The Nigerian Senate is currently reviewing a bill that proposes increasing the number of Supreme Court justices from 21 to 30, as pressure mounts over the court’s growing backlog.
Senator Osita Izunaso, representing Imo West, disclosed the proposal during a media briefing in Abuja to mark his second anniversary in the 10th National Assembly.
He said that although the Supreme Court recently met its constitutional limit of 21 justices after 11 appointments in 2023, the volume of pending cases has made the current figure “grossly inadequate.”
Izunaso stressed that even with the court operating at full capacity, it remains “overwhelmed,” with some litigants receiving hearing dates as late as 2027 and 2028.
Under the new proposal, the number of justices would increase to 30, allowing the formation of at least five simultaneous panels. “Supreme Court justices typically sit in panels of five, or seven for constitutional matters,” Izunaso explained. “More panels mean more cases can be processed faster.”
He also called for a stricter filtration of cases before they reach the apex court. “Why should a land matter in my village end up in the Supreme Court?” he asked. “These cases should be finalised at the high court level. The apex court must focus on issues of national or constitutional importance — like terrorism, homicide, and grand corruption.”
Izunaso criticised the system for allowing petty civil disputes such as tenancy disagreements to escalate to the Supreme Court. “Even rent disputes like ‘pay me my rent’ or ‘my landlord kicked me out’ are being filed here. It’s clogging the system and delaying justice for serious matters,” he said.
He cited a case listed for 2026, involving litigants who had already died — with the matter later resolved by their families. “That’s an indictment of our system,” he remarked.
Rejecting calls for regional supreme courts, Izunaso argued for preserving a single national judicial structure. “A unitary Supreme Court maintains judicial unity. We need better filtration at lower levels — not multiple supreme courts,” he said.
On a separate note, Izunaso revealed that the Senate is also reviewing a bill for the creation of Anim State in the South-East. The bill has passed second reading and is currently before the Senate Committee on Constitution Review.
