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ISSUE: NATURE OF ISSUE & GROUNDS OF APPEAL

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Dictum

It is trite that a Respondent may not formulate issues outside the grounds of appeal contained in the Appellant’s Notice of Appeal, in this case contained in Pages 337 – 346 of the printed records of Appeal. Issues for determination must be based on and correlate with the grounds of appeal and should be an answer to the grounds of appeal. An issue may encompass one or more grounds of appeal, it is incompetent where the issues are not based on the grounds of appeal, they are irrelevant. Issues for determination in an appeal is akin to pleadings in the lower Court, hence adherence to the strict observance of the rules on formulating issues for determination. If all the above constituent elements or requirements of the doctrine are not fully established, the plea of estoppel per rem judicatam can not be sustained.

– Nwaoma Uwa, JCA. NOGA v. NICON (2007)

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ISSUE NOT RELATED TO A GROUND OF APPEAL IS INCOMPETENT

Actually, one is at sea where this issue was lifted or distilled from as it does not have any relationship with any of the grounds of Appeal. It is trite that an issue for determination must flow from the ground of Appeal filed. Where an issue for determination in an appeal is not related to or based on ground of appeal filed, it is incompetent, valueless and must be ignored by the Court. See Akese v. Government Oyo State (2012) ALL FWLR (Pt. 634) Page 53, Madukolum v. Nkemdilim (1962) 2 SCNLR Page 34. Omo v. JSC Delta State (2000) 12 NWLR (Pt. 682) page 444.

— P.O. Elechi, JCA. Onoeyo v UBN (2014) – CA/C/66/2007

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GROUND AGAINST WRONGFUL ADMISSION OF EVIDENCE NEED NO LEAVE

A ground of appeal against wrongful admission of evidence or wrongful reliance on it in a final appeal is proper and arises from the judgment. It requires no leave of Court to raise it. – Ekanem JCA. C.O.P. v. Doolor (2020) – CA/MK/182/2017

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ISSUE MUST HAVE A GROUND OF APPEAL SUPPORTING IT

Issues for determination numbers (1), (3), (4) and (6) are based on no grounds of appeal at all or upon grounds 4 and 5 which had already been struck out. This should not be. Counsel will do well to remember that issues for determination must arise from and relate to the grounds of appeal filed, and no more. Conversely, any issue for determination which has no ground of appeal to support it is worse than useless: See on this Osinupebi v Saibu & ors. (1982) 7 S.C. 104 at pp. 110-111; also Western Steel Works Limited & Anor. v. Iron & Steel Workers Union of Nigeria (1987) 1N. W.L.R. (Part 49) 284, at p. 304.

— Nnaemeka-Agu, JSC. Ugo v Obiekwe (1989) – SC.207/1985

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JUDGEMENT MUST BE CONFINED TO PARTIES ISSUES

This is because it is a fundamental principle of the determination of disputes between parties that judgment must be confined to the issues raised by the parties and it is not competent for the court to make a case for either or both of the parties and then proceed to give judgment on the case so formulated contrary to the case of the parties.

– Iguh, JSC. Oshatoba v. Olujitan (2000)

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ISSUE SIMULTANEOUSLY DISTILLED FROM BOTH A COMPETENT AND AN INCOMPETENT GROUND OF APPEAL IS DEFECTIVE – SC

Smart v. Idiokita (2026) 8 NWLR (Pt. 2044) 63 at 86, B: ‘In the circumstances, issues 2 and 3 of the appellant’s issues for determination which were distilled from grounds 3 and 5 of the notice of appeal are incompetent. It is also the law that where an issue for determination is distilled from competent and incompetent grounds of appeal, such an issue is polluted by the virus of the incompetent ground of appeal and thereby becomes incompetent and liable to be struck out. Issues 2 and 3 as distilled by the appellant are hereby struck out.’

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COURT REFORMULATING AN ISSUE MUST BE ROOTED IN THE GROUNDS OF APPEAL

It follows therefore, that when reformulating the issues crafted by the contending parties, as the issues in controversy, the Court of Appeal must ensure that such re-formulated issue(s) have foundation and are rooted in the grounds of appeal contained in the notice of appeal before it. The power of the Court of Appeal is limited to reformulating issues that are capable of addressing the grievance of an appellant, who has taken all necessary steps to ventilate his grievance against the decision of a trial court, the Court of appeal has no business engaging in crafting fancy and flowery issues for determination in the abstract, employing words that are catchy and tantalizing.

– Tijjani Abubakar, JSC. Nwobike v. FRN (2021)

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