The Federal High Court of Nigeria has announced that its registries across all divisions will be open on weekends and public holidays to receive pre-election matter filings, as the court moves to accommodate the tight statutory timeframes within which such cases must be lodged.
In a notice signed by Chief Registrar Yahaya Yakubu Shafa on Thursday, the court said the registries would operate between 10:00am and 2:00pm on weekends and public holidays strictly for the filing of pre-election matters.
“This has become expedient to meet up with the limited time frame for filing pre-election matters,” Shafa said in the notice addressed to lawyers and the general public.
The directive takes immediate effect and applies to all divisions of the Federal High Court nationwide.
The announcement comes at a critical moment in Nigeria’s pre-election legal landscape, with political parties currently in the middle of conducting primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections scheduled for January and February of that year.
The jurisdiction of the Federal High Court in pre-election matters is exclusive under the Electoral Act 2026, meaning the High Courts of States have no concurrent jurisdiction, making the Federal High Court registries the sole gateway for all such filings across the country.
What do you think about this?
Drop your opinion in the comment section.
FOLLOW US & Share this with someone who needs to see this.
