NIGERIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Abubakar Anafi, Larry Nkwor, Justice Uka-Ofor and Ayomide Abiodun, G Elias
10. Appeal 10.1 Levels of Appeal or Review to a Litigation
property, collect rents and profits therefrom in satis- faction of the judgment debt, and/or seize and detain the movable properties of the judgment debtor until they obey the judgment. A Writ of Possession and Warrant of Possession Judgments for the recovery of land or delivery of pos- session are enforceable by writs of possession; how- ever, a warrant of possession is the technical name for the equivalent instrument that applies in relation to landlord-tenant disputes. 9.5 Enforcement of a Judgment From a Foreign Country A foreign judgment can be registered and enforced in Nigeria either by an action in common law or under statutes such as the Reciprocal Enforcement of For- eign Judgments Ordinance, 1922 (the “Ordinance”) and the Foreign Judgments (Reciprocal Enforce- ment) Act, 1961 (the “Act”). The Ordinance applies to judgments obtained from courts in Commonwealth countries such as the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, while the Act extends to judgments obtained from courts in countries to which the Nigerian minister of justice has, by an order, extended the benefits of the Act. No such order has, to date, been made. A foreign judgment creditor may elect to enforce a for- eign judgment by an action at common law by claim- ing the reliefs granted to them by the foreign country. The creditor simply needs to apply for summary judg- ment or the undefended list procedure. To register a foreign judgment under the Ordinance and the Act, a petition and originating motion must respectively be filed by the judgment creditor, along- side an affidavit and written address. The judgment debtor has a right to respond to the processes of the judgment creditor. If the High Court is satisfied that none of the grounds upon which it may refuse to register a foreign judgment under the Ordinance/Act is present, it may decide to register the foreign judgment as its own judgment. Once registered, and in the absence of any application to set aside the registration, the judgment creditor can proceed with enforcement using the available enforce- ment mechanisms, such as garnishee proceedings.
The levels of appeal available to a litigant depend on the court in which the suit was instituted and the court’s level in the hierarchy of courts. An appeal from a magistrate’s court can lie to the High Court of a state. Appeals from the Federal High Court, High Court of a state, and other courts of co-ordinate jurisdiction lie to the Court of Appeal, while appeals from the Court of Appeal lie to the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which serves as the final court. However, the Court of Appeal is the final appellate court for civil matters arising from the National Industrial Court. Another mechanism available is judicial review – for example, a writ of certiorari (setting aside proceed- ings), mandamus (compelling the performance of an action), and prohibition (issued by a High Court to prevent inferior courts from acting beyond their juris- diction). 10.2 Rules Concerning Appeals of Judgments A party may appeal against an interlocutory ruling or final decision of the court either as of right or with leave of the court within specific timeframes defined by law. The matters or issues under which an appeal can lie as of right are provided for in the Constitution, and they differ within the appellate hierarchy. Where an appeal can lie only with leave of the court, leave must first be sought and obtained before fil- ing the appeal. Otherwise, such an appeal will not be competent. An appeal may be allowed and granted by an appel- late court where: • the lower court made an error of law or fact; • the lower court failed to exercise its discretion properly; • the lower court failed to follow the due process of law; • the lower court drew an incorrect conclusion from the accepted evidence or did not properly evaluate the evidence; and/or
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