The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has been urged to establish a maritime mediation panel; a group of advocates that will use mediation to settle commercial disrupts among maritime operators.
Speaking at a One-Day programme tagged "Alternative Dispute Awareness Programme For Journalists" put together by Forwarder Law Partners and the Nigerian Shippers Council, a maritime lawyer, Barrister Tino Buoro said that there is an urgent need for shippers council to establish maritime mediation advocates.
The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has been urged to establish a maritime mediation panel; a group of advocates that will use mediation to settle commercial disrupts among maritime operators.
Speaking at a One-Day programme tagged "Alternative Dispute Awareness Programme For Journalists" put together by Forwarder Law Partners and the Nigerian Shippers Council, a maritime lawyer, Barrister Tino Buoro said that there is an urgent need for shippers council to establish maritime mediation advocates.
Buoro who was delivering a paper on Mediation Advocacy and the International Mediation Institute noted that many of the disputes in the Nigerian maritime and shipping sector can best be resolved using mediation.
He commended the renewed efforts by the Shippers Council to institutionalize Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in the maritime industry as a laudable objective.
Rather than go to court and face the stress of litigation , Buoro stressed that the many challenges between the various segments and stakeholders in the maritime industry will be best resolved by a structured process where industry disputes are managed by industry professionals who truly understand the processes of the industry.
"There is an urgent need to establish a Maritime Panel of Neutrals and a Roll of Maritime Mediation Advocates"
"Only a maritime mediator will understand maritime language, so we need a panel of maritime mediators where even the journalists, terminal operators and any other stakeholder can come over and mediate", he advised.
He said that alternative dispute resolution platform are already created for in Section 19 (d) of the Nigerian Constitution, Section 17 CAP 12 LFN 2004) of the Federal High Court Act, as well as CAP.N133 LFN 2004) of the Shippers Council Act.
In his welcome address at the event, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Barrister Hassan Bello expressed satisfaction at the seminar, even as he assured that the Council is encouraged to continue to give impetus to ADR.
"I am proud that the Nigerian Shippers’ Council is involved in this laudable efforts, with the right inputs from stakeholders, mediation can be used to resolve many dispute in the maritime sector compared to other forms of resolution" he said
The Shippers Council boss was represented by Deputy Director on Legal Matters, Barrister Uweh Akan.
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