The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld a judgment ordering Zenith Bank Plc and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to pay N60 million in damages to a customer whose company account was frozen based on what the court described as an invalid order.
A three-member panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Adebukola Banjoko, dismissed Zenith Bank’s appeal, ruling that the challenge against the earlier judgment lacked merit.
The court also affirmed an additional N25 million awarded as litigation costs against the bank and the police.
Account Freeze Dispute Goes to Court
The case originated from a suit filed by Paulyn O. Abhulimen (SAN), who complained that her law firm’s account, belonging to Abhulimen & Co, was restricted from carrying out transactions in early 2024.
According to court documents, the account had been placed under a Post-No-Debit (PND) restriction, preventing withdrawals and other transactions.
Abhulimen said she later discovered that the action was based on an order allegedly obtained by the police from a Chief Magistrate’s Court sitting in Mararaba Gurku, Nasarawa State.
Court Questions Validity of Magistrate Court Order
In the original judgment delivered by Justice S. U. Bature of the FCT High Court, the court held that the freezing of the account was unlawful because the magistrate court lacked the required jurisdiction to issue such an order.
The court noted that banking-related disputes fall within the jurisdiction of appropriate superior courts and questioned why an order affecting an Abuja-based bank account was obtained from a magistrate court in another state.
Justice Bature ruled that Zenith Bank should have recognised the limitations of the order and taken appropriate legal steps before restricting the customer’s account.
Bank Faulted for Failing to Notify Customer
The court also criticised Zenith Bank for failing to inform the customer that the account had been frozen.
Justice Bature held that banks have a duty of care to their customers and that keeping the account restriction secret amounted to a breach of the banker-customer relationship.
The court ordered Zenith Bank to remove the restriction on the account and issue an apology to the customer through national newspapers and its official platforms.
Appeal Court Rejects Zenith Bank Challenge
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Zenith Bank filed an appeal challenging the decision.
However, the Court of Appeal agreed with the earlier findings and dismissed the bank’s appeal.
The appellate court maintained the damages awarded against the bank and the police, confirming that the customer suffered financial hardship, emotional distress and inconvenience as a result of the account restriction.
