Judgment In N156bn Suit Paused By Court’s Suspension

Judgment In N156bn Suit Paused By Court’s Suspension....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court in Lagos suspended the reading of two rulings in a contentious N156.026 billion debt recovery lawsuit following a request by Wahab Shittu, SAN, urging the Chief Judge to transfer the case……… CONTINUE READING

Justice Aluko explained that despite the rulings being ready for delivery on Friday, he was compelled to defer proceedings pending the Chief Judge’s decision on Shittu’s letter.

The case, registered as FHC/L/CS8/2074/2023, involves United Bank of Africa (UBA) as the plaintiff, represented by Mr. Temilolu Adamolekun, against Stallion Nigeria Limited and its subsidiaries as defendants. Shittu represents the 1st, 2nd, and 5th to 11th defendants.

During the recent hearing, Adamolekun appeared for UBA, while Stallion was represented by counsel from Shittu’s chambers.

Justice Aluko informed the parties that the Chief Judge had notified him of Shittu’s request to transfer the case, alleging unjustified delays by the judge, which Justice Aluko refuted as false. Adamolekun and other counsel expressed surprise at Shittu’s claims, affirming that the case had been handled promptly.

Coincidentally, Femi Falana, SAN, was present and pledged to address the issue with Shittu.

The judge noted that the last applications heard included a stay of proceedings, which must be resolved before addressing the substantive issues.

Adamolekun criticized Shittu’s method of communication with the Chief Judge without informing other counsel, contrary to professional conduct rules.

In response to counsels’ submissions, Justice Aluko adjourned the case to July 19, 2024, pending the Chief Judge’s decision on Shittu’s letter.

The plaintiffs include UBA Plc, UBA Cameroon SA, Cote D’Ivoire SA, and Romeo Ese Michael, while defendants include Stallion Nigeria Limited (In Receivership), Von Automobile Nigeria Limited, Popular Farms And Mills Limited, Havana Nigeria Limited, KRBL Food Industries Limited, Qingqi Motorcycle Manufacturing Limited, Stallion Auto Keke Limited, Stallion Motors Limited, The Honda Place Limited, Yokohama Construction Limited, and Mr. Sunil Vaswani.