-
50
(It) is not liable to the Claimant (Appellant herein) in the sums stated in the Writ of Summons or any other sum at all.
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51
The Claimant (Appellant)'s Suit an afterthought, mischievous, vexatious, a gold-digging litigation, an abuse of the process of this Hon. Court and should be dismissed with substantial cost
But during a pre-trial Conference on 7/12/2006, the Respondent's counsel admitted that "there are excess charges in the sum of N7,209,906.55" and the pre-trial Conference Judge, Oyebanji, J., entered Judgment for the Appellant in the sum of N7,290,966.55, admitted by the Respondent.
However, no interest was awarded to the Appellant on that day and on 28/4/2008, the Appellant filed a Motion on Notice praying the Court for: An order awarding interest to the Claimant at the rate of 21% per annum from 18/6/2003 up till and including the current date and until the said interest is finally liquidated by the Defendant in respect of the Judgment of the Court delivered on 7/12/2006 in the sum of N7,209,906.55.
In his Ruling delivered on 25/5/2009, the learned trial Judge held that –The Judgment entered on 7/12/2006 was Judgment on admission made in open Court during Pre-Trial Conference - Learned Counsel for the Claimant did not apply that interest be awarded on the said sum and none was granted - The Court does not grant to a Party an award unsolicited. It seems clear to me that no omission was made by the Court in this case and that there is nothing to rectify. More importantly, pre-judgment interest though pleaded had not been proved and post-judgment interest, which commences from the date of Judgment until liquidation of the Judgment sum has been overtaken by events, there being uncontroverted affidavit evidence - that the Judgment sum has been satisfied by the Defendant and applied by the Claimant - This Application is considered unmeritorious and accordingly dismissed.
The Appellant appealed, and in its Judgment of 30/4/2012, the Court below referred to the above Ruling of the trial Court, and observed as follows:The Ruling of the learned pre-trial Conference Judge clearly show - that Order 35 Rule 4 of the Lagos State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2004, was either not taken into consideration at all or was misunderstood.- The above Rule empowers the trial Judge to award interest on the Judgment sum at the time of entering the Judgment or at any time afterwards. The fact that post-Judgment interest is provided for in the Rules of Court, it was wrong for the Court below to hold that the Appellant did not ask the Court to award interest at the time the Judgment was entered and that the Court does not give what was not asked for. This is much more so when the Appellant as Claimant had clearly asked for both pre and post Judgment interest in its Statement of Claim. It must be noted that the Claim of the Appellant was premised on improper deductions from the accounts of the Appellant on a facility, which was granted to (it) by the Respondent at interest rates between 21% and 30% per annum with interest calculated monthly. If the Respondent charged exorbitant interest on the facility it granted the Appellant, would it not be equitable that the Respondent also pays interest on the money of the Appellant it unlawfully deducted on which Judgment was entered?
The Court of Appeal, however, held as follows on pre-judgment interest:Although the Court is at liberty to award post-Judgment interest on the Judgment sum without much ado, a Plaintiff seeking pre-judgment interest must plead and lead evidence to prove same in view of the decision of the Supreme Court in Berliet Nig. Ltd V. Kachalla (supra) that pre-judgment interest needs to be pleaded and proved by evidence, I resolve Issue 2 against the Appellant.
At the end of the day, the Court of Appeal concluded in its Judgment that:This Appeal has merit, and it is hereby allowed in part. The Ruling of the learned Pre-Trial Conference Judgment (sic) made on 25/5/2009 is hereby set aside. In line with Order 35 Rule 4 of the High Court of Lagos State (Civil Procedure Rules, 2004 and as empowered by Section 15 of the Court of Appeal Act, 2004, I hereby order that the Respondent shall pay post-judgment interest on the Judgment sum on N7,209, 906.55 at the rate of 10% per annum with effect from 25/5/2009 when the Judgment sum was entered.
Dissatisfied, the Appellant filed a Notice of Appeal in this Court.
