Browsing by Author "Olalekan, Omoola Sodiq"

This research aims to explore the relevance of Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) in the resolution of Islamic finance disputes in Malaysia. Stemming from the legal uncertainties in the resolution of Islamic finance disputes in the Malaysian civil courts and existing Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) institutions, access to justice for offline and online financial consumers in Malaysia has been in curtailed. This study examines the existing dispute resolution mechanisms available to Islamic finance consumers and the feasibility of adopting ODR mechanism for the industry. The research adopts doctrinal method to expound the convergence of key concepts such as ADR, internet and e-commerce in the 21st Century. In addition, relevant legislations and Islamic legal concepts in contemporary dispute resolution practices and theories are discussed in relation to ODR in the industry. Analysis of existing ODR best practices in other jurisdictions has been done to explore the economic and judicial benefits of ODR in the Industry. Court decongestion, resolution of small claims, fast and cheap mechanisms are few of the benefits of ODR which is capable of ensuring consumer confidence, trust and sustainable growth for the Islamic finance industry in Malaysia. This research finds that ODR is relevant to the Sharī‘ah underpinnings and Islamic legal maxims which are the basis of Islamic finance transaction and dispute resolution. Therefore, borrowing a leaf from existing ODR best practices such as Equifax and Cybersettle, this will be a huge step in creating access to justice for online and offline financial consumers in the Islamic finance industry in Malaysia. This innovation however requires regulatory and institutional readjustment towards operationalizing ODR under the Financial Ombudsman Scheme (FOS) provided under Islamic Financial Services Act (IFSA2013) . This is in addition to efforts towards inter-disciplinary collaboration in creating a web-enabled portal for submission and resolution of finance disputes in Malaysia.

In Nigeria, the changing landscape of commercial activities through E-commerce transactions necessitates a reform of dispute resolution mechanisms and consumer protection laws. Complaints and dispute arise as a result of unfair market conducts, advertisement, wrong product description, warranties, guarantees and return policies which put both online and offline consumers in vulnerable position. The ineptitude of the Nigerian Consumer Protection Council (CPC) to tackle e-commerce complaints, lack of human capacity and inadequate dispute resolution mechanisms are among the challenges of consumer protection in Nigeria. In addition, the CPC seems to lack adequate legal framework for handling all kinds of consumer complaint and disputes in the country. This study therefore examines the legal and regulatory challenges for consumer e-commerce ombudsman in Nigeria and the need for reform-oriented policies and laws. The characteristics and ethos of classical ombudsman are discussed along with modern ombudsman practices in the private sector in other jurisdictions. The tripartite interaction among regulators, businesses and consumers in this research made triangulation method and mixed research method approach as appropriate for the study. In order to examine the state of the e-commerce and consumer goods sector, interviews were conducted with online retailers and regulators while questionnaire were administered on 191 respondents who are spread across eight major commercial cities in Nigeria. The analysis of the qualitative and quantitative data reveals the need for consumer ombudsman in the business sector which will cover both traditional and e-commerce consumers. Therefore, the study examined various regulatory models and practices of consumer ombudsman in jurisdictions such the United Kingdom, South Africa and Denmark. The self-regulatory model of the UK seems to substantially align with the Nigerian regulatory environment while there are potential lessons in the consumer ombudsman framework in other jurisdiction. The significance of this research lies in the identification of alternative regulatory models which can leverage on international best practices and existing consumer dispute resolution to establish e-commerce ombudsman services in Nigeria.