OLAGUNJU, JCA (Delivering the Lead Judgment): Two separate appeals are combined here for examination. For an understanding of how the two appeals arose from the same subject-matter it is necessary to give a resume of the factual background. The respondent as the plaintiff at the court below sued the appellants as the defendants asking for (a) an order of perpetual injunction restraining the appellants “from further denying the plaintiff his right and or assaulting, humiliating or putting him to public ridicule and odium” and (b) N50,000 special and general damages ‘for the defendants’ action’. The respondent who filed his statement of claim dated 17/1/95 outside the stipulated time without leave of the court applied to the court on 1/12/95 for judgment against the appellants who did not file their statement of defence.
On 8/2/96, the appellants applied for the extension of time to file their statement of defence out of the time stipulated for doing so. In a considered ruling dated 13…