YOUNG LAWYERS and Tenancy proceedings. Knowing the Stages in Tenancy proceedings in Magistrate courts in Nigeria.

A young legal practitioner usually called a new wig may find the legal profession some what straggling in his first few years of practice  if not frustrating and very stressful, I did had that experience. So young lawyers should not despise the events at the beginning of their practice, my principal would say that those events are good to energized your practice and on a lighter note the Bible says so too. 

Now most new wigs fortunately are faced with clients with matters which they would not prefer not briefing the senior counsels due to high brief and Tenancy proceedings covers about 70% of these matters.

Thus, I will for this purpose enlist all the stages of a tenancy proceedings in the magistrate Court. 

First and foremost, the new wig should understand that the magistrate Court is a court of a summary trial in other words it's a court that doesn't necessarily need parties to front-load all their documents, pleadings and evidence. The plaintiff or claimant may only file a process containing just the damages he is claiming against another and it's suffices. His bunk of evidence is usually given in the witness box.

Filing of a Claim:

(For a sample of a claim see my previous post on tenancy).

Once the new wig prepares the claim he takes it to the court within whose jurisdiction the property is situated. Each court has its Registrar and they are in charge of ensuring that new matters are properly filed before the court( this duty is provided in various rules of courts) . After the filing, the Register moves the file to the Chief Magistrate who assign the matter to a court within her Jurisdiction. All the new wig needs to do here is to constantly inquire as to which court his matter is assign to and once he has a court, he is to make immediate appearance in that court to take a date for Report of service and plea. The new wig should understand that notwithstanding that the matter has been assigned to a court some jurisdictions requires that he still has to call it up in an open court for the magistrate to officially give it a date and to have it in its cause list if not the matter will die even before its birth while some automatically gives dates and have same included in their cause list for that day. The lawyer is to take the date given by the court to the bailiff as it is added to the summons to be served on the Defendant.

Day 1.

FIRST APPEARANCE:

Procedure to call a tenancy matter at such stage is as follows,

If the lawyer is present during the beginning of court proceedings for the day, he should while lawyer's are indicating their interests say to the court:

"Your Worship I am interested in number ......in the civil cause list........ ". 

After the matter has been called up,  the lawyer is to announce his appearance and to report if the court processes have been served on the Defendant (if it has been served) and plea. where the summons has not been served or if the defendant has been evading service thus it is at this instance that the lawyer can make an application for substituted service on the Defendant). 

Take Note that during this stage the lawyer should ensure that the bailiff who did the service of the notices and the summons put the affidavit of service in the court's file to show court that he really serve the defendant with the process and he is aware of the coming proceedings in court. 

But even if the new wig only became aware that his matter is in a court after the court has already commenced proceedings for the day. 

After the issue of service is proved to the court, the next is to enter plea for the Defendant.

Plea at this instance is for the defendant to either accept liability or deny same. However where it can be proved to the court that by the evidence of the affidavit of service tendered by the Bailiff that the summons have been served on the defendant, the counsel to the claimant can thereby enter a plea of not liable for the defendant. I know that one would question why a counsel representing another party should plea for another but in tenancy matters it is allowed. 

So once a counsel enters this plea of Not liable for the defendant, he should then after the plea ask the court for dates for the hearing of the matter. The court always grant this prayer and in most occasions also order hearing notice to be served on the defendant again.

DAY 2 HEARING STAGE

These usually take two or more days of proceedings and On this next stage of proceedings, the lawyer should present his witnesses (the court usually take one person for a day and takes an adjournment to give the Defendant another opportunity to appear to cross-examine the witness). Two witnesses are usually taken in Tenancy cases namely the bailiff of court and the claimant (landlord or his attorney). if the bailiff is called he is to tender all the notices if any was served through him (quit notice and owners intention to recover possession) please do refer back to my previous articles on why its better to engage the bailiff to serve notices. this also apply to the landlord or his attorney who is to give evidence as the claimant. 

Take Note that at any failure of the Defendant to appear in court to cross-examine any of the witnesses, the lawyer should apply to the court that the Defendant be for-closed from ever cross-examining the witness in the witness box and the court can grant that and discharge the witness. After both or all the claimant's witnesses have given their evidence the lawyer is to inform the court that the claimant has closed its case and the court at that instance would adjourn the matter for the Defendant to open his defence if any.

DAY 3 DEFENCE

At this stage, the Defendant is to come to court and open/ commence his defence to the suit of the claimant however if he fails to appear either by himself or through his lawyer, claimant's lawyer can apply that the Defendant been aware of the proceeding and had refused to appear to open his case should be for-closed from ever opening his defence and the court once same is granted may ask that the claimant's lawyer orally address the court immediately on the reason he files for his claims  or adjourns the matter to another day for address.

DAY 4 ADDRESS

This is the stage before judgment, the claimant's lawyer  at this stage is meant to give a general over view of his claim to the court orally and thereafter urge the court to enter Judgment in favour of his client. the Court after such address adjourns the matter for Judgement.

DAY 5 JUDGMENT

This is a stage where the court gives its Judgment on the case of the claimant and  makes its orders granting or refusing the claims.