The marriage between the Petitioner and the Respondent was contracted on 24/2/88 at the Baptist Church Mission, Owerri. Thereafter the couple took up residence in the United States of America. At the time the Petition was filed on 26/5/93 the couple had separated and they were living in different locations in Texas United States of America. After tiling the petition, the Petitioner brought a motion ex-parte which was heard on 26/5/93 and leave was granted to serve the Respondent with the petition and all other processes in the suit out of jurisdiction of the court by posting same to 5317 VIRBURNUM COURT, ARLINGTON, Texas, U.S.A. and the case was adjourned to 28/7/93 for report of service. On 21/6/93, one Alphonsus Ihejiotoh, a Senior Bailiff of the High Court Owerri, deposed to an affidavit showing that he had served a copy of the petition on the Respondent at Owerri on the same date. The Petitioner also deposed to an affidavit on 19/10193 that the Respondent was served with Notice of Petition in the State of Texas, in the United States of America on July 12, 1993 by Joseph Bartley Norman, a private process server. Instead of entering appearance in the High Court, Owerri and filing a reply to the petition, the Respondent filed a fresh petition dated 14th of July, 1993 in the District Court of Tarrant County in the State of Texas U.S.A. This prompted the Petitioner after filing an answer to the petition of the Respondent to also file two exparte motions before the High Court Owerri praying for an Order of accelerated hearing of suit No. HOW/5D/93. The first motion was dated 4/10/93 while the second was dated 19/10/93. In the second motion the Petitioner prayed that:

"upon granting the relief aforeprayed" (i.e. accelerated hearing) to hear the petition." The motion was heard on 20/10/93 and the order granted. The ruling because of its importance to the appeal is hereby reproduced:-

"Order as prayed. The petitioner/Applicant (sic) in this matter was filed on 21st May. 1993. The papers were served on Respondent both in Nigeria and the U.S. Second affidavit of service dated 27/5/ 93 and 21st June. 1993. The appearance was entered and no answer filed by the Respondent. The affidavit and Exhibit "A" and "B" tendered discloses that the Respondent has initiated other Divorce Proceedings in the U.S. in abuse of the process of this Court. in the circumstances the application for acceleration is granted. The case will be taken in Chamber on 21st day of October, 1993.

Signed: G. lFUNAYA UDOM AZU.

JUDGE 20/10/93"

The petition came on for hearing on 21/10/93 but could not be taken that day apparently because the Petitioner had changed Counsel. It was then a4journed to 26/10/93 and on that date the Petitioner testified and his Counsel then addressed the Court since nobody appeared for the Respondent. The Petition was then adjourned to 4/11/93 for judgment which was subsequently given on 9/11/93. A decree nisi dissolving the marriage as having broken down irretrievably was made and an order confirming the custody of the child of the marriage was also made in favour of the Petitioner. The Court ordered the sale of any property acquired during the marriage and the proceeds from such sale were to be shared equally between the Petitioner and the Respondent. Costs of the proceedings assessed at N 1000 were to be borne by the Respondent.

Aggrieved by the decision, the appellant appealed to the Court of Appeal and I raised the constitutional issue of lack of fair hearing.