In a stinging rebuke of corporate irresponsibility, the Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered Access Bank Plc to pay N7 million in damages for unlawfully freezing the bank account of a customer, Mrs. Oluwasesan Ifeoluwa Bridget, without a valid court order.
Justice Ayokunle Faji, who delivered the judgment, ruled that the bank’s action amounted to a gross violation of Bridget’s fundamental rights, describing the move as “unconstitutional, unjustified, and lacking in legal merit.”
According to court records, Access Bank placed a Post No Debit (PND) restriction on Bridget’s account on July 1, 2023, two weeks before a purported court order was obtained on July 16, 2023 from a Magistrate Court in Masaka, Nasarawa State. The judge noted that the bank did not deny this critical fact.
Justice Faji was unequivocal in his assessment:
“The bank, having a legal department, ought to have known that the order was improperly drawn and could not be legally enforced,” he stated.
Adding insult to injury, the controversial court order was directed to non-juristic entities, “Access Bank Ltd” and “Manager Access Bank”, rather than the legally recognized Access Bank Plc. Worse still, no Certified True Copy (CTC) of the order was ever produced before the court.
“She Nearly Died — And the Bank Did Nothing”
The human toll behind the case is harrowing. Bridget discovered her account (No. 0054695391) had been frozen without notice, and her repeated visits to Access Bank yielded no answers, only vague claims of “internal issues.”
Tragically, in September 2023, Bridget survived an assassination attempt that left her with shattered legs and spinal damage.
Stranded financially due to the frozen account, she was unable to fund her medical treatment and spent eight agonizing months in a wheelchair, a period marked by immense emotional and physical suffering.
When she partially recovered and resumed her efforts to access her funds in 2024, she was again met with stonewalling by the bank. A formal legal demand on October 7, 2024, went unanswered.
Bank’s Defense Collapses in Court
Access Bank’s defense, that it was merely following a police request and that the matter was a “banker-customer dispute”, fell flat. The court dismissed the argument, affirming that the case involved a violation of fundamental human rights, not just a financial disagreement.
The applicant’s lawyer, Farid Giwa, argued that the alleged order was null and void, having been addressed to fictitious entities, and lacked any certification as a public document.
Justice Faji agreed and held that the bank’s restriction of Bridget’s account was a clear violation of her constitutional right to property under Section 44(1) of the 1999 Constitution.
A Wake-Up Call for Financial Institutions
The ruling is expected to send shockwaves through the Nigerian banking sector, raising serious concerns about due process and the abuse of customer rights under the guise of internal compliance or law enforcement instructions.
With the award of N7 million in damages, Access Bank Plc now faces public and regulatory scrutiny, and potentially further lawsuits if similar cases surface.
Legal experts say the judgment sets a powerful precedent: banks cannot act as law unto themselves.
For Bridget, justice, delayed though it was, has finally arrived. Whether Access Bank will accept responsibility or appeal the decision remains to be seen.
Credit: Oasis Magazine/Nation except headline
