UCHE H. OTUOKE & 2 ORS V. ALBERT PHILIP & MINANGA LAZARUS

OGEBE, JCA (Delivering the Lead Judgment): The appellants lost a land case before the Customary Court, Ngo in Rivers State and appealed to High Court, Rivers State, sitting as a Court of Appeal. When the appeal came up for hearing before the High Court on the 15th day of Novernber, 1995, the learned counsel for the appellant, Mr. M.Ogbomo, holding the brief of Mr. Nosiri informed the court that his principal travelled to Enugu to handle a matter before the Court of Appeal.

He then applied for an adjournment of the appeal. The court below, without calling for the reaction of the learned counsel for the respondents, who waspresent and without ruling on the application for an adjournment wrote a short judgment, dismissing the appeal. The short judgment is reproduced hereunder:-

“COURT: Mr. Nosiri did not produce the hearing notice served on him from the Court of Appeal, Enugu for this court to grant the application. He was in court on 13/11/95, when this case was adjourned specifically …