BALANCING INCONVENIENCES BEFORE INJUNCTION IS GRANTED

NATURE OF AN INJUNCTIVE RELIEF

“It has been held in a legion of cases that an interlocutory injunction which is usually granted at the discretion of the court is an equitable remedy granted before or during trial to prevent an irreparable injury from occurring before the court has the opportunity to finally determine the case before it. Its main purpose is to keep the parties to an action in status quo in which they were before the judgment on the act complained of; to protect the applicant against injury which damages cannot be adequate compensation if at the end of the trial the applicant succeeds in obtaining judgment in the suit. See Globe Fishing Industries Limited and Ors V. Chief Folarin Coker (1990) LPELR-1325(SC), Chief Samuel Adebisi Falomo V. Oba Omoniyi Banigbe and Ors (1998) LPELR-1237(SC) and Dekit Construction Co. Ltd. & Anor. V. Musibau Adebayo & Ors. (2010) LPELR-4030(CA). The onus is therefore on an applicant(s) seeking an injunctive relief from the court to satisfy the court by way of affidavit evidence and other relevant materials that he/they is/are entitled to the injunctive relief(s) being sought from the court. See The Attorney-General of Anambra State V. The Attorney-General of the Federal Republic of Nigeria & 35 others (2005) 9 N.W.L.R (Part 931)572 at 634 paras. C – E.”

— P.I. Hamman, J. per paras. 2.8 – 2.9. FRN v ASUU (2022) – NICN/ABJ/270/2022