Supreme Court Criticizes Appeal Court’s Ex‑Parte Orders

The Supreme Court of Nigeria delivered a unanimous judgment by its five‑member panel, sharply criticizing the Court of Appeal for what it called the “weaponisation of judicial processes.” The ruling overturned a series of ex‑parte orders issued by the appellate court.

The Apex Court denounced the Court of Appeal’s “restorative ex‑parte order” as a “judicial tragedy” and warned against the increasing misuse of broad interim reliefs.

It held that the relief granted by the Court of Appeal was, in effect, an interlocutory injunction that should not have been issued ex‑parte. The Court stressed that such orders must not determine substantive rights at an interim stage.

The Supreme Court also ruled that the Court of Appeal had exercised jurisdiction in a matter that was not properly before it, reiterating the settled principle that the mere filing of a Notice of Appeal does not, on its own, confer jurisdiction on an appellate court.

Furthermore, the Court found the ex‑parte order that stayed proceedings before the trial court to be fundamentally defective and set it aside in its entirety.

In the case involving Neconde Energy Limited and Nestoil Limited, the Supreme Court held that Neconde’s appeal was meritorious and nullified all 186‑day‑old ex‑parte orders previously made against both companies by the Court of Appeal.

The judgment reaffirmed established principles governing appellate jurisdiction and issued a stern caution against granting substantive interlocutory relief through ex‑parte applications, particularly at the appellate level. The Court warned that such practices undermine procedural fairness and judicial discipline.

The ruling is widely viewed as a strong reaffirmation of the limits of appellate authority, underscoring that strict adherence to due process remains central to the integrity of Nigeria’s judicial system and essential for maintaining confidence in the rule of law.