UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA LTD V. AKPARABONG COMMUNITY BANK LTD & FIRST BANK OF NIGERIA PLC

OMOKRI JCA (Delivering the Lead Judgment): This is an interlocutory appeal against the decision of Nwaogwugwu J, of the Federal High Court, Calabar, delivered on the 6th day of July, 1999, wherein, inter alia, he refused the application of the appellant, UBA Plc, to be joined as a party to suit No. FHC/CA/CS/34/98. For ease of reference and avoidance of confusion I shall refer to the interested party/appellant simply as appellant. I shall also refer to the 1st respondent simply as 1st respondent and the defendant/respondent simply as 2nd respondent.

The facts of this case on appeal are that the 1st respondent, Akparabong Community Bank Ltd as a unit bank, retains the 2nd respondent, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, through their Ikom branch as her correspondent bank through whom she clears her and her customers’ cheques and also maintains an account with the said branch mainly for those purposes. On 24/3/98 the 1st respondent’s customer, Cultural Centre Board (Afridance Project) paid in a UB…