The Plaintiff was the senior partner in a law firm registered as Ndoma-Egba, Ebiri and Company. The law firm had a registered office at Calabar, it maintained a current account No. 0576 with the Defendant/bankers, at the Defendants branch situate at Calabar Road, Calabar. It was a 'clients account'. In order to operate the account, the law firm filed with the Defendant a mandate, which indicated that the cheques and instruments of the law firm, to be valid, ought to be jointly signed by the two legal practitioners in the law firm, that is, the Plaintiff Victor Ndoma-Egba and Richard David Ebri. A card showing the specimen signatures of the two legal practitioners was tilled and left with the Defendant.

The law firm later paid a cheque for N500,000.00 into its account with the Defendant. The cheque had been received for a client of the law firm-Messrs. Reynold Construction Company Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as RCC), R.C.C. later instructed the law firm to pay a sum of the N500,000.00 to its sister company called NWRD. The law firm issued the cheque on 12-3-93. On 30-3-93. Plaintiff called at the Defendant's branch to ascertain if the cheque issued had been paid. He was however informed that although the said cheque for N375.000.00 had not yet been presented the law firm had only N2,000.00 in its account. Upon further enquiry, the Plaintiff discovered that three different cheques for N225,000.00, N31,000.00 and N75,000 had been paid out of the account on 1/3/93, 1/3/93 and 12/3/93 respectively. These came to a total sum of N331,000.00. The Cheques for N31,000.000 and N75,000.00 had been paid to one Oluwaseyi Fabelurin and the one for N225,000.00 to the Defendant.

The Plaintiff pleaded that the Defendant had been negligent by not observing the instructions left with it on the mandate cards as to who could validly sign cheques and instruments on behalf of the law firm. The cheque issued by the law firm to NWRD was dishonoured by the Defendant on its presentment. Embarrassed, the Plaintiff by its letters wrote to the Defendant to demand a refund or restitution. The Defendant denied liability.

In a reserved judgment on 22-9-98, the trial Judge awarded to the Plaintiff the sum of N331,000.00 being the amount alleged to have been unlawfully withdrawn from the account of the law firm and a further sum of N500,000.00 as general damages.

Dissatisfied, the Defendant appealed and the appeal was allowed. It set aside the award made by the trial Court and dismissed the Plaintiff's suit.

Dissatisfied, the Plaintiff appealed to the Supreme Court.