It Is A Violation Of Litigants’ Fundamental Right For A Court To Make Litigants Pay To Obtain A Copy Of The Court’s Judgment

Parties to a case and their counsel ought to not pay any money
in order to get a copy of the judgment delivered by the court in
their own case. With due respect, it is a gross violation of the
rights of the parties and their counsel, for the Court to require
any of them to pay any money before they can have access to the
judgment of the court in their own case. Section 294(1) of
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999,
provides that “Every court established under this Constitution
shall deliver its decision in writing not later than ninety days
after the conclusion of evidence and final addresses and furnish
all parties to the cause or matter determined with duly
authenticated copies of the decision within seven days of the
delivery thereof”.

Similarly, section 36 (7) of the same Constitution requires that
“… the accused person or any persons authorised by him in that
behalf shall be entitled to obtain copies of the judgement in the
case within seven days of the conclusion of the case”. It is
submitted that the court has a duty to make a copy of the judgement
available to the parties free of charge either in the open court on
the date of judgment or through the bailiffs within 7 days of the
judgment, or through email or other virtual platforms (the last is
most preferable).

I understand that a judgment of a court is a public document,
accessible to any interested member of the general public, and I
understand why some fees need to be paid by any member of the
public who applies for a HARD certified/authenticated copy of an
order/judgement of the court in a particular case; so many persons
may so apply and the court officials may not have sufficient funds
to reproduce the judgment (in hard copies) for all who may be
interested in having a copy of it.

However, i submit, it is legally abominable, morally
unjustifiable, commonsensically awkward and unreasonable for any
court or for court officials to demand payment of any money from
any litigant/counsel in the case for that purpose.

Judgement is read in the open court. But it’s unreasonable to
expect that Counsel and Litigants in the matter would have already
got all details of the judgement in the court during the time of
delivery of the judgment. They obviously don’t have the details.
This being the case, the court has a duty to make available to the
parties, duly authenticated copies of the judgment. This must be
done free of any charge and within the time stipulated by law, or
where no time is stated, within a reasonable time. Time is of the
essence here. Failure to do this is a gross breach of the
fundamental rights of the affected parties and a violation of due
process, rule of law and the interest of justice.

In the Eyitayo Jegede v. Olurotimi Akeredolu case, judgement was
delivered by the Supreme Court on 28 July 2021(see Supreme Court
Upholds Akeredolu’s Election: July 28, 2021:channelstv.com.To the
best of my knowledge and honest belief, the apex court did not give
or send a copy of the judgement to any party or counsel in the
case. A leading Counsel to the 3th and 4th respondents told me that
he had on his own applied and paid for a copy of the judgment. He
was not given a copy until on August 04, 2021 when he got an
uncertified copy.

With due respect, our Courts, from the Supreme Court to the
lowest court, are grossly underperforming; they’re busy with
needless amendments to Rules of Court and with issuance of needless
and legally groundless Practice Directions, rather face the real
issues presently holding down this profession and the entire system
of justice administration and dispensation. We must call a spade by
its name.

By the way, why not the court sends a copy of the judgment
through the court’s official email to (all the litigants and) the
lawyers in the case? Why not we expect to see a copy of every
judgment of court posted on the court’s website within within 24
hours or not later than Seven days from the date of the judgement?
Why not? Are these not where the world is at present? Why are we
left behind in everything? Is it that we don’t have funds to get
things done right or that we don’t have the foresight to see that
only the right things should be done, or that “fantastic”
corruption has taken away the money we need to have things done
right? Where in a civilized, developed 21st-century-compliant
country, are parties still queuing up in the court’s registry to
apply for, pay through the nose (typical of Nigeria) to obtain a
copy of judgments of court in their own case? Should we not at
least upgrade– even if it’s one step forward? What does it take the
court to send a copy of its own judgement to litigants? These
judgments are typed in computers, and are in SOFT copies! So, why
not, after reading the judgment, the court causes a soft copy of
the judgment to be transmitted virtually to the litigants or their
counsel? It was the Supreme Court of Nigeria which in 2020 endorsed
virtual court proceedings (see AG LAGOS v AG
Federation, SUIT NO: SC/CV/260/2020) the implication
of which endorsement is that virtually everything in court could
thenceforth be done virtually. With due respect, why then won’t the
Supreme Court itself lead by example by kick-starting the virtual
things, even if it’s from the peripheral things? Sending hearing
notices virtually to parties! Serving court processes virtually on
parties! Sending copies of its judgments virtually to litigants!
Hearing certain motions virtually and sending rulings
virtually!

What’s the difficulty in these things?
From the way I see them, especially sending judgment, it takes only
a click of the button in a computer or phone! And the SC judgement
in AG LAGOS V. AG FEDERATION (2020) as
well as section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011 both and each gives us
the security we need to proceed without fear. Yet,we have chosen to
not proceed! Now, I ask, is Nigeria operating under some curse that
has become impossible to vacate? What sort of prayer is necessary
to get the most basic and simple things to start working in
Nigeria? Is there any country on the face of planet earth, that is
experiencing the type of excruciating situation Nigeria is going
through at the present time?

MY CONCLUSION: Our progress will start when we
choose to make progress. As of today, August 06, 2021, Nigeria is
still asleep and slumbering away its time while the rest of the
world is awake, working and walking ahead! God help Nigeria!

Respectfully,.

