Author: Lawbreed Limited

By Sylvester C. Udemezue “Ultra vires” is a Latin Legal term translated (in English) to “beyond the powers”. The term is used to describe an act which requires legal authority or power but is then done/completed outside of or without the requisite legal authority (lexisnexis.co.uk). The act of a person or authority, is said to be ultra vires when the person/authority acts beyond the scope of the powers and purposes provided to him/it by law. Ultra vires acts are generally void. (see: Communities Economic Development Fund v. Canadian Pickles Corp., (1991) CarswellMan 402 (S.C.C.)) (PracixalLaw). See also, NOSDRA v.…

Anyone who intends to challenge a tax assessment in court must pay 50 per cent of the amount in dispute into an interest-yielding account of the Federal High Court before the case can be heard. The new requirement is contained in a recent practice direction issued by the Chief Judge, Justice John Tsoho, under Order 57, Rule 3 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2019. Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Executive Chairman, Mr Muhammad Nami, highlighted the condition at a public hearing organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts. The committee is investigating revenue leakages…

The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Nigeria, Lagos branch has unveiled speakers for her forthcoming 2021 law week, which is themed- “AFRICAN CHILD’S RIGHT TO LIFE AND A STABLE HOME : TOWARDS ELIMINATING SOCIAL CONFLICTS IN NIGERIA“ The technical sessions of the law week will hold on Wednesday 16th and Thursday 17th June, 2021. A number of sub-topics will also be discussed at the law week, they include – Career Opportunities for female lawyers,  Law as a Business: Leveraging Technology To Build A profitable Law Practice, Professional ethics and pursuit  of excellence, Going The Extra  Mile on Personal And…

One of the interesting developments of tax jurisprudence in the last decade is the importation of the concept of abuse of rights in setting the limits that a tax payer may go in legally planning his tax affairs in a way to limit his liability. The concept was explained in the English case of Barclays Mercantile Business Finance Ltd v Mawson (2005) STC 1 that a practice was abusive if the transactions concerned resulted in a tax advantage the grant of which would be contrary to the purpose of legal provisions. The more interesting development is that of the Centros…

The Federal High Court of Nigeria has released Practice Direction on issues relating to Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS The Practice Direction, which is signed by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Hon. Justice John Terhemba Tsoho, is dated 31st May, 2021 and shall come into force on 1st June, 2021 Other purposes of the Practice Direction is effective case management and expeditous disposal of tax related matters; direction on applications by FIRS and to encourage the settlement of tax debt or liability between parties. See and download below:

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) under Section 6 (f) of the NITDA Act 2007 wishes to provide this advisory to Nigerians to address Nigerian concerns on changes to Whatsapp Terms of Service and Privacy Policy which took effect on 15″ May, 2021. Millions of Nigerians use Whatsapp platform for business, social educational, and other purposes. The platform is the social media platform of choice for many Nigerians. To understand the issues and give an opportunity to explain its views, NITDA in collaboration with the African Network of Data Protection Authorities engaged Facebook Incorporated, the owners of Whatsapp platform,…

There is no getting away from Layi Babatunde, SAN. Aside from being a respected senior lawyer who has practised law for more than 35 years, his interventions in the Nigerian political, media and legal landscapes are legendary. The recipient of several legal honours, he is the Chairman of Lawbreed Foundation, an organization established to promote legal education in Nigeria and award scholarship to deserving students. He is the Editor in Chief of the Judgments of the Supreme Court of Nigeria (the official law reports of the Supreme Court of Nigeria), a series of books he has been editing for the…

All Existing Companies, Esteemed Customers and the General Public are hereby informed that the Minister of Industry, trade and Investment has approved an amendment to Regulation 13 of the Companies Regulations, 2021 allowing an extension to the period for complying with the requirements of issued share capital under Section 124 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 (CAMA) by Existing Companies with unissued share capital up to 3151 December 2022. Existing Companies with unissued share capital are advised to take advantage of the extended period to comply with the requirements of issued share capital under the Section. All Existing…

By Henry Ojelu & Onozure Dania As the strike action embarked on by Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria, JUSUN, to demand financial autonomy for the judiciary enters day nine, some Senior Advocates of Nigeria, SANs spoke on JUSUN’s position and what the state governments must do. Judiciary must be emancipated now— Ozekhome, SAN Rights activist and lawyer, Mike Ozekhome expressed  support for the ongoing JUSUN strike, insisting that the judiciary must be emancipated now. He said: “Autonomy as prescribed by the Constitution, is the goal of the JUSUN strike. No more, no less. This was why I supported President Muhammadu…

Popoola v. Canada (Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness) Court (s) Database Federal Court Decisions Date 2021-04-08 Neutral citation 2021 FC 305 File numbers IMM-6692-19 Date: 20210408 Docket: IMM-6692-19 Citation: 2021 FC 305 Ottawa, Ontario, April 8, 2021 PRESENT: Mr. Justice Sébastien Grammond BETWEEN: OLUSHOLA WAZZI POPOOLA Applicant and THE MINISTER OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS Respondent JUDGMENT AND REASONS [1] Mr. Popoola is a citizen of Nigeria and a former member of the Nigerian Police Force. He was found to be inadmissible to Canada because there are reasonable grounds to believe that he engaged in crimes against humanity while…