Compulaw - 1st Indigenous Digital Law Library

Brief

Agency
Award of interest
Consideration
Written agreement
Unchallenged evidence
Interpretation of documents
Stare decisis

Facts

Aswani Textile Industries Limited was the plaintiff in the lower court. It is the respondent in this court. I will call it Aswani or The Respondent. Aswani is the trade name reveals, is a textile manufacturing company. The appellants were the defendants in the lower court. They were five in number. The Royal Exchange Assurance (Nigeria) Limited was the first defendant, followed by four others as in the record. They are now the appellants in this court. I will call them the appellants or “some of the Co-Insurers”, as the case may be. The appellants are engaged in insurance business.

Everything in this appeal took place almost nine years ago. And in Lagos. Aswani was insured with nine Insurance Companies including the appellants for a period of twelve months. The insurance was to expire on the 31st march, 1982. The other Insurers are New India Insurance Company Limited, American International Insurance Company Limited, Nigerian General Insurance Company Limited, and Sun Insurance Office Limited. Added to the appellants, they come to nine. All the nine Insurance Companies took specific and definite percentage of responsibility in the different policies with Aswani. The different percentages came up to 100%. The policies were placed with a firm of Insurance Brokers. They are Glanville Enthoven and Company.

On 6th March, 1982, some twenty-five days before the expiration of the policy, Aswani experienced a fire incident. The properties of Aswani which were insured were damaged or destroyed by the fire. The fire incident was reported to New India Insurance Company Limited on the same day. Notice of the loss and claims against all the Insurance Companies was given thereafter. Graham Miller and Co. was subsequently appointed the Loss Adjusters. I will call them the Adjusters. Aswani claimed a total sum of N31 million. The Adjusters, according to page 404 of the record put the claim at N25,091,253.00. I should remark in passing that the breakdown of the amount does not arithmetically sum up to N25,091,253.00. But that is by the way.

In order to reach an agreement as to the liability of the Insurance Companies, a number of meetings were held between 15th March, 1982 and 21st October, 1982. Following the appointment of the New India Insurance Company Limited, American International Insurance Company Limited and Nigerian General Insurance Company Limited as the Committee of 3, negotiations for settlement were duly opened and subsequently reached. Subsequent to the agreement on the settlement, the New India Insurance Company Limited by Exhibit 4 made a letter of offer of N25,091,253.00 to Aswani. Aswani duly accepted the offer in Exhibit 5.

Thereafter some of the Co-Insurers on record, by Exhibit 6, disclaimed liability of the agreed sum of N25,091,253.00. this is what Exhibit 6 contains:

“With respect to your client’s claim resulting from the fire of 6.3.82 we regret to advise that it is the opinion of the Co-Insurers that no cover was in force at the time of the incident, and thus insurers liability in not engaged.”

Aggrieved by the said letter disclaiming liability, the respondent as plaintiff brought an action against the insurers.

Pleadings were duly filed and exchanged. The matter went to trial. In a considered judgment, the learned trial Chief Judge gave judgment in favour of the plaintiff and granted the reliefs sought.

Dissatisfied with the judgment, the appellants appealed to the Court of Appeal.

Issues

Whether the Committee of Three was validity appointed in respect of...

REAN Ltd V. Aswani Textiles (1991) CLR 4(a) (CA)

Brief

Facts

Issues