Sylvester Udemezue (udems)
udemsyl@hotmail.com.
(08109024556)

Parties to a case and their counsel ought to not pay any money
in order to get a copy of the judgment delivered by the court in
their own case. With due respect, it is a gross violation of the
rights of the parties and their counsel, for the Court to require
any of them to pay any money before they can have access to the
judgment of the court in their own case. Section 294(1) of
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999,
provides that “Every court established under this Constitution
shall deliver its decision in writing not later than ninety days
after the conclusion of evidence and final addresses and furnish
all parties to the cause or matter determined with duly
authenticated copies of the decision within seven days of the
delivery thereof”.

Similarly, section 36 (7) of the same Constitution requires that
“… the accused person or any persons authorised by him in that
behalf shall be entitled to obtain copies of the judgement in the
case within seven days of the conclusion of the case”. It is
submitted that the court has a duty to make a copy of the judgement
available to the parties free of charge either in the open court on
the date of judgment or through the bailiffs within 7 days of the
judgment, or through email or other virtual platforms (the last is
most preferable).

I understand that a judgment of a court is a public document,
accessible to any interested member of the general public, and I
understand why some fees need to be paid by any member of the
public who applies for a HARD certified/authenticated copy of an
order/judgement of the court in a particular case; so many persons
may so apply and the court officials may not have sufficient funds
to reproduce the judgment (in hard copies) for all who may be
interested in having a copy of it.

However, i submit, it is legally abominable, morally
unjustifiable, commonsensically awkward and unreasonable for any
court or for court officials to demand payment of any money from
any litigant/counsel in the case for that purpose.

Judgement is read in the open court. But it’s unreasonable to
expect that Counsel and Litigants in the matter would have already
got all details of the judgement in the court during the time of
delivery of the judgment. They obviously don’t have the details.
This being the case, the court has a duty to make available to the
parties, duly authenticated copies of the judgment. This must be
done free of any charge and within the time stipulated by law, or
where no time is stated, within a reasonable time. Time is of the
essence here. Failure to do this is a gross breach of the
fundamental rights of the affected parties and a violation of due
process, rule of law and the interest of justice.

In the Eyitayo Jegede v. Olurotimi Akeredolu case, judgement was
delivered by the Supreme Court on 28 July 2021(see Supreme Court
Upholds Akeredolu’s Election: July 28, 2021:channelstv.com.To the
best of my knowledge and honest belief, the apex court did not give
or send a copy of the judgement to any party or counsel in the
case. A leading Counsel to the 3th and 4th respondents told me that
he had on his own applied and paid for a copy of the judgment. He
was not given a copy until on August 04, 2021 when he got an
uncertified copy.

With due respect, our Courts, from the Supreme Court to the
lowest court, are grossly underperforming; they’re busy with
needless amendments to Rules of Court and with issuance of needless
and legally groundless Practice Directions, rather face the real
issues presently holding down this profession and the entire system
of justice administration and dispensation. We must call a spade by
its name.

By the way, why not the court sends a copy of the judgment
through the court’s official email to (all the litigants and) the
lawyers in the case? Why not we expect to see a copy of every
judgment of court posted on the court’s website within within 24
hours or not later than Seven days from the date of the judgement?
Why not? Are these not where the world is at present? Why are we
left behind in everything? Is it that we don’t have funds to get
things done right or that we don’t have the foresight to see that
only the right things should be done, or that “fantastic”
corruption has taken away the money we need to have things done
right? Where in a civilized, developed 21st-century-compliant
country, are parties still queuing up in the court’s registry to
apply for, pay through the nose (typical of Nigeria) to obtain a
copy of judgments of court in their own case? Should we not at
least upgrade– even if it’s one step forward? What does it take the
court to send a copy of its own judgement to litigants? These
judgments are typed in computers, and are in SOFT copies! So, why
not, after reading the judgment, the court causes a soft copy of
the judgment to be transmitted virtually to the litigants or their
counsel? It was the Supreme Court of Nigeria which in 2020 endorsed
virtual court proceedings (see AG LAGOS v AG
Federation, SUIT NO: SC/CV/260/2020) the implication
of which endorsement is that virtually everything in court could
thenceforth be done virtually. With due respect, why then won’t the
Supreme Court itself lead by example by kick-starting the virtual
things, even if it’s from the peripheral things? Sending hearing
notices virtually to parties! Serving court processes virtually on
parties! Sending copies of its judgments virtually to litigants!
Hearing certain motions virtually and sending rulings
virtually!

What’s the difficulty in these things?
From the way I see them, especially sending judgment, it takes only
a click of the button in a computer or phone! And the SC judgement
in AG LAGOS V. AG FEDERATION (2020) as
well as section 84 of the Evidence Act, 2011 both and each gives us
the security we need to proceed without fear. Yet,we have chosen to
not proceed! Now, I ask, is Nigeria operating under some curse that
has become impossible to vacate? What sort of prayer is necessary
to get the most basic and simple things to start working in
Nigeria? Is there any country on the face of planet earth, that is
experiencing the type of excruciating situation Nigeria is going
through at the present time?

MY CONCLUSION: Our progress will start when we
choose to make progress. As of today, August 06, 2021, Nigeria is
still asleep and slumbering away its time while the rest of the
world is awake, working and walking ahead! God help Nigeria!

Respectfully,.

Sylvester Udemezue (udems)
udemsyl@hotmail.com.
(08109024556)