Appeal Court Upholds ₦85m Fine Against Bank, Over Freezing of Customers’s Account

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has affirmed a High Court ruling that imposed a ₦85 million fine on a commercial bank and the Nigeria Police Force for unlawfully freezing a customer’s account with an invalid court order.

Delivering judgment on Monday, a three-member panel led by Justice Adebukola Banjoko dismissed the bank’s appeal, describing it as lacking merit.

The panel upheld the July 16, 2025 decision of Justice Simon Bature of the FCT High Court, which ordered the bank to unfreeze the account of Abhulimen & Co Law Firm and issue a public apology.

The case, filed by Paulyn O. Abhulimen, SAN, revealed that the bank had placed a “Post-No-Debit” restriction on the firm’s account in early 2024, claiming it acted on an order obtained by the police from a Magistrates’ Court in Mararaba Gurku, Nasarawa State.

Justice Bature ruled that the Magistrates’ Court lacked jurisdiction over banking matters and condemned the bank’s reliance on the invalid order.

The High Court awarded ₦60 million in damages for the embarrassment, financial distress, and psychological trauma suffered by the claimant, along with ₦25 million as litigation costs.

On appeal, Justice Banjoko reaffirmed that the bank acted in bad faith and ordered it, alongside the police, to pay the punitive ₦85 million fine.

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