Amaju Pinnick vs Davido: Court rejects singer’s request for stay of proceedings

• Amaju’s company is suing Davido for failing to perform at a fully paid concert in Warri, seeking N2 billion in general damages.

• The company is seeking N150 million in legal and professional fees from the court and an additional N30 million for filing the suit.

The singer David Adeleke, also known as Davido, filed an application for a stay of proceedings in the N2 billion lawsuit brought against him by Brownhill Investment Company Limited, owned by former NFF president Amaju Pinnick, over the annual “Warri Again Concert,” but the Delta State High Court in Effurun refused it.

After Davido did not show up for a fully paid event in Warri, Amaju’s business filed a lawsuit against him. The company is requesting that Davido pay N2 billion in general damages in court.

In addition, the corporation is requesting N150 million in legal and professional fees from the court, along with an extra N30 million to cover the cost of filing the lawsuit.

David Adeleke, also known as “Davido,” and his record company, Davido Music Worldwide Limited, are defendants in the lawsuit.

According to Vanguard, Davido’s attorney, Norrison Quakers, SAN, told the court during the last hearing that the defendants had filed a move for a stay of proceedings and that an appeal was ongoing.

Quakers further informed the court that a copy of the claimant’s counter-affidavit to the aforementioned stay application had been served to the defendants.

But he filed an application to withdraw the move, arguing that the Court of Appeal now had jurisdiction over the cases that were still ongoing in the lower court.

Kelechi Onwuegbuchulem, the company’s attorney, did not object to the request to withdraw the motion, and the court allowed it as a result.

In a bench ruling, the court accepted the claimant’s position and declared that the High Court will carry on with the case’s proceedings until the Court of Appeal issues an injunction stopping further action.

Additionally, the court approved a notice petition to regularize the defense company’s reply to the statement of defense filed by Amaju’s, and it ordered the filing of Pre-Trial Conference (PTC) documents in accordance with court rules within a 14-day period. A pre-trial meeting was scheduled for March 21, 2024, by the court.

Remember that Davido had contested the court’s jurisdiction in his preliminary objection, arguing that the matter shouldn’t be heard in Effurun.

However, the court dismissed the preliminary objection in its decision.