Abiodun Vincent V. Alhaja Iyabo Vincent (2007)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

MONICA BOLNA’AN DONGBAN-MENSEM JP+, J.C.A.

The Appellant as Plaintiff at the High Court of the Lagos State claimed as follows: –

(i) A declaration that the defendant is not entitled under Yoruba Native Law and Custom to unilaterally take over family property not allocated or partitioned to her by the family with the consent of the head of the family.

(ii) An order that the defendant do forthwith deliver possession of the two rooms wrongly taken over on 1st floor of the property situate at 15, Oke-Arin Street, Lagos.

(iii) The sum of N1,000.00 per month far the use and occupation of the two rooms from November 1993 the time the defendant took over possession until possession is given up.

The Defendant filed a statement of defence along with a counter-claim.

The counter-claim is as follows: –

(i) That under Yoruba Native Law of Custom of distribution by Idi-Igi defendant being one out of the two is entitled to two rooms out of the five rooms allocated to Olatunji Vincent Family on the property at 15, Oke-Arin Street. Lagos.

(ii) An order that the remaining one room left after sharing two rooms each to each of the two branches should be let out and rents collected wherein be used for the payments of tenement rate.

The learned trial Judge dismissed the main claim and entered Judgment for the Defendant counter claimant. Dissatisfied, the Appellant seeks a reversal of the said decision. Three grounds of appeal were originally filed, an additional ground was filed with the leave of the Court.

The appellant urged the Court to allow the appeal and enter Judgment for the Plaintiff as Appellant before this Court.

The brief facts of the case which led to this appeal are as follows: –

A landed property situate at the 15, Oke-Arin Street Lagos now belongs to the entire family of Olatunji Vincent. It is uncontroverted that one Olatunji Vincent who died intestate, had seven children of his two wives. The issue in controversy is that of the five rooms left to be shared among the seven children. The original Plaintiff in this suit who is now deceased and was replaced by the current one, had as the Head of the family, adopted the Ori-Ojori method of the distribution of the estate of their deceased father.

The Respondent, who was the Defendant-Counter-claimant before the trial Court took objection to the Ori-Ojori method. She preferred the Idi-Igi method. Accordingly, she rejected the one room due to her under the Ori-Ojori method and unilaterally gave to herself, two out of the five rooms to be shared among the seven children. This she did in defiance of the decision of the Head of the family.