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A NOTICE OF APPEAL IS AN INITIATING PROCESS

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A notice of appeal is an initiating process by which a higher Court is invited to review the decision of a lower Court to determine whether on a proper consideration of the facts placed before the Court and the applicable law to the said facts, the lower Court arrived at a correct decision … The filing of a notice of appeal is a necessary prerequisite to the hearing of an appeal. Where leave is required a notice of appeal filed without leave is incurably defective and such notice cannot be amended. See Popoola vs. Adeyemo (1992) 8 NWLR (pt. 257) 1 SC, Abidoye vs Alawode (2001) 13 WRN 71 SC.

— W.S.N. Onnoghen, JSC. SPDC v Agbara (2019) – SC.731/2017(R)

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notice of appeal

NOTICE OF APPEAL MUST BE SERVED PERSONALLY

By Order 2 Rule 3 (1) (b) of the Supreme Court Rules, Notice of Appeal is required to be served personally. This Court has in a number of cases held that the Notice of Appeal is an originating process and failure to serve same personally on a Respondent constitutes a fundamental vice which renders the appeal incompetent as this Court will be deprived of the jurisdiction to entertain the appeal in any form whatsoever except to make an order to strike out the said appeal.

– S.C. OSEJI, J.S.C. Odey v. Alaga (2021) – SC.9/2021

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JOINT NOTICE OF APPEAL IN CRIMINAL APPEAL IS DEFECTIVE

In F.R.N. v. Lamido (2026) 13 NWLR (Pt. 2057) 215 at 248, E—H per Umar JSC: ‘From the foregoing, it is established that in civil matters, the appellants have the liberty to jointly appeal, but there is restriction in criminal matters. Such joint notice of appeal in criminal matters will be incurably defective and incompetent, this is so because it will complicate the appeal and imply that the appellant is inviting the appellate court to determine the rights of the co-accused as well. A court is bound to strike out such notice of appeal even without inviting counsel to address the court on the issue. In so doing, no miscarriage of justice has been occasioned. Any appeal originated without following the Rules of Court is incompetent. See the case of Dokpesi v. F.R.N. (2021) 6 NWLR (Pt. 1772) 195 at 217-218. In conclusion, it is therefore my considered view that the failure of the respondent herein to include the names of his co-accused as respondents on the notice of appeal filed at the lower court was not an irregularity and it did not affect the merit of the appeal as constituted at the court below.’

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WHERE A NOTICE OF APPEAL IS DEFECTIVE

It is not in doubt that a notice of appeal, being an originating process in an appeal process, is a very important document. It is the foundation of an appeal. If it is defective, the appellate Court has no choice than to strike it out on the ground that it is incompetent. I need to emphasis that the question of whether or not a proper notice of appeal has been filed in Court is a question which touches on the jurisdiction of the appellate Court. If no proper Notice has been filed, then there is no appeal for the Court to entertain. See FBN PLC v TSA Industries Ltd (2011) 15 NWLR (pt.1216) 247, Anadi v Okoti (1972) 7 SC page 57, Central Bank of Nigeria v Okojie (2004) 10 NWLR (pt.882) 488, Olanrewaju v BON Ltd (1994) 8 NWLR (pt.364) 622, Abubakar v Waziri (2008) 14 NWLR (pt.1108) 507.

— J.I. Okoro, JSC. Universal Properties v. Pinnacle Comm. Bank, NJA, Opia, Heritage, Fatogun (SC.332/2008, Friday, April 08, 2022)

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A JOINT NOTICE OF APPEAL IS NOT PERMITTED IN CRIMINAL MATTERS

F.R.N. v. Lamido (2026) 12 NWLR (Pt. 2054) 351 at 378, H per Umar JSC: ‘From the tenor of Order 17 rules 1-5 of the Court of Appeal Rules, 2021, it is manifested, clearly, that a right of appeal in a criminal appeal, is expected to be exercised by the appellant, individually, even, where the appellant was tried along with other persons. This court in Japhet v. The State (2016) 6 NWLR (Pt.1509) 602 had maintained that the filing of a joint notice of appeal in criminal matters is not allowed … it is established that in civil matters, the appellants have the liberty: to jointly appeal, but there is restriction in criminal matters. Such joint notice of appeal in criminal matters will be incurably defective and incompetent, this is so because it will complicate the appeal and imply that the appellant is inviting the appellate court to determine the rights of the co-accused as well. A court is bound to strike out such notice of appeal even without inviting counsel to address the court on the issue. In so doing, no miscarriage of justice has been occasioned. Any appeal originated without following the rules of court is incompetent.’

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INCOMPETENT NOTICE OF APPEAL CANNOT BE AMENDED

Any notice of appeal that is incompetent cannot be amended because you cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stand.

– K.B. Aka’ahs, JSC. SPDC v Agbara (2019) – SC.731/2017(R)

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ALL THE DEFENDANTS’ NAMES NEED NOT BE LISTED IN A NOTICE OF APPEAL BUT THAT OF THE APPELLANT

F.R.N. v. Lamido (2026) 12 NWLR (Pt. 2054) 351 at 375—376, A per Umar JSC: ‘In criminal appeals, it is generally not mandatory for an appellant to include the names of co-accused at the trial court in his notice of appeal, if those co-accused are not affected by the appeal. The fundamental principle guiding criminal appeals is that an appeal is a challenge by an aggrieved party (the appellant) against a decision of a lower court that directly affects him. The notice of appeal serves to formally notify the appellate court and the respondent, typically the state or as in this case at the lower court, the Federal Republic of Nigeria, of the appellant’s intention to appeal and the specific grounds upon which the appeal is based, pertaining to his own conviction or sentence.The primary purpose of a notice of appeal is to identify the appellant, the respondent, the decision being appealed against, and the grounds of appeal. The focus is on the appellants grievance with the judgment of the lower court as it relates to his individual case. The Court of Appeal Rules generally outline the requirements for a notice of appeal, which center on the appellant and the judgment or decision affecting him.Therefore, it is utterly unnecessary for an appellant to endorse his co-accused as part of the parties to the appeal when the appeal is for himself only. The rules do not impose a mandate on a sole appellant to include his co-accused, this is because it implies that the lower court was being invited to determine the rights or involvement of other defendants in the appeal filed there at. Conversely, if a co-accused is not appealing, or has been acquitted, or their case is entirely distinct from the appellant’s grounds of appeal, there is no legal or procedural requirement to name them in the notice of appeal. Therefore, including unaffected parties would be superfluous and could potentially complicate the appeal process by introducing irrelevant details. I agree with the contention of learned counsel for the appellant that “all appeal shall be by way of rehearing,” however, a rehearing is distinct from a re-trial. The appeal is not a re-trial of all parties involved in the original case, but rather a review of the judgment as it pertains to the specific appellant and his challenge to the findings or sentence against him.’

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