The Court of Appeal in Abuja has quashed the judgment of a Federal Capital Territory High Court that dismissed the N226 million reversal lawsuit filed by Jaiz Bank against Capricorn Digital Limited.

The appeal, decided on November 5, 2024, was filed by the legal team of Jaiz Bank Plc and Ammasco International Limited (Appellants) against the financial institution and Capricorn Digital Limited (Respondents) in Appeal No: CA/ABJ/CV/351/2023.

According to court documents reviewed by Nairametrics, Jaiz Bank and Ammasco had sought a single relief, asking the Court to order the reversal of a total sum of N226,250,000 transferred from the account of Ammasco, domiciled with Jaiz Bank, to the account of Capricorn, domiciled with Guaranty Trust Bank Ltd. The sum was allegedly part of “a series of fraudulent withdrawals” made from Ammasco’s account with Jaiz Bank between September 24 and 25, 2021.

Capricorn’s legal team had urged the lower court to dismiss the suit, arguing that Jaiz Bank had previously filed an ex-parte application at the Magistrate Court for the reversal of the same sum. On February 15, 2023, the lower court, presided over by Justice Bello Kawu, agreed with Capricorn’s position and dismissed the suit.

Dissatisfied with the ruling, Jaiz Bank’s lawyer, Onochie C. Onwuegbuna Esq., approached the appeal Court, arguing that the N226,250,000 had been in the custody of Capricorn since September 2021, and the appellants had been unable to recover it due to the dismissal of their suit. He denied the allegation of “multiplicity of suits,” stating that there was no evidence before the court to suggest the pendency of any other suit on the same subject matter as of October 7, 2021.

In response, Capricorn’s lawyer, Mobolaji Kuti Esq., argued that while the suit before the Magistrate Court was still pending, the appellants “contemporaneously” filed the current suit at the lower court on October 7, 2021, constituting an abuse of court process.

In its judgment on November 5, 2024, the three-judge panel of the Court of Appeal held that Capricorn had failed to provide any evidence showing that a suit was pending at the Magistrate Court after the proceedings on September 29, 2023, when the ex-parte order was granted. The appeal court described Capricorn’s claims as “mere oral assertions without proof.”

The court set aside the decision of the lower court and ordered that the suit be returned to the High Court, FCT, for trial and determination of the merits before another judge. A cost of N200,000 each was awarded in favour of the appellants and against the respondents, jointly and severally.

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