A Delta State High Court sitting at Sapele, Southern Nigeria, has struck out the “Stakeholder Interpleader” Suit jointly filed before the Court by two law firms, Perchstone & Graeys and Templars, led by Messrs Folabi Kuti and Godwin Omoaka respectively, on behalf of an indigenous oil company Midwestern Oil and Gas Company Limited against three Respondents including (i) Seistech Energy Limited (ii) Sapele Power Plc (iii) Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company Ltd/GTE, to forestall the enforcement against it of a consent Judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, in a previous Suit between the Company and Seistech Energy Limited.
However, in his ruling striking out the Suit, the Presiding Judge, Justice A.O Omamogho, said:
“the filing of this Suit amounted to an abuse of court process having regards to the various definitions of what amount to an abuse of court process, and the facts that this court is being vested with the power that it does not possess to review the consent judgement. The only course open to this court is to strike out the suit in the circumstances, this case herein struck out with the cost of N200,000 to each set of Defendants in this case”
Justice omamogho further said Seistech and Midwestern had amicably settled a Winding-up Suit instituted by Seistech against Midwestern in the Federal High Court, in Lagos on the 12th day of February, 2018, the Terms of Settlement drawn up and executed by both parties and counter signed by their lawyers was entered as Consent Judgment by the presiding Judge, Justice Babs Kuewumi.
By the terms of the Consent Judgment, Midwestern was to evacuate its crude oil from Seistech’s storage within a particular period and pay storage fees at a particular rate. It was also agreed that if Midwestern failed to evacuate its crude within the specified period, it would then be liable for a higher storage fee until evacuation. Midwestern failed to evacuate the crude within the stipulated timeline and storage fees accrued, as per the Consent Judgment, to over US$3Million, as at the date of Midwestern’s filing of its Stakeholder Interpleader Summons in the Sapele High Court.
However, to avoid its mounting obligations under the Consent Judgment, Midwestern through the law firms of Perchstone and Graeys and Templars instituted another Suit in Sapele against Seistech and two other parties, in order to limit its period of liability for storage fees and claiming it did not know which, of the three (3) Defendants, to pay the reduced storage fees to.
In filing this action, Midwestern concealed the fact that there was a subsisting Consent Judgment over the issue of payment of storage fees. Midwestern then sought injunctive orders against the Defendants, including Seistech, which would have had the effect of completely varying the terms of the Consent Judgment if granted.
Both Seistech, Sapele Power PLC and Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company Ltd/GTE opposed the so-called “Stakeholder Interpleader.”
Seistech, represented by Fidel Albert Esq of the Lagos-based firm of Aes Triplex LP, objected to the Suit as being grossly inappropriate and incompetent in the circumstances, arguing that the suit is abuse of court process,. Mr Fidel Albert , further argued that Midwestern is bound by the Consent Judgement and must not be permitted to use a so-called “Stakeholder Interpleader” to vary or subvert the terms of the Consent Judgment.
In agreeing with Counsel for Seistech, Mr. Fidel Albert, Justice Omamogho held that it was clear in the Consent Judgment of the Federal High Court, Lagos, that storage fees is to be paid to Seistech and that it seemed clear that the stakeholder Interpleader Summons was instituted by Midwestern in bad faith to prevent the Seistech from executing Judgment in Suit No: FHC/L/CP/1955/2017 filed in Lagos. The Judge further held that “Stakeholder Interpleader” Suit filed on 24th of September, 2018 amount to re-litigating the same issue all over in another guise but that the Court cannot afford to accept the generous donation of power to it for Midwestern to alter the Consent Judgment by his learned Brother in the Suit filed in Lagos.
Sapele Power PLC sued as second Defendant, was represented by Emmanuel Egwuagu of Obla & Co while the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company Ltd/GTE, sued as third Defendant, was represented by Bashiru Ramoni of SimmonsCooper Partners