Writ of Summons
The document known as the Writ of Summons is an essential document that precedes the commencement of civil proceedings between two parties in a court of law.
To illustrate this, a scenario will be painted. If Party A has a grievance against Party B that he wants to sue Party B for, Party A cannot just drag Party B to court without the intervention of the court. Following due process, Party A will apply to the court to prepare a document known as a Writ of Summons that will then be sent to Party B, informing him of his needed presence in court because of the claims made against him by Party A. If Party B agrees to show up in court within the period of time stipulated in the writ, he would then become the defendant in the law suit between him and Party A, who would then become the plaintiff or the claimant. However, if Party B refuses to show up in court, the court may go ahead to give a judgement based on the claims of the plaintiff, who would be the only Party in the proceedings and such judgement would be binding on the defendant.
In Nigeria, the receiving party of a Writ of Summons usually has thirty days from the date the writ was served to respond to the writ and appear in court. If the receiving party does not respond in due time, a default judgement may be entered in his absence. However, such Party can escape this consequence if he had substantial reason for not responding to the writ on time. If he had such a reason, his lawyer can file a motion to the court for an extension of time within which the receiving party can appear before the court.
In order to keep the receiving party from questioning why his appearance is being sought in court, a document called a Statement of Claim may be issued with the writ. This document will contain the nature of the claim and the relief sought by the claimant for the alleged grievance committed against him. In the absence of a Statement of Claim, the writ may contain the reasons as to why he is being summoned to court.
The legal framework upon which the concept of the writ of summons is anchored is made up of the Sheriffs and Civil Process Act 2004 and the Civil Procedure Rules of the court where the matter commenced. Section 96(1) of the Act provides that a writ of summons issued out of or requiring the defendant to appear at any court of a State or the Capital Territory may be served on the defendant in any other state or the Capital Territory.
In summary, the Writ of Summons marks the beginning of a legal battle between a plaintiff and a defendant in civil cases. If a Writ of Summons is not properly served on a defendant, any legal proceedings taken thereafter will be considered is invalid.
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