Chief Adio Liasu & Ors V. Alhaji Mudashiru Salau & Ors (2011)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

RITA NOSAKHARE PEMU, J.C.A (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

The Appellants were claimants, while the Respondents were the Defendants at the lower court.

By Writ of Summons dated and filed 26th May 2003 and in Paragraph 18 of their Statement of Claim of same date, the claimants claim the following:

1. A Declaration that by the Agreement between the Plaintiff, the 2nd Defendant, Kudaki Akeja Family on the one hand and the 1st Defendant on the other hand, the 1st Defendant is not entitled to and is estopped from presenting himself or applying for upgrading as an Oba or Part II Bale of Agodo Area of Egbe, Lagos State.
2. A Declaration that by the same Agreement the 1st Defendant is not entitled to and is estopped from selling land or dealing in land belonging to the Kudaki Akeja Family of Egbe, Lagos state.
3. An order of Injunction restraining the 1st Defendant from applying to the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Defendants for upgrading to Part II Chief or an Oba; or continuing with such an Application or in whatsoever manner presenting himself for consideration as Bale or Oba for Agodo in Egbe Town.
4. An order of Injunction restraining the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Defendants from entertaining or approving any application in whatsoever manner for upgrading to the status of Part II Bale or Oba for Agodo area of Egbe Town from the 1st Defendant or his Agents or Privies.

This present appeal is as a result of the Claimants/Appellants dissatisfaction with the Ruling of the High Court of Lagos State, delivered by the Honourable Justice L.G.A. Marsh dated 2nd day of April, 2008 in Suit No. ID/901/2002 (Pages 503-516 of Record of Appeal). I shall refer to the said Ruling as I go on in this Judgment.

The Appellants had filed Two Notices of Appeal but on the 29th of September 2010, the Court observed that the Notice of Appeal dated 10tr, April 2008 at Page 520 of the Record of Appeal is the one already entered in this instant Appeal No CA/L/1809. This is because the motion for extension of time to compile the Record of Appeal was granted on the 26th of March 2009.

It was noted that the Appellants had filed another Notice of Appeal and this Court, on the 29th of September 2010, in its wisdom advised learned Counsel for the Appellants J.J. Ogunyemi Esq., of the need for it to be entered and filed separately, with a different Appeal No. by this Courts’ Registry.

In the Notice of Appeal relevant to this Appeal, it encapsulates three (3) Grounds of Appeal without particulars- Pages 520-522 of the Record of Appeal. They are that:

Ground1. “The learned trial Judge erred in law when he considered the same issues of locus standi of the claimants and lack of reasonable cause of action and therefore struck out claims 1, 3 and 4 as contained in the claimants’ statement of claim dated 26th May 2003 when the same issues had been considered and determined against the 4th Defendant in the Ruling of the same High Court of Lagos State dated 22nd day of September delivered by Hon. Justice D.T. Okuwobi (Mrs.)”

Ground 2. The learned trial Judge having held thus:

“In ascertaining whether a Plaintiff in an action has locus standi, his Statement of Claim must disclose a cause of action vested in the Plaintiff. The averments in the pleadings must also disclose the rights and obligations or ht interest which have been violated, In other words, the averments must disclose that the Plaintiff has sufficient legal interest in seeking relief in Court, that is that he has suffered s wrong or a threat to his civil right and obligation for which redress can only be sought in court and it does not matter that this action may not succeed.”

Erred in law when he proceeded to use extraneous materials still to be tendered at the trial such as the Agreement and proceedings before the Hon. Justice Silver Commission of Inquiry in the determination of the issue of locus standi and lack of cause of action.

Ground 3. The learned trial judge erred in law, when he held that the transfer of Okuwobi J. who delivered the ruling dated 22nd September 2006 from the Lands Division to the Commercial Division of the High Court removed the suit from the jurisdiction of the Court or Judge thus making all previous proceedings including orders and findings made in the suit by Okuwobi, J. vacated and swept clean when:

(a) “Locus standi and lack of cause of action as raised by the 4th Defendant in the motion dated 18th October 2007 are caught by the principle of Issue estoppel which cannot be affected by the transfer of the suit to another Judge within jurisdiction.

(b) It is not within the competence of the learned trial Judge to overrule a determination of a coordinate Judge of the same High Court;