EXCEPT ACCUSED IS MISLED AN ERROR IS NOT MATERIAL

It has to be pointed out that by virtue of Section 166 of the Criminal Procedure Act, no error in stating the offence or the particulars required to be stated in the charge and no omission to state the offence or those particulars shall be regarded at any stage of the case as material unless the accused was infact misled by such error or omission.

– M. Peter-Odili, JSC. Enabeli v. State (2021)

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FOR REVERSAL OF AN ERROR, A MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE MUST HAVE OCCURED

Again to be said is that it is not every error of law that is committed by a trial or appellate Court that justifies the reversal of a judgment. For a reversal to take place, the error must have occasioned a miscarriage of justice as it was material in the decision reached.

– M. Peter-Odili JSC. Adegbanke v. Ojelabi (2021)

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WHAT IS MISDIRECTION

See ACHILIHU VS ANYATONWU (2013) 1 SCNJ 332 at 359 thus: “The exception is where there is misdirection by the trial Court. Misdirection occurs where issues of fact in the case for the parties or the law applicable to the issue raised are not fairly appraised or considered or misconceived or the law applicable is incorrectly applied by the trial Court as a result there would be a miscarriage of justice if the decision reached is allowed to stand.”

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AN ERROR THAT DID NOT MISLEAD IS NOT FATAL

This Court has held in a number of decided cases that a defect, error or omission that does not prejudice the defence would not lead to the quashing of a conviction on a charge for a known offence. The emphasis is not on whether or not there were defects, errors or omissions in the charge, but on whether or not those defects, errors or omissions could and did infact mislead the defence.

– J.I Okoro, JSC. Makanjuola v. State (2021)

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COURT SHOULD NOT PUNISH PARTIES FOR MISTAKES THEY MAKE

The object of the courts is to decide the rights of the parties and not to punish them for mistakes they made in the conduct of their cases. – Gumel, JCA. Ehanire v. Erhunmwuse (2007)

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AN ERROR OF LAW COMPLAINED OF MUST HAVE CAUSED A MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE

OLADEJO ADEWUYI AJUWON & ORS VS FADELE AKANNI & ORS (1993) 12 SCNJ 32 AT 52 this Court held “It is not every error of law that is committed by a trial or appellate Court that justifies the reversal of a judgment. An appellant, to secure the reversal of a judgment, must further establish that the error of law complained of did in fact occasion a miscarriage of justice and/or substantially affected the result of the decision. An error in law which has occasioned no miscarriage of justice is immaterial and may not affect the final decision of a Court. This is because what an Appeal Court has to decide is whether the decision of judge was right and not whether his reasons were, and a misdirection that does not occasion injustice is immaterial. The error in law in applying the doctrine of lis pendens complained of did not occasion any miscarriage of justice. The erroneous application of the doctrine of lis pendens notwithstanding, there was no other course that was open to the Court of Appeal in the appeal than to invalidate the sale in issue and to dismiss the appeal before it”.

NOT EVERY APPEAL ON ERROR WILL SUCCEED; THE ERROR MUST OCCASION A MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE

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EXCEPT ACCUSED IS MISLED AN ERROR IS NOT MATERIAL

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FOR REVERSAL OF AN ERROR, A MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE MUST HAVE OCCURED

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WHAT IS MISDIRECTION

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AN ERROR THAT DID NOT MISLEAD IS NOT FATAL

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COURT SHOULD NOT PUNISH PARTIES FOR MISTAKES THEY MAKE

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AN ERROR OF LAW COMPLAINED OF MUST HAVE CAUSED A MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE

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