Order 58 — Miscellaneous Provisions

Subject to the provisions of the Act, the Court may in its discretion appoint any day(s) and any place(s) from time to time for the hearing of causes as circumstances may require.

The sittings of the Court for the hearing of causes and matters shall ordinarily be in public but subject to the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the Court may for special reasons, hear any particular cause or matter in the presence of the parties and their Legal Practitioners, and the officers of the Court only.

The offices of the Court shall be open at such times as the President of the Court may direct.

(1) Subject to the direction of the President of the Court, sitting of the Court for the dispatch of civil causes and matter may be held on every week day except:
(a) any holiday;
(b) the period beginning from the Monday of the week of Good Friday to Friday of the week of Easter Monday. The Court shall resume sitting on the Monday after the week of Easter Monday or as the President of the Court may direct;
(c) the period from the last working day before the twentieth (20th) day of December to the fourth (4th) working day of the January of the following year. The Court shall resume sitting on the fifth (5th) working day of January of the same year or as the President of the Court may direct.

(2) The Court may proceed on an annual vacation not exceeding forty-two (42) working days commencing on a date in July and ending on a date in September as may be contained in a Practice Direction to be issued by the President of the Court.

(3) The President of the Court may direct that a notice of the Court’s annual vacation be posted on all notice boards (including digital notice boards) in each Judicial Division, State Registries and be on the website of the Court.

(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of rule 4 of this Order, any cause or matter may be heard by the Court during any of the periods mentioned in sub-rule 4(1) (c) or 4(2) of this rule (except Sundays and public holidays) where such cause or matter is urgent or the Court, at the request of all parties concerned, agrees to hear such cause or matter.

(2) The President of the Court may assign one or more Judges to be vacation Judges to hear and determine any urgent matter or application during the vacation period.

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rule (2) of this Rule, the President of the Court may hear and determine or assign any other Judge apart from the vacation Judge to hear and determine any urgent matter or any matter of national interest.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rules (2) and (3) of this rule, the President of the Court during vacation, may hear and determine or may assign any Judge of the Court to hear and determine any urgent matter in any Judicial Division of the Court though such Judge may not be one of the vacation Judges.

(5) Where a matter is to be heard and determined in line with sub-rule (4) of this rule, the parties and their respective counsel shall be put on notice as the urgency of the matter may require.

(6) Any matter that is assigned in line with sub-rules (4) and (5) of this rule, during vacation, the President of the Court may reassign the matter so heard during vacation to any other Judge who may hear and determine such matter after vacation.

Where the Court orders or the Rules of this Court requires an urgent interim or interlocutory application or an act to be done or process to be filed, time shall continue to run from the next working day after the order was made by the Court, notwithstanding that the time falls within the Court’s annual vacation or recess.

(1) Whenever the Court orders or the Rules of the Court require an act to be done or a process to be filed and the time falls within the Court’s Easter or Christmas recess, time shall continue to run during the period of the recess.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rule 1 of this Rule, parties and or their counsel may file court processes during recess or vacation.

When the Court adjourns a matter for ruling or judgment and the time for delivery of the ruling or judgment falls within a vacation or Court recess, the Court may proceed to deliver its ruling or judgment, if counsel to the parties in the matter consent to the delivery of the ruling or judgment during vacation or recess.

All fines, forfeitures, pecuniary penalties and costs ordered to be paid may be levied by distress, seizure and/or sale of the movable and immovable property of the person in default of payment.

Where the publication of any notice is required the same may be made by advertisement in the Federal Gazette, unless otherwise provided in any particular case by any rule of Court or otherwise by the Court.

Any document filed must have endorsed on it the name and number of the case, the date of filing, whether filed by claimant or defendant and the endorsement shall be initialed by the Registrar and recorded in the Process Register.

All warrants and orders of whatever description shall be addressed for execution by being directed to the Sheriff; but this provision shall not prevent any order or warrant from being addressed to a person by name or to officers of the Court generally or to a Local Government Authority.

