ARIBISALA vs. ASSET MANAGEMENT, CORPORATION OF NIGERIA (2018) LPELR-46758(CA) | C.K. ANYANWU.

ISSUE: WRIT OF SUMMONS:

Whether a writ must follow the exact format stated in the rules of Court;

PRINCIPLE:

"An originating process such as a claim, a writ of summons, an originating summons, a petition, a notice of appeal and such like, is the very foundation upon which a case or an appeal stands, without which it would definitely fall. This is the same kind of logic contained in the cliche: "You cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stand."

The practical effect of this is that a defective writ of summons cannot bestow jurisdiction on the Court below. The Supreme Court gave a wholesome exposition of the above in the case of OKPE v. FAN MILK PLC & ANOR. (2016) LPELR-42562 (SC) (P. 36, Paras. A-D) Per MUHAMMAD.

C.K. ANYANWU

Secretary,

NBA-YLF ABA.