Principle Archive

In reviewing Native Court proceedings, substance over form is important; practice and procedure of Native Courts differ from High Courts, but should not be condemned unless…

Save for general and notorious customs that can be judicially noticed, particular and local customs are matters of evidence and must be proved.

Section 61 of the Area Courts Edict provides that no proceedings in an Area Court shall be declared void solely by reason of any defect in…

Section 1(4)(c) of the Evidence Act provides that the Act shall not apply to judicial proceedings in a native court unless the Governor in Council orders…

Fair hearing is a rule of substance, not a technical doctrine; the decisive question is whether the hearing was conducted in a manner that an impartial…

A plea of res judicata is a special defence that does not question jurisdiction; raising it for the first time on appeal without leave is improper,…

Inordinate delay in asserting rights can defeat equity, especially where innocent third parties have acquired substantial interests for value in reliance on the delay.

A court of equity requires diligence; a 16-year delay in challenging a settlement is unreasonable and fatal to the case, as equity aids the vigilant, not…

A party is bound by a settlement agreement; attempting to reopen the matter after 16 years, having acquiesced in the settlement for an extended period, ought…

Parties to any action are bound by their pleadings, and anything outside the pleadings cannot be considered; a judgment that depends completely on matters not pleaded…

The mere registration of an instrument that does not have the necessary consent endorsed on it does not raise a presumption that the registrar was satisfied…

Under section 12(4) of the Nigerian Coal Corporation Act, prior ministerial approval is a condition precedent for any valid alienation of land by the Corporation; a…