Assets Transfer – Court Refuses to Hear Shoprite’s Application to Lift Injunction

The Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday declined hearing an
application to lift a Mareva injunction barring South African retail
company, Shoprite Checkers (PTY) Limited, from transferring its
assets.

The vacation judge at the court, Justice Nicholas Oweibo, said the
matter was not urgent enough to be heard during the court’s ongoing
vacation.

Shoprite is seeking to overturn a July 14, 2020 mareva injunction made
by Justice Mohammed Liman of the same court in favour of a Nigerian
firm, A.I.C. Limited.

A.I.C. Limited, had in 2018 secured a $10million judgment against Shoprite.

The firm obtained the mareva injunction against the backdrop of
Shoprite’s announcement to pull out of Nigeria.

Justice Liman restrained Shoprite “from transferring, assigning,
charging, disposing of its trademark, franchise and intellectual
property in a manner that will alter, dissipate or remove these
non-cash assets and other assets, including but not limited to trade
receivables, trade payables, payment for purchase of merchandise, from
within the jurisdiction of this honourable court.”

The judge also mandated the 2nd respondent, Retail Supermarket Nigeria
Limited, “to disclose its audited financial statements for the years
ending 2018 and 2019 to enable the judgment creditor/applicant
determine the judgment debtor’s/respondent’s funds in its custody in
order to preserve same in satisfaction of the judgment of the Court of
Appeal in Appeal No: CA/L/288/2018.”

The $10million judgment was in 2018 entered in favour of A.I.C.
Limited against Shoprite by Justice Lateef Lawal-Akapo of the Lagos
State High Court in Ikeja.

Displeased with the judgment, Shoprite had gone on appeal but it
equally lost at the Court of Appeal and has now gone to the Supreme
Court.