LEGAL PRINCIPLE: EVIDENCE LAW — Burden of Proof — Standard of Proof in Declaration of Title Claims — Proof by Preponderance of Evidence

"We are not unmindful of the fact that it is a well established principle of law that in a claim for declaration of title, the onus is always on the plaintiff to establish his claim, and that it is not open to him to rely on the weakness of the defendant's case. This court has always held that what is required of a plaintiff in an action for declaration of title is at least to establish his claim by preponderance of evidence. It is often enough that he has produced sufficient and satisfactory evidence in support of his claim. The test is, whether the plaintiff has been able to prove to the satisfaction of the court that he has a better title than the defendant. We think that it is relevant to draw attention to the fact that subject to the well-known rule as was laid down in Akpan Awo v. Cookey Gam 2 NLR 100; and a host of other cases that followed it, the standard of proof in a claim for declaration of title is not different from that which is required in civil cases generally. The only difference, if we may say so, rests on the fact that the burden of proof is on the plaintiff who is claiming title, and that it never shifts to the defendant throughout the trial. The difference therefore, lies not in the standard of proof, but on the burden of proof."