If before the commencement of these Rules, a process has been filed in a pending or a part-heard matter or at any stage before the Court, the process or matter shall remain valid.

(1)(a) Subject to the provisions of Order 57 rule 5(3) of these Rules, no filing fees are to be taken in respect of any proceedings where such fees are payable by any Government Ministry, Department, Agency (MDA) or Institution.
(b) Notwithstanding sub-rule (1)(a) of this rule, Government Ministries, Department, Agencies (MDAs), Institutions or Parastatals etc, shall pay any penalties for defaulting to file any process within the time so allowed by the Rules or Order of the Court.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rule 1 of this rule, where any person is ordered to pay the costs of the State or any Government Department in any proceedings whether criminal or civil, all such fees shall be recoverable from that person.

The Court may suo motu order the party or parties in a pending or a part-heard matter at any stage of the proceedings, to regularize the party’s process already filed before the commencement of these Rules in order to bring it into conformity with the Rules of the Court.

The Court may permit an affidavit to be used, where it is defective in form only and not in substance, if the court is satisfied that it has been sworn before a person duly authorized.

In any process before the Court, a defective or erroneous affidavit may be amended and re-sworn by leave of the court, on such terms as to time, costs or otherwise as seem reasonable.
Provided such amendment does not in any way alter the original intendment of the affidavit or its contents.

The Registries of the Court shall, subject to the direction of the President be opened to the public on every day of the year from 8 o’clock in the forenoon to 3 o’clock in the afternoon, except on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.

Where processes are filed out of time, it shall be the duty of the defaulting party to correctly calculate the penalty payable for the failure or neglect to file within the prescribed time.

When a Court makes an order that an act shall be carried out or performed before the next adjourned date, failure to carry out such an act without sufficient reasons shall deny such a party the right of audience until the order of the Court is complied with.

(1) Where the Court awards costs against any of the parties, the cost shall be paid before the next adjourned date.

(2) Where the court awards costs against a party, and the party refuses, neglects or is unwilling to obey or comply with the order of the court, the party defaulting shall not be granted audience during the continuance of the neglect, refusal or disobedience to the order of the Court.

(1) If it is the claimant that is in default, the Court may proceed to strike out the matter. Where there is a counter-claim the Defendant may be asked to proceed to prove the Defendant’s counter-claim.

(2) If it is the defendant that is in default, the Court may proceed to hearing the matter on its merit and give judgment accordingly.

Where a counsel admits that failure or neglect and refusal or unwillingness of the party to act is due to the fault or mistake of counsel and any cost is awarded, such cost shall be against the counsel and not the party; and the counsel shall pay the costs before the next adjourned date, failing which the counsel may not be given audience.

Where a matter arises in respect of which no provision or adequate provision is made in these Rules or any other written law, the Court may adopt such similar procedure as will in its view do substantial justice between or amongst the parties.

(1) In any cause or matter before the Court in which counsel appears, the Court may make enquiry from the counsel as to the counsel’s qualification, age at the Bar, payment of legal practitioners fees or the fulfilment of any other conditions as may be required.

(2) Where the Court is not satisfied with any answer given by the counsel, the Court may take such other action as may be necessary.

(1) Media life coverage of Court proceedings may only be allowed by the Presiding Judge or as may be directed by the President of the Court.
Provided that such matter to be covered by the media shall be for Constitutional or of National importance interest or in the overall interest of the nation and citizenry.

(2) Where in a matter for which media life coverage is permitted as provided in sub-rule 1 of this rule, such coverage shall be limited to taking of pictures or video recording of the Court setting and shall be carried out before the Court proceeding commences or the Presiding Judge enters the Court room.

(3) Notwithstanding sub-rule 2 of this rule, the media may be allowed to remain in the Court room and shall not be allowed to take pictures or video record or transmit same while the proceeding is going on.

No legal practitioner shall be allowed to grant any press interview, make comments or give any opinion or argument that may touch on a matter which is sub-judice before the Court either within the precincts of the Court, its appurtenances or environs.