WHETHER CONFLICTING FACTS CAN BE PLEADED WHERE ALTERNATIVE RELIEFS ARE SOUGHT?

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WHETHER CONFLICTING FACTS CAN BE PLEADED WHERE ALTERNATIVE RELIEFS ARE SOUGHT? 

by Branham Chima. 


✓ DEFINITION(S): 

• Conflicting facts: refer to contradictory or opposing pieces of information or evidence that are presented. It occurs when different sources, perspectives, or accounts provide inconsistent or conflicting details about a specific matter or issue. 

• Pleaded: When a person pleads, they are presenting their case or defense to the court, either admitting or denying the allegations against them. The plea can be made orally or in writing, depending on the jurisdiction and the specific circumstances of the legal proceedings. The term "pleaded" is commonly used to describe the past action of making a plea. 

• Alternative reliefs: refer to different forms of remedies or outcomes that a party seeks in a legal proceeding as alternatives to each other. By seeking alternative reliefs, a party acknowledges that there may be multiple ways to address their concerns and allows the court or decision-making authority to consider and potentially grant the most appropriate relief based on the circumstances and evidence presented. 


✓ ANSWER: 

The settled legal principle emphasises that parties are well within their rights to seek conflicting facts in line with the alternative reliefs they have presented. 

In Peter Obi & Anor. v. INEC (2023) - CA/PEPC/03/2023 delivered on Wednesday, the 6th day Of September, 2023, H.S. Tsammani, JCA, ruled thus: ‘As rightly submitted by the Petitioners, the reliefs in this Petition, which I have reproduced at the beginning of this judgment, are undoubtedly sought in the alternative. The settled law is that reliefs can be sought in the alternative and where so sought by a party, he is at liberty to plead conflicting facts in line with the alternative reliefs he has sought. In ADIGHIJE V NWAOGU & ORS (2010) 12 NWLR (Pt. 1209) 419 at 545, paras. E G; (2010) LPELR-4941(CA) at pages 14 – 16, paras. E G, this Court, per Ogunwumiju, JCA (as he then was, now JSC), held that: “...in civil litigation and indeed in election matters, a party can make two seemingly contradictory pleadings leading to two different heads of claim. That is why a petitioner can claim that the election be annulled for reason of substantial non-compliance and in the same breath claim that he won the election by a majority of lawful notes. A petitioner may plead the same set of facts to ground alternative reliefs. Those pleadings are not ipso facto held to be self-contradictory. The Court can only grant one relief as the party must decide which relief is best supported by the evidence on record.” See also: METAL CONSTRUCTION (W.A.) LTD v ABODERIN (1998) LPELR 1868(SC) at pages 26, paras. C E.’ 


✓ KEY POINTS: 

1. It is established legal principle that alternative reliefs can be sought.

2. When alternative reliefs are sought, a party is allowed to plead conflicting facts that align with the alternative reliefs.

3. This means that the party can present different sets of facts depending on the relief they are seeking. 

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