CaseLaw
Sommer V. F. H. A. (1992) CLR 1(o) (SC)
Judgement delivered on January 24th 1992
Brief
Facts
The plaintiffs/appellants claimed in the High Court of Lagos the sum of N1.5 million as damages for wrongful seizure and conversion of plant, machinery and equipment, in the premises of the defendant/respondent, which they claimed to belong to them.
The case of the plaintiffs/appellants is that these plants, machineries etc. were ordered by them and leased to the contractors of the defendant/ respondent in the development of the Festac Village, known as Condotte Garbodi (Nigeria) Limited. The defendant/respondent, on the other hand, contends that the afore-mentioned equipments were purchased from mobilisation funds given by them to the said contractors; and brought on the contract site within the Festac Village, where they used them for their work. Following their failure to fully perform their contract and pursuant to agreement between them and their contractors, ownership of the assorted equipments on the site passed on to it. It is admitted by the parties that the equipments have since been disposed of by defendant/respondent.
After hearing the parties and counsel on their behalf, the learned trial Judge decided that the plaintiffs/appellants (hereinafter) called "appellants" simpliciter) had proved their case on a preponderance of evidence led and awarded them N1.million as value of the equipments seized by the defendants/respondents (referred to simply as "respondent" hereafter). He also awarded the appellants the sum of N200,000.00 as "probable profit which could have been made by them", and N1,000 as costs.
The respondent, not satisfied with that judgment filed an appeal in the Court of Appeal against same.
The Court of Appeal unanimously allowed the appeal, set aside the judgment of the High Court and the damages awarded to the appellants and dismissed the appellants' case. The appellants appealed to the Supreme Court against the judgment of the Court of Appeal.
Issues
Whether the appellants proved on the case which they presented to the court,...