The Supreme Court has brought to an end a 29-year legal dispute by dismissing an appeal challenging the jurisdictional decision of the Court of Appeal, Calabar Division, thereby nullifying a ₦1.4 billion compensation claim against Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited over alleged community land acquisition in Akwa Ibom State.
In a unanimous judgment delivered on Thursday, the apex court held that the Federal High Court lacked the requisite jurisdiction to entertain claims bordering on land disputes, compulsory acquisition, and compensation for unexhausted improvements.
The court ruled that such matters fall squarely within the exclusive jurisdiction of State High Courts under the Land Use Act.
The appeal arose from a suit instituted in 1997 by His Royal Highness, Obong David Edu, alongside 132 others, at the Federal High Court, Uyo Judicial Division.
The claimants sued Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited—now Seplat Energy Producing Nigeria Unlimited—the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), and the Government of Akwa Ibom State.
They sought compensation on behalf of themselves and the Ekid people of Eket and Esit Eket Local Government Areas for community land allegedly compulsorily acquired by the state government.
The claimants demanded ₦379,988,000, with interest from July 30, 1997, as compensation for the alleged acquisition and unexhausted improvements on the land.
In March 2014, the Federal High Court ruled in favour of the claimants, awarding the full sum with interest at 10 per cent per annum from April 8, 1998, until full liquidation of the judgment debt—an amount that later ballooned to about ₦1.4 billion.
Mobil challenged the judgment at the Court of Appeal, Calabar Division, which, in a unanimous decision delivered on July 13, 2018, allowed the appeal and set aside the Federal High Court’s ruling on the grounds that it lacked jurisdiction.
Dissatisfied, the claimants further appealed to the Supreme Court. However, the apex court upheld the arguments of Mobil’s counsel, Ituah Imhanze, and dismissed the appeal in its entirety.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed established legal principles that claims for compensation arising from compulsory land acquisition and unexhausted improvements are matters reserved exclusively for State High Courts, not the Federal High Court.
The judgment effectively restores the decision of the Court of Appeal and finally voids the ₦379.9 million award earlier granted by the Federal High Court, bringing the long-running dispute to a close.
