A real estate firm, Abey Signatures Ltd has dragged a legal practitioner, Henry Otu of the Law Firm of Law Corridor before the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) For allegedly obtaining a fraudulent judgment, gross misconduct and acts unbecoming of a legal practitioner.
By the suit, the state firm is asking for sanctions against the lawyer for professional misconduct.
In the petition signed by the Chairman of the Company, Cecil Osakwe, he urged the Committee to investigate and take the necessary actions against Otu.
“I am the Managing Director and Chairman of Abey Signatures Ltd, the manager and owner of Abeh Apartment, located at 1 Mekong Close, Maitama, and Abuja, Nigeria.”
“Sir, We write with a heavy heart, especially when we see the profession being brought to serious disrepute by persons and character of HENRY OTU, lawyer with the Law Corridor in Asokoro, Abuja.”
“We instituted a suit against one ASABE WAZIRI who was about to purchase two blocks of flats in my apartment in Maitama and her conduct after she was given possession had posed serious threat to other potential buyers and tenants in the property.”
“We had appealed to her to vacate the property and get a refund since we cannot accommodate her attitude any further. She resisted and we instituted a case against her in court” he added.
The Chairman pointed out that “On the 17th February, 2022, His Lordship, Hon Justice Musa Othman delivered his judgment against her and ordered that all her money be refunded to her and that she vacates the premises. On the 18th March, 2022, the judgment was enforced as she was vacated from the premises.
“She appealed against the decision and the case has been transmitted and entered at the Court of Appeal. This case is coming up on the 29th June 2022. Sir, the said Asabe Waziri, was represented by Oyefeso Esq, both at the trial court and at the Appeal. However, shortly after the appeal was entered, Asabe engaged Henry Otu of the Law Firm of Law Corridor to obviously do an illegal and hatchet job.
He noted that “this Henry Otu of the Law Firm of Law Corridor took over the case and came to move the Motion for Stay of Execution at the Court of Appeal. The hearing of the Motion is slated for 29th June 2022.
However, the Court ordered parties to maintain the status quo ante. “Take note that the enforcement was carried out against the Appellant on the 18th March, 2022.
“While the appellant is on appeal with a motion for stay, still pending before the Court of Appeal, Henry Otu quickly went to a Magistrate Court, misrepresented facts and fraudulently inserted a phrase to the Order of the Court of Appeal thus: “to wit reposes the applicant” and sought for an Order directing the Director of Enforcement, FCT High Court to reinstate the Appellant.
He further said “This magistrate due to undue influence granted the order and directed the Director of Enforcement to reinstate the Appellant.
As if that was not enough, Henry Otu without service of the order to us and our company went further to enforce the same order procured irregularly.
“Furthermore, Henry Otu has also gone back to Hon Justice Othman’s court through a motion ex parte to procure an order directing that the Appellant be restored to possession. This is even when he is aware that Hon Othman Musa FCT High court 7 is functus officio of the matter. Secondly, Henry K. Otu, is equally aware that his Client ASABE WAZIRI is challenging wrongful execution in a suit she instituted before HIS LORDSHIP HON JUSTICE B.HASSAN. In summary, Henry Otu, has presented himself as a legal practitioner, who procures Court orders illegally to do mischief. This is a gross violation of the ethic of the Profession and his action amounts to gross misconduct and a conduct unbecoming of a legal practitioner.
“We therefore request for this sole prayer: That I call on the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) to investigate and take necessary action against Mr. Henry K. Otu of the Law Firm of Law Corridor as per the complaint against him.
