COUNTY & CITY BRICKS DEV. COMPANY LTD. & ANOR. v. MKC NIG. LTD & 2 ORS.

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Facts:

Facts:
The parties had a dispute concerning title to parcels of land situate at Plot 29 Block 6 and Plot 15, Block 6, Ikoyi Foreshore, Ikoyi Lagos State. The 3rd respondent who was a holder of a certificate of occupancy over the disputed parcels of land and the other respondents claimed ownership by virtue of the Certificate allegedly issued to them by the Federal Government of Nigeria. The appellants on the other hand alleged that they are the rightful owners by virtue of a previous litigation at the Federal High Court, Lagos Division between them and the Federal Government of Nigeria over 16 hectares of land which covered the two disputed parcels of land. They alleged that they won the suit and thus became the rightful owners. In a bid to determine the rightful owner, the respondents filed a suit at the High Court of Lagos State seeking among several reliefs a declaration that the appellants cannot rely on the decision of the Federal High Court to lay claim to the land having obtained the said judgment by fraudulent misrepresentation of facts before the court. They also sought orders of the court to set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court, a declaration that the Certificate of Occupancy issued to them is valid and authentic and a perpetual injunction restraining the appellants, their agents and privies from further committing trespass on the said parcels of land.
Furthermore, the respondents sought special damages to the tune of N179,008,200.00 (One Hundred and Seventy Nine Million, Eight Thousand, Two Hundred Naira) which they claimed were losses incurred as a result of loss of revenue and earnings due to the appellant’s occupation of the land since 2011 preventing them from completing the structures on the parcels of land. They also claimedN1,000,000.00 (One Million Naira) as general damages. The appellants filed their briefs and incorporated a counterclaim. The appellants sought a declaration that the respondents were trespassers on the parcels of land in dispute and orders of perpetual injunction restraining the respondents from further trespassing on the parcel of land and nullifying the Certificate of Occupancy purportedly issued to the respondents by the Federal Government of Nigeria. Furthermore, they sought damages ofN20,000,000.00 (Twenty Million Naira) against the respondents for trespassing on the parcels of land. The matter went to trial and at the end of proceedings, the court gave judgment in favour of the respondents granting them possession of the parcels of land. The court however, dismissed the claim for special damages but went ahead to award the sum of N16,500,000.00 (Sixteen Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira) in favour of the respondents as general damages. The appellants were dissatisfied with the decision and filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division. The parties filed their briefs of argument and the respondents also filed a respondents’ notice. In the main appeal, the appellants alleged that the trial judge failed in properly evaluating the evidence adduced before it thereby resulting into a miscarriage of justice. Two salient issues raised in the appeal are whether the trial court was right in granting a relief in favour of the respondents without evaluating the evidence adduced and in the absence of any specific finding came to the conclusion that the decision of the Federal High Court concerning the parcels of land were obtained by fraudulent misrepresentation and whether the award of N16,500,000.00 (Sixteen Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira) in favour of the respondents as general damages is justified in law

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