru Mustapha (rtd.); CJN, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun; former CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen and President of NICN, Justice Benedict Kanyip at the commissioning of the headquarters of NICN on Wednesday in Abuja.