The Legal Implications of Duty of Care (Published)
It is not for every careless act that a man may be held responsible in law, nor even for every careless act that causes damage. He will only be liable in negligence if he is under a legal duty to take care. It may be objected that “duty” is not confined to the law of negligence and that it is an element in every tort, because there is a legal duty not to commit assault or battery, not to commit nuisance and so forth. But all that “duty” signifies in these other torts is that you must not commit them. It throws no light on their essential ingredients. Thus it will not tell us what the plaintiff must prove in assault in order to be successful. Breach of it is not one of the internal factors which constitute these other torts. But in the tort of negligence breach of “duty” is the chief ingredient of the tort; in fact there is no other except damage to the plaintiff.
Keywords: Careless, Damage, Duty Care, Law, Legal Duty, Negligence, Plaintiff
Promisee’s Right to Bound Public Authorities to Their Promise: The Debate between the Doctrine of Estoppel and Legitimate Expectation (Published)
It is common place that public authorities sometimes give assurance to individual or group of citizen such as postponing development project, relocation, provision of benefits etc. As public administrative does not exist only to serves the interest of the representee, the rights and interest of others must be considered as well. Hence the ability of representee to enforce promises made by the authorities denotes administrative consistency and trust for the government. Traditionally, the representor is prevented by the private law doctrine of estoppel from resiling. However, the principle has gradually shifted towards collectivism. This essay revisit the principle behind the traditional doctrine and the current principle of legitimate expectation. In view of gradual acceptance of the latter, this essay discusses the viability of abolishing the traditional doctrine and the possible effect to future claims.
Keywords: Law, Public Administration, estoppel, legitimate expectation
NIGERIA, SHARIA PRAXIS AND NATIONAL INTEGRATION: ANY LESSONS FROM THE SUDAN EXPERIENCE? (Published)
This paper examines critically the implication of wide scale adoption of sharia in a multi religious and pluralistic Nigeria. Specifically, it studies the effect of the legal system on the national integration and unity which paradoxically constitutes mantra in the mouth of almost every Nigerian national. It is discovered that the entrenchment of the criminal and non-personal aspects of Islamic law by the core northern states had become a counter-point on the corporate existence of Nigeria. This is more so as the country’s Constitution had restricted the application of sharia to its personal regime. The Boko Haram menace that ravages the country and its environs may not be unconnected with the much dreamt of islamization of the whole sovereign enclave. Yet, it is further noted that the huge population of southern Christians that virtually constitute half of the nation’s population cannot be cowed into the proselytist agenda. This development is a threat to national unity. A comparative analysis of the socio-legal phenomenon in relation to Sudan before the emergence of South Sudan was a task before the writer, especially as the Muslim/Christian ratio in the pre-divided Sudan resembles that in Nigeria. More still, the comparison is ad rem as the north-south religious divide in both jurisdictions is almost coterminous. This study recommends national dialogue, religious toleration, patriotic spirit, avoidance of fanaticism, inter alia, as antidote to disintegration.
Keywords: Law, National integration, Nigeria, Sharia, South Sudan, Sudan
Clash of Cultures: The Interface between Islam and the West (Published)
The struggle for cultural supremacy is not only a fact of history but also an observable phenomenon of social existence. Perhaps, the frenzied defence of cultural identity is second only to the expression of territorial nationalism. Contemporary cultures of which Islam is a resilient part are engaged in a ceaseless war of survival. Following the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre in New York, Islam has come under intense scrutiny. What has followed is a feverish commitment to the obliteration of Islamic values at home and abroad and the intensification of the scheme to enthrone western culture. This raises many legal, constitutional and sociological questions as well as questions relating to the place of Islamic culture both on the international arena and within the Nigerian jurisdiction. The paper is dedicated both to defining the place of Islamic culture vis-a-vis freedom of conscience and the constitutional safeguards in place against the prejudices that confront Islamic civilisation.
Keywords: Civilisation, Culture, Democracy, Government, Ideology, Law, Religion.