HRH Oba J. O. Agunbiade & Anor V. Atlor Nigeria Limited & Anor (2015)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

JAMES SHEHU ABIRIYI, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is an appeal against the judgment of the Ondo State High Court Akure Judicial Division delivered on 6th July 2011 by Adegbehingbe J. at Akure. The Appellants were the Plaintiffs at the lower Court. The Respondents were the Defendants/Counterclaimants.

The claim of the Appellants at the lower Court was for the following:

A. N20,000,000 (Twenty Million Naira) only general damages for the trespass committed and still being committed by the Defendants on the parcel of land known as Oke-Eri lying and situate at Oba-Ile, Akure North Local Government Area and bounded on the 1st side by the School of Agriculture Akure on the 2nd side by Omodara Family Layout, on the 3rd side by Benin/Owo Garage, Akure and on the 4th side by Akure-Owo Benin Express High way.

B. AN ORDER OF PERPECTUAL INJUNCTION restraining the Defendants either by themselves, servants, agents, assigns and privies from further committing any acts of trespass on any part or portion of the Plaintiffs land known and described as Oke-Eri lying and situate at Oba-Ile and bounded on the 1st side by the School of Agriculture Akure on the 2nd side by Omodara Family Layout, on the 3rd side by Benin/Owo Garage, Akure and on the 4th side by Akure-Owo Benin Express High way.

The Respondents counterclaimed for the following:

(i) AN ORDER of Court for Specific Performance of the contract of sale of the disputed land by the parties giving rise to the grant of the right of Statutory Right of Occupancy to the counter-claimants by the Plaintiff/Defendants.

OR ALTERNATIVELY

(ii) The sum of N100,000,000:00 being general damages arising from the breach of contract of sale of the disputed land by the plaintiffs/Defendants to the counter-claimants.

(iii) Special Damages N68,606,666.66

(iv) General damages N31,393,33.4

Total = N100,000,000.00

The facts of this case are simple and short. According to the Appellants, the appellants’ family granted a lease of a quarry site to Falcon Holdings Ltd which was to expire in June 2007. Before the expiration of the lease Falcon Holdings Ltd handed over the unexpired term to the Respondents. At the expiration of the lease, the Respondents offered to buy the quarry. But the Appellant declined to sell it to them.

The case of the Respondents was that the offer to buy the land was accepted at appellants’ family meeting and they paid N4million out of N7million agreed upon as amount for the purchase of the quarry. Subsequently, the Appellants attempted to go back on the agreement and the Respondents insisted on specific performance of the contract of sale of the quarry.