LEGAL PRINCIPLE: APPELLATE PRACTICE — Court of Appeal — Findings of Fact — Where Conclusion Not Borne Out by Record
PRINCIPLE STATEMENT
Where the conclusion of the Court of Appeal is not borne out by the record, the Supreme Court is competent to interfere as such conclusion is perverse. An appellate court is always bound by the record and cannot go outside it.
RATIO DECIDENDI (SOURCE)
Per Tobi, JSC, in Ogolo & Ors v. Fubara & Ors (2003) NLC-291995(SC) at pp. 25–26; Paras A–B.
"Where the conclusion of the Court of Appeal is not borne out from the record, this court is competent to interfere as such conclusion is perverse. ... An appellate court is always bound by the record and the record only. It has no jurisdiction to go outside the record and draw conclusions which are not supported by the record."
EXPLANATION / SCOPE
The Court of Appeal’s findings must be supported by the record. The principle applies to appellate practice. The Supreme Court may interfere if the conclusion is not borne out by the record. The rule limits appellate courts to the record. The court cannot rely on extraneous matters. The principle is fundamental.