Court of Appeal Urges to Stay Union Bank's Bid for 'N13 Billion' Ikoyi Property Judgment

The Court of Appeal in Lagos has been urged to dismiss Union Bank Plc’s application to stay a High Court ruling regarding the bank’s “unlawful” sale of a family’s property located at No. . 6, Moore Road, Ikoyi, Lagos State, which was sold at a grossly undervalued price of N60 million.

The legal team representing Mrs. Olubunmi Ogunde, Yewande Ogunde and others filed a counter affidavit before the Court of Appeal on November 7, 2024.

They submitted that the disputed property would now be worth N13 billion if pre-judgment interest and post-judgment pro rata interest were calculated for the relevant years.

The disputed judgement on appeal it concerns a loan and mortgage issue (originally commenced in 1999 but amended by claimants in 2017).

Facts of the case

Nairametrics previously reported that on May 31, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that both the sale of Plot 6A and the sale of Plot 6B, 6C and 6D by the bank were grossly undervalued.
The verdict was based on market research regarding comparable properties or locations at the time, according to evidence reviewed by the court.
The judge further stated that evidence showed that the mortgagor had not been given access to his account, therefore the correct purchase price was not known at the relevant time. The court ruled that the sale of the property at such a low price was evidence of fraud.
The judge agreed with the plaintiffs, stating that the sale of the Ikoyi property by the bank was carried out in bad faith and at a grossly undervalued price.

“The court awards the sum of N112,050,000.00 excluding the N60,000,000.00 (Sixty Million Naira) already paid, being the difference in what should have been realized from the sale of the property known as No . 6 Moore Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, and interest on the said balance from 1998 to today (the date of judgment) at the prevailing CBN rate, and thereafter from the date of judgment until the judgment debt is fully repaid at the rate of 10% per year,” the judge had stated.

Bank appeals against the court’s decision

Disagreeing with the High Court judgment, the bank’s lawyer, Funke Agbor SAN, requested the High Court to stay the execution of the judgment pending the disposition of the bank’s appeal.
In his notice of objectionAccording to Nairametrics, the bank asked the Lagos Court of Appeal to set aside the judgment on grounds related to due process, improper evaluation and miscarriage of justice.
The bank argued that the district court erred in law by finding that the sale of the mortgaged property had a gross undervalue and by awarding monetary damages to the defendants.

“The evidence on which the lower court relied does not support the family’s claims as to their perceived value of the property at the time of sale, as the prices of comparable properties in the same area (some on the High Street) exceed the reasonableness justify the price. of which the property in question was sold by Union Bank,‘, the bank said.

Opposition to the bank’s request for a postponement

Opposing the bank’s request for a stay, Omotola Oni, a Litigation Executive at Olaniwun Ajayi Chambers, told the Court of Appeal that despite the order of the lower court, the bank continues to refuse to provide the respondents with the estate’s bank account statements , as previously noted by the Supreme Court.

He argued that it would be unconscionable to grant a stay of execution because the family is entitled to the immediate benefit of their sentence.

“It is only fair that the applicant (Union Bank) pays the judgment amount into an interest-bearing account, with interest calculated on a compound interest basis, at a commercial bank other than the applicant.” he declared.

He further submitted that although the lower court had awarded the judgment amount at NGN52,050,000 (after deducting N60 million from over N112 million), as of November 2024, the total prejudgment interest payable on the judgment calculated in accordance with the applicable The CBN rate since 1999 and on a compound interest basis is “N12,547,686,231.27, while the post-judgment pro rata interest (at 10% per annum) is N417,333,333.00.”
He urged the Court of Appeal to find that if the bank’s request is granted and the execution of the judgment is suspended, the interests of the defendants would be seriously harmed.
Nairametrics reports that the Supreme Court judgment is now before the Court of Appeal for further interpretation of relevant laws and determination.