CHIEF UJILE D. NGERE A.W. MBOSOWO V. CHIEF JOB WILLIAM OKURUKET ‘XIV’ NNADI PAUL IBOTILE

ARIWOOLA JSC (Delivering the Lead Judgment): This is an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt Division delivered on 7 July 1994, coram, Edozie JCA (as he then was), R.O. Rowland JCA and M.S. Muntaka-Coomassie JCA (as he then was) which judgment set aside the judgment of the High Court of Rivers State delivered on 30 May 1990, (herein after called the ‘trial court’) coram: Ichoku J.

Sometime on 9 May 2014, sequel to the appellants’ application, the appellants were granted leave by this court to appeal against the aforementioned judgment of the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt Division (hereinafter called ‘lower court’).

The background facts that culminated into the instant appeal need to be given. Succinctly put, it goes thus:

Sometime on 23 July 1986, the respondents, as plaintiffs had instituted an action before the High Court, against the predecessors of the appellants as defendants, claiming as follows:

(a) A declaration that the chieftaincy stool of OKAN-A…