ENESI LUKMAN ABDULLAHI VS THE STATE
May 30, 2025EFFANGA EFFIOM HENSHAW VS EFFANGA ESSIEN EFFANGA & ANOR.
May 30, 2025Legalpedia Citation: (2008) Legalpedia (CA) 11111
In the Court of Appeal
Mon May 19, 2008
Suit Number: CA/C/11/2006
CORAM
PARTIES
MOBIL PRODUCING NIG. UNLTD.CHARLES OCHONOGOR APPELLANTS
UDO TOM UDO [PC NO. 542] RESPONDENTS
AREA(S) OF LAW
SUMMARY OF FACTS
The Plaintiff (now Respondent) instituted an action against the Defendant (now Appellant) claiming general damages for assault, wrongful detention, wrongful suspension from duty, false accusation and various allowances on the termination of his employment by the Defendant. At the conclusion of the trial, the court below entered judgment in favour of the Plaintiff. Dissatisfied, the Defendant filed this appeal. The Plaintiff also filed a cross-appeal.
HELD
Appeal dismissed
ISSUES
Whether the Respondent was an employee of the 1st AppellantWhether the disengagement of the respondent from the service of the 1st appellant was properWhether the award and/or level of damages awarded by the learned trial Judge to the respondent had any basis in law and did not violate all known and settled principles on the award of damages for breach of contract.Whether respondent is entitled to be paid his Terminal/Separation Benefits at his claimed rate or at all?Whether the respondent is entitled to damages for assault; wrongful detention, false-accusation of crimonous charge and or emotional lossesWhether the respondent was a Supernumerary Police Officer per the Police Act or an employee of the 1st appellant?Whether the employment of the respondent was properly determined by the 1st appellant?Whether respondent is entitled to his claims as awarded by the trial court or any claim at all?”
RATIONES DECIDENDI
FAILURE TO GIVE STATEMENT OF EMPLOYMENT-EFFECT OF
“It is settled law that any employer who fails to give his employee a written statement of the terms and conditions of his employment about three months after the beginning of his employment is estopped from relying on the failure of the worker or his said employee to tender in evidence the said terms and conditions of his employment.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE-POSITION OF THE LAW WITH REGARDS TO CLAIMS FOR SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE MADE BY A LITIGANT
The law, therefore, will not allow a litigant who made a claim for specific performance or specific losses suffered by him to add another figure under the head of general damages.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
AWARD OF DAMAGES-CONDITIONS WHEN AN APPELLATE COURT CAN INTERFERE
“The award of damages is squarely within the domain of trial Courts and, as such, an appellate Court will not interfere with it, except for certain reasons. Before an appellate Court can properly interfere with any decision of a trial Court on the amount of damages awarded, it must be convinced either:
(a) that the trial Court in assessing the damages applied a wrong principle of law or
(b) that the amount awarded was so extremely high or so small as to make it in the judgment of the appellate an entirely erroneous estimate of damages to which the Plaintiff is entitled.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT-WHEN AN EMPLOYEE IS NOT PAID FOR A PERIOD OF EMPLOYMENT -NATURE OF CLAIM TO BE MADE THERETO
“The law is that where an employee is not paid for a period of employment in respect of which he is entitled by the contract to be paid a fixed amount, his claim is not one for damages but a debt, namely, payment for an agreed sum, since he is entitled to be paid according to the agreed rate. The employee cannot claim in addition to the sum due, damages for delay in paying the salary.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
GENERAL DAMAGES-ASSESSMENT OF
“The measure of general damages in terms of money is a matter for the Judge. It is always necessary for the Judge to make his own assessment of the quantum of such damage. General damages unlike special damages are generally incapable of substantially exact calculation. They are presumed by the law to be the direct and probable consequences of the act complained of.” PER OMOKRI JCA
GENERAL DAMAGES-WHETHER AN EMPLOYEE IS ENTITLED TO SAME
“The law is, whereas the employee can recover his remuneration within the period of suspension, he cannot claim in addition to the sum due, general damages. It is a known principle of law that an employee is, however, not entitled to general damages as in a claim for tort. He is only entitled to what he would have earned throughout the period of suspension which was never authorized by the conditions of his employment.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
LAW AND FACTS-APPLICATION OF -WHERE PARTY RELIES ON STATUTORY DEFENCE-DUTY OF THE PARTY THERETO
“Facts must be applied to law. It is wrong to work backwards from law to facts. It is the establishment of the facts that comes first before the application of the law. It is trite law that a party who relies on the provisions of a statute as a defence should plead facts relied upon for bringing a particular transaction within the ambit of that statute.” PER OMOKRI JCA
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT-WHETHER A SERVANT CAN BE FOISTED ON A MASTER-WHETHER A MASTER CAN SUO MOTU TERMINATE THE CONTRACT
“It is trite that a servant cannot be foisted on a master but at the same time a master cannot suo motu, terminate the contract without informing the servant.” PER OMOKRI JCA
ABANDONMENT OF EVIDENCE-WHEN DOES IT OCCUR
“It is settled law that any averment on which no evidence is adduced in support is deemed abandoned.” PER OMOKRI JCA
