Musical Copyright Society Of Nigeria Limited/gte V. Compact Disc Technology Limited & Ors (2018)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report

MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI, J.S.C.

This is an appeal stemming from the decision of the Court of Appeal or Court below or Lower Court, Lagos Division, Coram: Ibrahim Mohammed Musa Saulawa, Paul Adamu Galinje and Regina Obiageli Nwodo JJCA which allowed the appeal of the respondents over the decision of the trial High Court per J E. Shekarho J. which Ruling was set aside by the Court below hence the recourse to the Supreme Court in a Notice of Appeal set out in page 424-429 of the Record of Appeal.

The appellant was the plaintiff in the trial High Court in a suit initiated with a Writ of Summons dated the 2nd August, 2007 in an action against the now respondents as defendants in the Court of trial. The reliefs of the plaintiff are set down hereunder and thus: –

a) A declaration that the acts of the defendants without authority or permission of the plaintiff of importing, recording, reproducing, distributing, offering for sale, communicating to the public or publicly performing or playing the said musical works on audio and video devices such as tapes or video compact disc and/or

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similar devices at its stores in an infringement of the plaintiffs copyright as guaranteed by the Copyright Act 1988 as amended.

b) An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants by themselves, assigns, agents and servants from the further importing, reproducing, distributing, offering for sale, publicly performing/ playing and communicating to the public any of the said works or any works for that matter from the plaintiffs repertoire without the plaintiffs authorization or permission.

c) An order of perpetual injunction directing the defendants jointly or severally whether themselves assigns, agents and servants or howsoever from further infringing or continuing to infringe the copyright in the audio or audio visual musical works contained in the plaintiffs repertoire.

d) An order for delivery up to the plaintiff of all copies of said musical works on Audio and video devices such a tapes, video compact disc and or similar devices of musical works listed in paragraphs 11, 12 and 15 of the Statement of Claim.

e) Special damages in the sum of N250,000,000.00.

f) General damages in the sum of N100,000,000.00.

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The defendants/respondents filed their statement of defence dated the 29th of October, 2007 (pages 261-276 of the records) challenging the locus standi of the plaintiff/appellant particularly in paragraph 6 which states:-

“the defendants would at or before the hearing of this suit move this Honourable Court to strike out this suit on the further ground that the objects under which the plaintiff is incorporated under the Nigerian law, which is the basis of the claim in this suit, requires the plaintiff to have a valid and subsisting collecting society’s license, to wit, the plaintiff does not possess the valid and subsisting collecting society’s license at the time of the institution of this suit.”