Stirling Civil Engineering Nigeria Limited V. Ambassador Mahmood Yahaya (2001)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

SALAMI, J.C.A.

This is an appeal against High Court of Justice, in the Zaria Judicial Division, awarding the plaintiff the sum of N500,000.00 as general damages and costs assessed at N500,000.00.

The defendant was dissatisfied with the judgment and has appealed to this court on one original ground and with the leave of court an additional ground of appeal was added. The two grounds of appeal read as follows:-

“(1) The Learned Judge erred in law when he awarded the sum of N500,000.00 to the plaintiff as general damages after he held that the claim for trespass and the destruction of economic trees failed.

PARTICULARS:

(a) Having refused the claim of N5,000,000.00 for economic trees he cannot thereafter award N500,000.00 general damages for trespass, loss of use and mischief done to the economic trees.

(b) The Judge having held that, the plaintiff has not proved his claim for N5,000,000.00 general damages for trespass, loss of use and mischief done to the economic trees.

(c) The Judge having accepted in his judgment that compensation was paid to the plaintiff through his representative cannot thereafter award N500,000.00 for the same purpose of mischief done to the economic trees of the plaintiff.

(2) The learned trial Judge erred in law when he awarded the sum of N500,000.00 damages to the plaintiff/respondent with N5,000.00 costs.

PARTICULARS OF ERROR:

(a) The claim of the plaintiff/respondent as pleaded in his statement of claim was N5,000,000.00 general damages for trespass, loss of use and mischief done to the economic trees planted by him and N70,709,097.00 being costs of filling the craters dug with laterite.

(b) The plaintiff/respondent’s claims for loss of use and mischief are clams of special damages.

(c) The plaintiff/respondent lumped his claim damages for trespass, loss of use and mischief together.

(d) The plaintiff/respondent did not specifically plead the particulars of loss of use and mischief.