Legal Nuggets (Series 100): ISSUE -Practice and Proceedure; Principles Governing Third Party Proceedings.- By Adedotun Habeeb Adetunji, LL.M (M.IoD), FCAI'

H.A.R. PETROLEUM SERVICES LTD & ANOR v. FIRST CITY MONUMENT BANK PLC & ANOR

(2018) LPELR-45556(CA)

PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE - THIRD PARTY PROCEEDINGS:   (Principles governing third party proceedings)

"The law is that unless it is shown that there is an obligation on the part of a third party in law or equity to indemnify the defendant, then the third party will not be liable in Third Party Proceedings, upon the success of the action of the plaintiff against the defendant.

    See BANK OF IRELAND v. UBN LTD (1998) 10 NWLR (Pt. 569) 178. In OKAFOR v. ACB (1975) LPELR (2419) 1 at 13, Fatayi-Williams, JSC (as then was, later CJN) stated:
          "In our view, the mere service of a third-party notice does not make the person on whom it is served a defendant to the main action but makes him only a defendant vis a vis the person serving the notice. In the main action, the rights of the plaintiff and the defendant are determined without reference to the defendant's claim against the third party, but when those rights have been ascertained, it is then open to the person brought as third party to have all relevant disputes determined between him and the person serving the notice.

     In doing this, the third party may defend himself in any way in which any defendant in an action at the suit of a plaintiff may defend himself".* See also BARCLAYS BANK v. TOM (1922) ALL ER 279 at 280 and 281 and UNION BANK v. EDIONSERI (1988) LPELR (3384) 1 at 14-16 (SC).

     There is nothing in the evidence on Record on the basis of which the 1st Respondent could be held liable to indemnify the 1st Appellant for the judgment sum of N163, 363,043.35 which the 2nd Respondent obtained against the Appellants•