Seyi Sowemimo
6 August 2007
opinion
Lagos — SEYI SOWEMIMO, SAN pays glowing tribute to retired Court of Appeal Justice Adenekan Ademola who passed away on July 26
Two weeks ago, the nation lost another renowned jurist, Hon. Justice Adenekan Ademola, who retired from the Court of Appeal in 1991 after decades of meritorious service to the nation. He was aged 81. Justice Adenekan Ademola was the eldest son of Nigeria first indigenous Chief Justice Sir Adetokunbo Ademola and a scion of the Ademola Royal family of Egbaland. Though his pedigree was highly favourable to his gaining distinction in life yet his real claim to prominence lay not in these advantages but in his powerful legal intellect as reflected in the style and substance of his judgments.
He was for many years the Presiding Justice at the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division and lawyers who were privileged to appear before the court in those years will readily attest to the courtesy and firmness with which he applied himself to his duties. He sat variously with other renowned Justices as Philp Nnaemeka Agu, Bolarinwa Babalakin, Olisa Awogu, Umaru Atu Kalgo and Niki Tobi, virtually all of whom were later elevated to the Supreme Court.
During his tenure at the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal, then situated at Bourdillion Road, Ikoyi, the Court became a focal point for many important legal developments. He was also remarkable for his sturdy independence which resulted in several notable dissenting judgments. It is not possible in this short piece to allude to many of his judgments but two of them will give an inkling as to his style and independent mindedness. In rationalizing the position of the courts in relation to ouster clauses in Decrees, Ademola JCA in WANG CHING YAO & ORS v CHIEF OF STAFF, SUPREME HEADQUARTERS & ORS said "My view is that the combined effect of the provisions of Decree No 2 and Decree No 13 of 1984 is that on the question of civil liberties, the law courts of Nigeria must as of now blow muted trumpets"
In SENATE OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY & ORS v TONY MOMOH (1982) which was argued before a full court of five Justices, Ademola JCA disagreed with the views of the other four justices, preferring to affirm the soundness of the decision delivered by another full in the SHUGABA CASE. He observed thus " As the judgment of Nnaemeka Agu JCA shows the majority of this panel have concluded that the judgment in FCA/K/80 Federal Minister of Internal Affairs & ors v Shugade Aburraman Daman and ors is not binding on them or this court, for this matter. It is with regret that I have to express my disagreement with this part of judgment just read today. Our practice is to hold like the English Court of Appeal that we are bound by a previous decision of this court unless that decision has been overruled by the Supreme Court or this court is able upon the examination of the previous decision to come to the conclusion that the previous decision by the court or panel was arrived at per incuriam ".
Justice Adenekan Ademola is now history but he will long be remembered for his unflagging commitment to the development of the law and happily enough he has left behind a legacy of illuminating judgments which will continue to provide us with a searchlight for tackling legal issues for all times.
- Mr. Sowemino, SAN practises law in Lagos
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