Umeh Brothers Company LTD & Ors V. Ethelbert Umeh & Anor (2016)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

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

The suit, the subject matter of this Appeal was instituted by way of a PETITION filed on the 5th of May 2011 – Page 1 – 11 of the Record of Appeal.

In Paragraph 52 of the said Petition, the Petitioner seeks the following reliefs –

(i) “A declaration that the father of your humble Petitioner, late Elisius Umeh and the husband and father of the 3rd to the 8th Respondents late Augustine C. Umeh were the only equal share-holders of the 1st Respondent company before their deaths in 2003 and 1999 respectively.

(ii) A declaration that your Petitioner as the personal representative of late Elisius Umeh together with his brothers is entitled to half of the share in the 1st Respondent company due to his late father Elisius Umeh and the other half goes to the 3rd to the 8th Respondents jointly as the personal representatives of Late Augustine C. Umeh.

(iii) A declaration that your petitioner as the personal representative of late Elisius Umeh with his brothers and the 3rd to the 8th Respondents jointly as personal representative of late Augustine C. Umeh are the only persons

1

entitled in a general meeting to allot shares of their late fathers in equal measure and appoint directors in equal measure too.

(iv) A declaration that the 3rd to the 8th Respondents are at present not shareholders and or directors of the 1st respondent.

(v) An order to set aside all purported resolutions appointing the 3rd to the 8th Respondents as share-holders and or directors of the 1st Respondent.

(vi) An order of Court to cancel the variation and or reduction of the shares of Late Elisius Umeh by the singular act of late Augustine Umeh, the 3rd and 4th Respondent by the purported special resolutions of 31st May, 1998, 31st August, 1989 and 13th November, 2007.

(vii) An order compelling the 2nd Respondent to cancel and or erase from her records the purported Resolution of the purported extra-ordinary general meeting purportedly allotting shares to the 3rd to the 8th Respondents and appointing them as directors which resolutions have affected the fifty percent share of late Elisius Umeh.

(viii) An order of the Court compelling the 3rd to 8th Respondents to render account of the rents collected from all the property owned by Umeh

2