Judgment
CHIOMA EGONDU NWOSU-IHEME, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment) : This is an Appeal against the Ruling of the Awka Division of the Anambra State High Court, presided over by D. A. Onyefulu, J,. The Judgment was delivered on the 5th day of February, 2018 in Motion No A/1602M/2017. The Respondents herein as Defendants at the Court below had filed a Motion challenging the competence of the Suit on the ground that the Writ of Summons was neither signed by a Legal Practitioner nor the Plaintiff himself.
In a considered Ruling the learned trial Judge upheld the objection of the Respondents and struck out the Suit for being incompetent and for want of jurisdiction to entertain the Suit. This Interlocutory Appeal is predicated on the said Ruling. Even though Counsel for the Respondents Emeka Ejike Esq. raised a Preliminary Objection at pages 3 – 4 of his brief, he did not mention it while adopting his brief. The said Preliminary Objection is therefore deemed abandoned.
The Appellant’s brief which was filed out of time is hereby ordered by this Court as having been properly filed and served on the 1st day of February, 2022. Learned Counsel for the Appellant E. C. Uzoka Esq. distilled two issues for determination as follows: i. “Whether the trial Court was right in striking out the Suit on the mere allegation that neither the Plaintiff nor his Counsel signed an alleged Writ of Summons not exhibited. ii.
Whether this case can subsist or exist on the originating process as Writ of Summons as shown on pages 6 to 15 of Record of Appeal.” Learned Counsel for the Respondents Emeka Ejike Esq on the other hand distilled a sole issue thus: “Whether the Court below was right in striking out the Suit for lack of jurisdiction to entertain same due to non-signing of the Writ of Summons by the Plaintiff or his Counsel.” I will make use of this sole issue in the determination of this Appeal. The submissions of both Counsel are as argued in their respective briefs. I do not intend to reproduce same here.
Jurisdiction is the authority by which Courts and Judicial Officers take cognizance of and decide cases. The conditions under which a Court can assume jurisdiction to entertain a matter are clearly spelt out in S. P. D. C. (NIG) LTD V. AGBARA (2016) ALL FWLR (PT. 825) PG. 85. They are: 1. That the subject matter of the case is within its jurisdiction. 2. That there is no feature in the case which prevents the Court from exercising its jurisdiction. 3.
