Facts:

This appeal is against the one-sentence ruling of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division delivered against the Appellant to wit:

“The Respondent is hereby ordered, to pay the liquidator the said amount disclosed and answered in the interrogatories within 30 days from today.”

The Appellant in this appeal took over the Cooperative Development Bank Plc (referred to as the bank) which the Lion of Africa Insurance Co. Ltd had a transaction with as banker. There exists a customer banker relationship between the predecessor bank of the Appellant and Lion of Africa Insurance Co. Ltd (referred to in this judgment as the company).

The Company gave instruction to the bank to debit its account with the equivalent of $150,000 which is to be used to raise a bank guarantee with a London bank in favour of Council of Lloyd for $110,308.37 and CESAM Paris for $36,769.46. While the guarantee for Council of Lloyd was utilized, the guarantee for CESAM Paris was not utilized. Naturally, the company now under liquidation with the Respondent as liquidator wants the money returned to it. The Appellant which took over the bank stepped into the shoes of the co-operative Development bank. When the Appellant reached CESAM Paris to instruct the syndicate bank to close the account and release the money, the Appellant was told that this could not be done until a general report is issued. While the Appellant was trying to find out how to get the general report, the ruling of the court appealed against was made.
The Appellant was very unhappy with the one-sentence ruling appealed to the Court of Appeal.