Application of Limitation Laws to Oil Spill Compensation Claims in Nigeria

Abstract

This article examines a recent decision of the Nigerian Court of Appeal that essentially pronounces that, in respect of oil spill litigation in Nigeria, statutes of limitation are inapplicable to the federal law that creates the basis for oil spill compensation claims. This decision has dire consequences for the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The article finds this decision not only bad for public policy but actually based on very faulty reasoning and contradictory of an earlier decision of the Court of Appeal that was not considered. The article concludes that, despite this decision being the most recent, lower courts in Nigeria are not bound to follow it.