It all began in 1977. The Appellant was visited in his office in Western House by a legal practitioner, one Dele Ogedengbe, who informed him that he had reached an agreement with a man called Bennie, who was the Managing Director of Laing Construction Limited, for him to rent a house situated at Victoria Island belonging to the defendant. Mr. Ogedengbe was acting for the defendant. He said he had come on the instruction of the defendant to request the Appellant to accelerate the preparation of legal documents so that Mr. Bennie could pay the agreed rent of N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand naira) per annum, payable 5 years in advance, for the defendant.

Mr. Ogedengbe however informed the appellant that there was another house belonging to one Mr. Dove Edwin, the then Nigeria Ambassador to France, which they needed to hire in respect of which the preparation of legal documents should be given priority. The rent of Mr. Dove Edwin’s house was N42, 000.00. The reason why they required Dove Edwin’s house for immediate occupation was because it was a specially designed house having over half an acre of ground as against the house of the Respondent. The house of the respondent was to be kept in view to await further instructions.

To the surprise of the Appellant, on 23rd March, 1978, the appellant was arraigned before a magistrate V.B.A. Famakinwa, charged with one Mr. La Fevre, with stealing N450, 000.00 property of the American International Insurance company of Nigeria Limited.

Although appellant was offered bail he refused to go on bail and chose to be remanded in custody. He remained in custody up to 30th April, 1978. It was while he was in custody that he was visited by one Mr. Aderemi Odofin who told him what the Respondent had said that amount involved in the matter was N4 Million and that one Mr. Allison Ayida was present when the respondent spoke.

The defendant in his statement of defence, pleaded that the action having been brought 3 years after the alleged slander was statute-barred by virtue of section 10 of the Limitation Law, cap. 70 Laws of Lagos State, 1073; that in fact there was no slander of the appellant by the defendant; and, that the words alleged spoken by the defendant caused the plaintiff no damage.

The High Court dismissed the claim not only on the ground that it was statute-barred but also on the ground that it was totally without merit.

The Court of Appeal also unanimously upheld the judgment of the trial court and dismissed the appeal.

Appellant appealed to the Supreme Court.