The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja on Monday, September 14, 2026, affirmed the judgment by a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) delivered on July 16, 2025 which imposed a fine of N85 million on Zenith Bank and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for freezing a bank’s customer’s account by relying on an invalid court order.
A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Adebukola Banjoko, in a unanimous judgment held that the appeal filed by Zenith Bank was without merit and therefore dismiss it.
In the appeal marked: CA/ABJ/CV/1335/2025 Zenith Bank challenged the July 16, 2025 judgment of Justice S. U. Bature of the FCT High Court in which the bank was also ordered to unfreeze the account domicile in its branch at 63 Usuma Street, Maitama, Abuja and publish a public apology to the customer – Abhulimen & Co – in two national newspapers and its website.
The judgment of the FCT High Court was on a suit marked: FCT/HC/CV/2194/2024 filed by Paulyn O. Abhulimen, SAN, with Zenith Bank and the Nigeria police listed as defendants.
The plaintiff, Abhulimen had sued through the law firm of Akinlolu Kehinde SAN & Partners LP, stating that in early 2024, after being unable to access the account of her firm – Abhulimen & Co – and make transactions with it, she discovered that the bank placed a Post-no-debt (PND) on it.
The claimant further said that she subsequently contacted an official of the bank, who is in charge of the account – Obi Okafor, who told her of the development, following which the bank, in March 13, 2024 claimed to have frozen the account based on an order obtained by the Nigeria Police Force from a Chief Magistrates Court in Mararaba Gurku, Nasarawa State.
Accordingly, in his judgement, Justice Bature held that the bank’s decision to freeze the customer’s account based on a supposed order by a Magistrate Court, without notifying the said customer, was illogical and a betrayal of the banker-customers relationship between parties.
Justice Bature said that it was unfortunate that a major financial institution such as the Zenith Bank, with a Legal Department, supposedly manned by lawyers, would claim to have acted based on an invalid order by a Magistrate Court that lacked the jurisdiction to entertain any banking related case, including issuing orders for the freezing of a bank account.
Justice Bature held that Zenith bank acted on an invalid order made by a court that lacked the requisite jurisdiction, noting that the account in question was opened at the Zenith Bank’s Transcorp Hilton branch in Abuja, and the second defendant (NPF) is also domiciled in Abuja.
Justice Bature declared; “The rationale behind seeking the said order at a Magistrate Court under the Nasarawa State jurisdiction cannot be understood, and the second defendant did not appear, to be able to give any explanation or reason as to why they decided to follow this line of action.
“The said Magistrate Court lacked the territorial jurisdiction to entertain the application. And, regarding the substantive jurisdiction of the court to make the order, it is clear from the provisions of Section 251 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended), that matters relating to banks and banking transactions are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal High Court.
“And matters relating to banker-customer disputes are jointly under the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, State High Courts and High Court of the FCT.
“From the foregoing, it is clear that Magistrate Courts lack the jurisdiction to entertain an application for an order to freeze a bank account of a person, and should not have entertained the said application in its entirety.
“The legal department of the first defendant (Zenith Bank), being lawyers, should have been aware of this position of the law and taken the appropriate action in this situation, as they ought not to have obeyed the court order in the first place.
“The first defendant was wrong to have placed a PND on the account of the claimant based on the order of a court lacking the requisite jurisdiction to do so. I so hold,” Justice Bature held.
The FCT High Court also faulted the failure of the bank to inform the claimant about its decision to freeze her company’s account, describing it as a breach of the duty of care it owed to its customers.
According to Justice Bature: “It is the humble opinion of this honourable court that, the first defendant owed the claimant a duty of care of duly informing her that her account had been frozen.
“The first defendant placed a post-no-debit on the account of the claimant’s firm, but same was not communicated to the claimant until she encountered difficulties in the use of the said account.
“It is the humble opinion of this honourable court that, the first defendant owed the claimant a duty of care of duly informing her that her account had been frozen. The failure of the first defendant (Zenith Bank) to inform the claimant of the state of affairs on her account amounts to negligence on the part of the first defendant (Zenith Bank) and hence, a breach of duty of care and due diligence owed to the claimant. I so hold,” Justice Bature declared.
Having held that Zenith Bank and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) acted unlawfully, the court therefore declared among others, that an order to freeze a bank account cannot validly be granted ex-parte to last indefinitely.
Justice Bature particularly held that the Chief Magistrate Court of Nasarawa State, sitting at Mararaba Gurku, lacked the requisite jurisdiction to make an order to freeze the claimant’s Zenith Bank Plc’s account (Account Number: 1012272348) based on an ex-parte application.
The trial judge also held that the act of freezing the claimant’s Zenith Bank Plc’s account without a valid order of a court of competent jurisdiction is a breach of the banker-customer relationship between the claimant and the Zenith Bank being the first defendant.
Justice Bature also held that Zenith Bank’s failure to timely inform the claimant that her account had been frozen constituted a breach of the duty of care the bank owes to its customer being the claimant in the case.
Accordingly, Justice Bature ordered Zenith Bank to immediately vacate the Post-No-Debit (PND) order placed on the claimant’s account and “tender an unreserved apology to the claimant in writing in two National newspapers and on their websites for the grave inconveniences suffered by the claimant in this matter.
“The defendants are hereby ordered to jointly and severally pay the sum of N60million to the claimant as general damages for the embarrassment, psychological trauma, financial distress, emotional stress and grave inconveniences suffered by the claimant due to the defendants’ actions.
“The defendants are hereby ordered to jointly and severally pay the sum of N25m to the claimant as cost of this action,” Justice Bature ordered.
