Supreme Court orders lawyer to pay N8m fine for abuse of court process

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(Nigeria) The Supreme Court on Monday ordered Dr Dickson Osuala to pay N8 million fine to Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State and three others for abuse of court process.
Osuala was counsel to Chief Great Ogboru, candidate of the Democratic People’s Party in the 2011 Delta governorship election.
Other parties in the N8 million cost are the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, who are to get N2 million each.
Osuala‎ had, on behalf of his client, applied for a review of the court’s judgement which in 2013 upheld the election of Uduaghan of the PDP.
He had claimed in his application that, Section 285 (7) of the 1999 Constitution which the Supreme Court relied on to dismiss the case, was ``fraudulently inserted by the National Assembly''.
He argued that due process was not followed by the National Assembly on the section.
The counsel, therefore, submitted that it was wrong for the apex court to have relied on it to dismiss his client's case in 2013.
Delivering his ruling, Justice Walter Onoghen blamed Osuala for not advising his client rightly and embarking on a clear case of gross abuse of the court process.
``The said N8 million is awarded as cost against the person of Dr. Dickson Osuala and is to be paid from his pocket to the respondents. The plaintiff, through his counsel, wants to resurrect a dead and buried horse.
``The plaintiff’s counsel should advise his client to take his case to heaven if he is not satisfied with the court's ruling,’’ he said.
Onoghen said it was not the business of the court to amend the constitution, but that of the national assembly.
He advised him to go to the National Assembly or the Federal High Court to challenge the section of the constitution which he considered defective.
Osuala rejected the advice, adding that nobody should be allowed to benefit from a defective law.
Ogboru had twice applied for a review of the judgement but the Supreme Court had turned down his prayer on both occasions. 

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