LEGAL PRINCIPLE: APPELLATE PRACTICE – Grounds of Appeal – Distinction Between Law and Fact – Test for Determining Grounds of Law
PRINCIPLE STATEMENT
In determining the nature of a ground of appeal, the ground and its particulars must be read together; the body of the ground is not to be considered in isolation from its particulars.
RATIO DECIDENDI (SOURCE)
Per Ogundare, JSC, in Orakosim v. Menkiti (2001) NLC-811995(SC) at pp. 9–10; Paras D–A.
"In determining the nature of a ground of appeal the ground and its particulars must be read together. For it is only by reading the ground as a whole that it can be determined what the appellant is complaining about in the judgment. The body of the ground is not to be considered in isolation of its particulars."
EXPLANATION / SCOPE
To determine whether a ground of appeal raises a question of law, fact, or mixed law and fact, the court reads the ground together with its particulars. The ground cannot be considered in isolation. The particulars explain and amplify the complaint. A ground that appears on its face to be one of law may, with its particulars, reveal a complaint about evaluation of facts. Conversely, a ground that appears factual may raise a legal issue when read with particulars. The principle ensures accurate classification for determining whether leave to appeal is required. The court examines the substance of the complaint, not merely its form. The whole ground matters.
