THE ENFORCEMENT OF COURT JUDGMENTS AND ORDERS IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY, ABUJA: PROCEDURES AND CHALLENGES

CHAPTER ONE GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

The main purpose of adjudication is the pursuit of justice. This entails the resolution or determination of disputes between the parties by the court which has been vested with judicial powers to determine the dispute. In A.G of Oyo State v. Fair Lakes Hotel Ltd,¹ The Supreme Court defined judgment as “The sentenced of law pronounced by the court upon the matter contained in the order”. Once court determines any dispute, it becomes authentic official judicial decision, binding on all partiers before the court.

Enforcement is the last stage of the judicial process after the legal right, claim or interest has ended in a judgment or order which remains to be enforced. It is the process whereby a judgment or order of court is enforced or to which it has made effective according to law.² Most judgment requires compliances with their terms. It is only in the case of a declaratory judgment which merely declares what the right of a party is, without imposing any sanction on a defendant or directing either of the parties to do anything that execution is not called for or levied.³ Execution will be totally unnecessary where there is voluntary compliance with the judgment or order of  the court.

It is trite that, every successful litigant is entitled to the fruit of his judgment. Therefore, the overriding function of judicial process of enforcement is to enable the judgment creditor (the person in whose favor judgment or order was made) reap the fruit of his judgment with a view to obtaining for his satisfaction, compensation, restitution, performance or compliance with what the court has granted by way of remedy or relief. The process of enforcement is broadly referred to as execution. Lord Denning aptly summarized the process, that:

Execution simply means the process for enforcing or giving effect to the judgment of the court. In case when execution was had by means of common law writ, such as FieriFecias. It was legal execution when it was had by means of an equitable remedy, such as the appointment of a Receiver, then it was equitable execution because it was the process for enforcing or giving effect to the judgment of the court.⁴

The court will not take, in ordinary civil matters, any steps in the enforcement of its judgment. The process of enforcement is at the initiatives of successful party, to take appropriate steps to enforce his judgment or order against the judgment debtor (the person against whom judgment or order was made). In order to promote the rule of law, every judgment of the court must be obeyed until it is set aside or declared a nullity.⁵ Where judgment of the court is not obeyed, the court that gave the judgment retains the jurisdiction to invoke its coercive powers to give effect to the judgment by ensuring that the party in whose favor the judgment was given has the benefits of the decision.⁶For the purpose of enforcing court judgment and order, there are the following officers; the Sheriff, the Deputy Sheriff (herein referred to, as the Chief Registrar), the Bailiff who serve the writ and perform other duties given to him by the Deputy Sheriff and the police officers for security to the enforcement officers.