Facts:

Facts:
The respondent sued the appellant at the Lagos High Court alleging that the appellant
owed it the sum ofN16,134,691.62 (Sixteen Million, One Hundred and Thirty Four
Thousand, Six Hundred and Ninety One Naira, Sixty Two Kobo) being the debt
accruing from stevedore services rendered by the respondent to the appellant
between December 2009 and March 2010.
The appellant upon being served with the originating process, filed a preliminary
objection challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear and determine the matter
on the ground that the matter falls under the Admiralty jurisdiction of the Federal
High Court and that consequently, the State High Court lacks the requisite
jurisdiction to hear and determine the matter. After hearing the parties on the
preliminary objection, the trial court ruled in favour of the respondent and dismissed
the preliminary objection. The court stated that the matter between the parties
involves a simple contract and as such it is competent and clothed with requisite
jurisdiction to determine the matter. The appellant was dissatisfied with the court’s
ruling and filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division challenging
the ruling of the Lagos High Court and praying the Court of Appeal to set aside the
ruling.
The sole issue distilled for determination was whether the learned trial judge was
right to have held that it had jurisdiction to entertain the matter on the ground that
the matter before the court was founded on simple contract.