Chukwuma Nwagbo V. Ali Nwa MBA (2016)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

TOM SHAIBU YAKUBU, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

The respondent who was the plaintiff at the Customary Court of Enugu-Ezike, holden at Umuogbo-Agu had prayed for:

(a) An order of the Court enforcing the defendant and his sub-family to accord the plaintiff the recognition as the Head (Okpara) and custodian and Administrator of Ogbu Nwagada?s properties.

(b) An order enforcing the defendant and his sub-family to allow the two sub-families share their forefather?s land and economic trees known and called Ogbu Nwagada land situate at Oreteru Umuogbo-Agu into two equal parts.

(c) Praying the Court to use its powers to share the above mentioned land into two parts for the two parties.

(d) And any other order(s) as the Court may deem fit to give in the circumstance.

?The suit proceeded to trial and in her judgment, the trial Court, found for the respondent. The defendant at the trial Court, not satisfied with that decision, appealed to the Enugu State Customary Court of Appeal, holden at Enugu. The appeal was dismissed on 5th February, 2013. The appellant still piqued with that decision, has

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further appealed to this Court, anchored on three grounds of appeal, filed on 11th March, 2013.

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In order to prosecute the appeal, the appellant?s brief of argument, prepared by Geoffrey Okey Omeh, Esq., was filed on 18th October, 2013. He formulated four issues for the determination of the appeal. They are, to wit:

ISSUE NO. ONE (1)

Whether the Customary Court of Appeal was right to hold that the issue of jurisdiction raised by the Appellant could not be sustained on the sole ground that the issue was not first raised at the trial Customary Court?

ISSUE NO. TWO (2)