Commercial Law (105)
"Ordinarily, interest is not payable on ordinary debt in purely commercial transaction, in the absence of a term to that effect expressly or impliedly in the contract or mercantile usage or custom of the parties or as may be contained in a statute. It may also be in place through fiduciary relationship between the parties.
"If there had been no such agreement as to payment on demand, it has been said that, "the fact that the obligation of the guarantor arise only when the principal has defaulted in his obligation to the Creditor does not mean that the creditor has to demand payment from the principal or from the surety, or give notice to the surety, before the creditor can proceed against the surety."
"It has been held in effect "that in purely commercial transactions a party who holds on to the money of another and keeps it for a long time without any justification and thus deprives that other of the use of funds for the period should be liable to pay compensation by way of interests."
"The general position of the law with regard to agency is that, a person may decide to act by another who he appointed to be his agent and get the benefit, or bear and/or suffer liability on that arrangement. The one who authorizes another person is known as the Principal, while the person authorized is known and or referred to as the Agent.
"In the instant case, the Law Firm was appointed by the 3rd respondent by Exhibit F and F1 to serve as its debt collector. From the express terms of the said Exhibit F & F1, the Law Firm was appointed to act for only three months, which started from 14th September, 2004, and expected to expire on 14th December, 2004.
"In the hire-purchase transaction, there is no question of a sale coming into being unless and until the hirer exercises at the appropriate time the option to purchase the goods. Mixed in a hire-purchase transaction is a contract of hire and option to purchase." Per Ayoola, J.S.C. (P.76, Paras.A-B) AFROTEC TECHNICAL SERVICES (NIG) LTD. V. MIA & SONS LIMITED & ANOR(2000) LPELR-219(SC)
"In the credit sale transaction, there is a sale on credit. The credit may take the form of payment of the entire purchase at an agreed future time or payment of the purchase price by agreed instalments.
"There is also the provision of section 39(1)(c) which, subject to the provisions of the Act and notwithstanding that the property in the goods may have passed to the buyer, confers on the unpaid seller, a right of resale of the goods but as limited by the Act.
"Lien arises if the following conditions are satisfied, namely: 1. The seller is unpaid; 2. The goods have been sold without any stipulation as to credit, or the stipulated period of credit has expired, or the buyer has become insolvent; and 3. The seller is in possession of the goods or part of them." Per Iguh, J.S.C. (P.57, Paras.D-F) AFROTEC TECHNICAL SERVICES (NIG) LTD. V. MIA & SONS LIMITED & ANOR(2000) LPELR-219(SC)
"a contract of-sale which under section 1 of the Sale of Goods Act,1893, is a contract whereby the seller transfers or agrees to transfer property in goods to the buyer for a money consideration called the price.