A mediation expert, Barr. Valentino Buoro has called on the Nigeria Shippers’ Council, the Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria and the Association of Shipping Line Agencies to consider negotiating their way out of the present legal tussle that has seen parties spend scarce resources and time in court through mediation.
Buoro who made this appeal in an interview with Primetime Reporters in Lagos said that notwithstanding the fact that decisions had been given on the matter in two different cases, parties could still sit and negotiate rather than trying to vitiate more energy at the Supreme Court.
He said, “Let us imagine for once that even this seaport terminal thing, that a decision has been given and implementation may be impracticable, the parties can still sit and negotiate, how do we implement this? This might be difficult for us to do, even though you have won and you try to convince the other party why it will be difficult for you to do and then you now give options.
“Some of your options may be acceptable to the other party but some options may not be acceptable. So, they would have got those options that are acceptable, then the ones that are not acceptable for which they have not agreed, you can now go to court for that”.
He recalled that the legal tussle began when the Nigerian Shippers’ Council as the economic regulator of the port came up with a certain guideline on charges at the ports which according to him the Council had the right to do as a regulator adding that the terminal operators as major stakeholders in the port also have the right to ask why the reversal of the charges for the Shippers’ Council to justify and/or to explain why they think that those charges as stipulated by NSC would not be commercially viable for them as the operators.
“If such steps were taken, the Shippers’ Council may be persuaded to alter its new charges or rates to some points and of course, in doing this, even the stakeholders may have to be involved, that is, those who pay the dues. There are several ways by which the service providers can cut costs, so also, there are ways where the shippers, the importers and the exporters can cut their own costs from their own end. All these are based on human understanding.
“But where you now decided that no, you are not going to accept that, that you are not a regulator for this purpose and all of that, you go to court, then you get a judgment that yes, these guys are the regulator and they can do that.
“Even at that first level of judgment, where I spoke to some of our colleagues and I said look, let mediation even come in now because in a mediation, you can mediate before a litigation starts. It is a global standard. In circumstances where litigation has started, you can mediate at any time before the judgment and when you mediate at any time before the judgment, the court which is handling that case will now enter your agreement as what is called consent judgment of the court. It was agreed by you parties without the court involving itself but you are the ones wearing the shoes, the court is an arbiter, it is a neutral party, it has no interest in both ways but you parties has decided this is the way it should go, the court will respect the agreement and enter it as court judgment based on your consent.
“Even where judgments have been given by the courts, some decisions become difficult to execute. It is now left for parties to talk although talking after judgment may rob off on some things but it is still better than continuing to drag. It is the challenge that the judgment poses that make some people go on appeal, they want to see whether they can reduce from the decision of the lower court or amend it in such a way that they can operate but unfortunately, sometimes, when they go to a higher court, the higher court now makes it worse for them”, he observed.
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