First African Trust Bank Ltd & Anor V. Basil O. Ezegbu & Anor (1992)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

B. WALI, J.S.C. 

Following the Ruling of the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, delivered on 5th December, 1991 in which the following orders were made pending the determination of the substantive appeal still before it –

“1. An order setting aside the proceedings and decisions of the General Meeting of the 1st plaintiff held on Saturday the 9th of November, 1991.

2. An order nullifying any decisions taken or the implementation or any implementation thereof and in particular reinstating all employees of the Bank whose appointments were terminated as enumerated in paragraph 26 of the affidavit in support sworn by Emmanuel Ejike.
3. An order generally restoring the status quo ante before the dare of the delivery of the judgment on 1st November, 1991; pending the appeal before us.”

The applicants/plaintiffs filed an application on Notice dated 11th May. 1992 praying for an order:-

“(i) granting leave to amend the Notice of Appeal filed herein against the decision of the Court of Appeal made on 5th December, 1991 by deleting paragraph 4 thereof and substituting a new paragraph 4 as disclosed in paragraph 19 of the affidavit in support of this application;

(ii) directing that the shareholders of the First African Trust Bank Limited shall be at liberty to convene an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Company or alternatively that this Honourable Court shall direct that such a meeting be convened for the purpose of considering, and if they thought fit, passing the resolutions which were passed by a meeting of the shareholders of the said Bank on 9.11.91 but which resolutions were set aside by the Court of Appeal Lagos in its decision made on 5th December. 1991:

(iii) directing that the shareholders to attend such meeting shall be those found by the Federal High Court to have been the true shareholders of the Bank in its judgment delivered herein on 1.11.91;

(iv) in the alternative to prayer (iii), for an accelerated hearing of the appeal herein as well as the motion filed herein and dated 10.12.91 filed on behalf of the Defendants in Suit No. FHC/1/M67/91:

(v) restraining the defendants (in Suit No. FHC/L/M67/91) whether by themselves, their servants or agents whomsoever from –

(a) interfering or attempting to interfere with the management or operations of the First African Trust Bank limited by the present Management Staff; or

(b) making use of violence or force to install themselves or their agents as managers or operators of the banking business of the said First African Trust Bank Limited; without allowing the proceedings in respect of the application of the plaintiffs (in Suit No. FHC/L/M67/91) for stay of execution to be determined by this Honourable Court in case the court below should refuse to entertain or to grant the same:

(vi) directing that Briefs of argument be filed by the parties in respect of the reliefs sought herein in this motion-on-notice;

(vii) deeming the Brief filed and delivered by the plaintiffs in Suit No. FHC/L/M67/91 to have been duly and properly filed:

(viii) making such further or other orders or giving such further or other directions ancillary to the foregoing, as this Honourable Court may deem fit to make or give.