LEGAL PRINCIPLE: CIVIL PROCEDURE — Estoppel — Conditions for Plea of Res Judicata
PRINCIPLE STATEMENT
To sustain a plea of 'res judicata', the party pleading it must satisfy the following conditions: (1) The parties (or their privies) are the same in the present case as in the previous case; (2) That the issue and subject matter are the same in the previous suit as in the present suit; (3) That the adjudication in the previous case must have been given by a court of competent jurisdiction; and (4) That the previous decision must have finally decided the issues between the parties.
RATIO DECIDENDI (SOURCE)
Per Kutigi, JSC, in Odutola v. Oderinde & Ors (2004) NLC-1441999(SC) at pp. 6–7; Paras D–A.
"To sustain a plea of 'res judicata', the party pleading it must satisfy the following conditionality, to wit — (1) The parties (or their privies as the case may be) are the same in the present case as in the previous case; (2) That the issue and subject matter are the same in the previous suit as in the present suit; (3) That the adjudication in the previous case must have been given by a court of competent jurisdiction; and (4) That the previous decision must have finally decided the issues between the parties."
EXPLANATION / SCOPE
Four conditions must be satisfied for res judicata to succeed: same parties, same issue and subject matter, court of competent jurisdiction, and final decision. All conditions are cumulative; failure of any one defeats the plea. The principle applies to civil proceedings. The rule prevents relitigation of already determined disputes. The party pleading res judicata bears the burden of proving all conditions. The court strictly applies these requirements.
