The Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal has delivered a landmark judgment, overturning a 2013 decision by the Federal High Court in the case between RCN Networks Ltd and Guaranty Trust Bank PLC (GTBank).
The earlier Federal High Court ruling had led to what the appellate court described as the “unlawful foreclosure” of a ₦30 billion, 44-room mansion owned by Alhaji Agboola Abiola—son of the late Bashorun M.K.O. Abiola, acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.
In its unanimous judgment in suit number CA/L/888/2014, the Court of Appeal held that the trial court had failed to address clear irregularities on the execution page of a tripartite legal mortgage filed by GTBank at the Lagos State Land Registry.
According to the appellate court, the inconsistencies rendered the mortgage document legally defective and insufficient to grant the bank any lawful authority to foreclose on the disputed property.
The court particularly noted that the document was not signed by the alleged mortgagor, Alhaji Abiola.
It further observed that the document’s footer included handwritten alterations—absent from the rest of the pages—which, according to the appellant’s argument, pointed to the possibility that the document was forged by the bank.
As a result of these findings, the court ruled in favour of the appellant, nullifying all legal claims GTBank had previously laid on the property.
The appellant was represented by Dr. Charles Adeogun-Phillips, SAN, while Mr. Norrison Quakers, SAN appeared for the respondent.
Source: The Witness