Judgment
RITA NOSAKHARE PEMU, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): This appeal is against the decision of the Federal High Court Owerri in a ruling delivered on the 11th day of June 2012 in Suit No: FHC/OW/CS/44/2010. In the said ruling, the Court below upheld the Respondents’ Motion on Notice to dismiss the suit and same was accordingly dismissed on the ground that the Appellants’ action was statute barred.
SYNOPSIS OF FACTS The Appellants instituted the suit, the subject matter of this appeal on the 22nd of February, 2010, seeking the sum of N3 Billion (Three Billion Naira) as special damages and general damages. And the sum of N1 Billion (One Billion Naira) being costs of medical bill and N2 Billion (Two Billion Naira) as general damages. The Respondent posits that the action is statute barred because the cause of action arose from the averments in paragraphs 6 and 7 of the Statement of Claim. The Respondent filed a Motion on Notice dated 24th of May, 2011, seeking a dismissal of the suit.
The Court below dismissed the suit holding that the suit was statute barred by virtue of Section 18 of the Limitation Law of Imo State 1994, the suit having been filed more than five years after the cause of action arose in 2000. The Appellants are aggrieved by this decision and pursuant to the Practice Direction of this Honourable Court have appealed same by filing a Notice of Appeal on the 15th of November, 2017 (pages 117–128 of the Record of Appeal) encapsulating nine (9) Grounds of Appeal.
The Appellants filed their Appellants’ brief on the 29th of March, 2018, but same was deemed filed on the 9th of April, 2019. It is settled by Chief J.G. Young- Arney. The Respondent’s brief was filed on the 2nd of November 2018 but same was deemed on the 9th of April, 2019. It is settled by Olusola Laniyan, Esq. The Appellants filed a reply brief on the 6th of February, 2019 and same was deemed on the 9th of April, 2019.
The Appellants distilled four (4) issues for determination from the Notice and Grounds of Appeal viz: ISSUES FOR DETERMINATION: ISSUE 1: Whether considering the wordings of paragraphs 7 and 8 in particular of the statement of claim which confirm continuous damages, the learned trial Judge was not in error of law when he held at page 11 of his ruling that the damages plaintiffs/appellants suffer “…was the effect of the damage…..” ISSUE 2: Whether the learned trial Judge was not in error for dismissing Appellants’ action on the basis of the provisions of the Limitation Law 1994 of Imo State.
