LEGAL PRINCIPLE: CUSTOMARY LAW – Chieftaincy Succession – Kalabari Custom – Successor Cannot Change Trade Name of Stool
PRINCIPLE STATEMENT
Under our custom a successor to a stool cannot change the Trade name of the stool. ... On a closer examination of the pleadings and evidence led by both parties, it was common ground that upon the creation of a new house the trade name cannot be changed from the original trade name of the founder of the house. This was admitted by the plaintiffs. This means that Iju/Jack House could not bear another trade name. How then did the plaintiffs come by 'Standfast Jack House'? It would amount to a change of the original trade name which the customary law of Kalabari does not sanction.
RATIO DECIDENDI (SOURCE)
Per Emmanuel Obioma Ogwuegbu, JSC, in Jack & Ors v. Whyte & Ors (2001) NLC-1661995(SC) at p. 22; Paras B–C.
"Under our custom a successor to a stool cannot change the Trade name of the stool. ... On a closer examination of the pleadings and evidence led by both parties, it was common ground that upon the creation of a new house the trade name cannot be changed from the original trade name of the founder of the house. This was admitted by the plaintiffs. This means that Iju/Jack House could not bear another trade name. How then did the plaintiffs come by 'Standfast Jack House'? It would amount to a change of the original trade name which the customary law of Kalabari does not sanction."
EXPLANATION / SCOPE
Under Kalabari custom, a successor to a chieftaincy stool cannot change the trade name of the stool. Upon creation of a new house, the trade name remains the original trade name of the founder. The trade name is fixed and immutable. Changing the name is not sanctioned by customary law. If the original house is “Iju/Jack House,” it cannot bear another name like “Standfast Jack House.” A change of name is a fundamental violation of custom. The principle preserves the identity and lineage of the chieftaincy stool. The trade name connects the present to the founder. The custom prevents successors from erasing history or asserting new identities. The court will enforce the original trade name.