GENERAL DAMAGES IN TORTS AND CONTRACT-DISTINCTION IN PRINCIPLES-WHETHER INTERCHANGEABLE-ASSESSMENT OF DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT-PRINCIPLE OF
“The principles governing the grant of general damages in torts cannot be interchangeable with the principles governing the grant of damages in actions based on contracts. Generally, this principle of assessment of damages for breach of contract, which is applied by the Courts is restitution in integrum.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
UNCHALLENGED AND UNCONTRADICTED EVIDENCE- HOW TREATED BY THE COURT
“When a piece of evidence is unchallenged or uncontradicted by the opposing party who had an opportunity to controvert the evidence, the trial court has no alternative but to believe the evidence.” PER OMOKRI JCA
AWARD OF DAMAGES-CONCEPT OF
“A Plaintiff who has been adequately compensated under one head of damages cannot claim damages under another head in respect of the same claim”. PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT-SECTION 7 THE LABOUR ACT
“Employers are mandated by section 7 of the Labour Act, 1974 to give to their workers, written statements of particulars of the terms and conditions of their employment not later than three months after the beginning of their period of employment.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
DOUBLE COMPENSATION-POSITION OF THE LAW
“The law frowns at double compensation and will not allow a litigant who made claims for specific losses suffered by him to add another figure under the head of general damages.” PER OMOKRI JCA
GENERAL DAMAGES-NATURE OF
“General damages are the kind of damage which the law presumes to flow from the wrong complained of. They are such as the court will award in the circumstance of a case”. PER OMOKRI JCA
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT-FORMS OF
“The general rule is that the contract of employment may be in any form, and not necessarily in writing. A contract of employment may be inferred from the contract of the parties if it can be shown that such a contract was intended although not expressed. It should be noted that the inference may be rebutted if such service is incompatible with employment. This may happen where the parties are relations or where the service was performed on the basis of a charity. Nevertheless, a contract of employment may be oral unless there is a statute requiring writing or deed.” PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT-CONCEPT OF
“It is well settled in contract of employment that services and wages are the twin pillars upon which a contract rests.” PER OMOKRI JCA
TERMINATION OF CONTRACT-WHERE DONE UNILATERALLY -EFFECT OF
“The law is that a unilateral termination of contract does not terminate the contract”. PER OMOKRI JCA
DAMAGES-ASSESSMENT OF DAMAGES DUE TO A SERVANT
“It is trite that a servant is generally entitled to damages in the sum of the period of Notice.” PER OMOKRI JCA
UNWRITTEN CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT-IMPLICATION OF
“Where a contract of employment is unwritten as in the instant case, the intention of the parties can be discovered by reference to the oral evidence of the parties and their witnesses and by facts surrounding circumstances of the transaction.” PER OMOKRI JCA
DAMAGES-PURPORT OF
“Damages means the sum of money which a person wronged is entitled to recover from the wrong doer as compensation for the wrong. Damages could also be defined as pecuniary compensation, obtainable in an action for a wrong which is either a tort or a breach of contract the compensation being in the form of a lump sum awarded at the time unconditionally and generally”. PER OMOKRI JCA
GENERAL DAMAGES- AWARD OF -WHEN WILL AMOUNT TO DOUBLE COMPENSATION
“It is trite law that the award of general damages is improper when the quantum of loss is ascertainable as it will amount to double damages or double compensation”. PER ORJI-ABADUA JCA
SPECIAL DAMAGES- CLAIM FOR
“A claim for terminal or separation benefits is a claim for special damages which must be specifically pleaded and strictly proved.” PER OMOKRI JCA
CASES CITED
A.B. Ltd vs. Asaolu (2005) All FWLR (Pt. 270) 2132 Adekunle vs. Rock view Hotel (2004) 1 NWLR Part 853 p. 161 Agbanelo v s. U. B. N. Plc. (2000) 7 NWLR (Pt. 666) 534 British Airways vs. Makanjuola (1993) 8 NWLR (Pt. 311) 276Ezeani vs. Ejidike (1964) 1 ALL NLR 402 Ezekiel vs. Westminister Dedging Ltd. (2000) 9 NWLR (Pt. 672) page 248 at 262 F. B. N. Plc. vs. Onukwugha (2005) 6 NWLR (Pt. 950) 120Jambo vs. Wickliff (2005) All FWLR (Pt. 251) 278.Kwara Investment Co. Ltd vs. Garuba (2000) 10 NWLR Part 674 p. 25 M. N.L. Vs. Pegofor Industries Ltd. (2005) All FWLR (Pt. 270) at 2018 at 2028Military Governor of Oyo State vs. Adekunle (2005) 3 NWLR Part 912 p. 294Nwakhoba vs. Dumez (Nig) Ltd (2004) 3 NWLR Part 861 p. 461Odulaja vs. Haddad (1973) 11 SC 351Offoelo vs. N.E. P. Plc. (2005) All FWLR (Pt. 285) 245 at 561Okeke vs. Aondokaa (2000) 9 NWLR (Pt. 673) 501 at 516 Oluigbo vs. Umeh (2004) 6 NWLR Part 870 p. 621Omo vs. J. S. C., Delta State (2000) 12 NWLR (Pt. 682) 444Omonuwa vs. Wahabi (1976) 4 SC 37 Otuendor vs. Olughor & Ors. (1997) 7 SCNJ 411Q.S.G. vs. Dawami Ltd. (2003) NWLR (Pt. 818) at 102; SDPC (Niq.) Ltd. vs. Tiebi VII (1996) 4 NWLR (Pt. 445) 657 at 689Uwegba vs. AG Bendel State (1986) 1 NWLR (Pt. 16)303Warner & Warner International vs. F. H. A. (1993) 6 NWLR (Pt. 298) 148Yalaju Amaye vs. A. R. E. C. Ltd. (1990) 4 NWLR (Pt. 145) 422 at 450-451.
STATUTES REFERRED TO
Police Act, Cap 359, L. F. N. 1990Labour Act, 1974
