REIMAGINING CONCILIATION PROVISIONS UNDER THE ARBITRATION AND MEDIATION ACT 2023

Abstract

This paper examined the nature, historical and theoretical foundations, and statutory regulation of conciliation under the repealed 1988 Act. It considered the implications of its replacement with mediation under the Arbitration and Mediation Act 2023. It argued that the legislative shift should not be understood as rendering conciliatory practice unlawful or practically extinct; rather, it reflects the international movement towards mediation as an umbrella term for consensual third-party-assisted settlement processes. The paper concludes that the most satisfactory approach is to recognize mediation under the 2023 Act as sufficiently broad to accommodate conciliatory techniques while preserving conciliation as a professional and institutional practice where parties choose to use it. It recommends institutional standardization, professional training, incorporation of conciliatory options into ADR rules and, where necessary, legislative amendment or subsidiary regulation to eliminate uncertainty and strengthen Nigeria’s position as a modern center for domestic and international commercial dispute resolution.