The Nigerian Legal System

T. Olawale Elias became the first Attorney General and Minister of Justice of independent Nigeria, which ended in 1966 after the coup d'état. Elias was appointed as Nigeria's commissioner for justice in 1967. In 1972, he became chief justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. After the military took over in 1975, Elias was elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council as a judge in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that he served until his death.

Part One 1. Introductory survey 2. Sources of Nigerian law Part Two 3. History of the courts (1861–1874) 4. History of the courts (1861–1874) (Continued) 5. History of the courts (1874–1900) 6. History of the courts in southern Nigeria (1900–1914) 7. History of the courts in northern Nigeria (1900–1914) 8. The judicial reorganization of 1914 and after (1914–1933) 9. History of Nigerian courts (1933–1943) 10. History of Nigerian courts (1943 to the present) 11. Constitutional change and legal development Part Three 12. Criminal law 13. Law of contract 14. Law of tort 15. Conflict of laws 16. Family law 17. Law of personal relations 18. Land law Part Four 19. The legal profession in Nigeria 20. Future of law in Nigeria