Equitable Remedy (51)
"From the several authorities to which I have referred above, it is manifest that Mareva injunction applies in principle to a creditor who has a right to be paid the debt owing to him, even before he has established his right by getting judgment for it, if it appears that the debt is due and owing, and therefore there is a danger that the debtor may dispose of his assets so as to defeat it before judgment, the court has jurisdiction in a proper case to grant an interlocutory judgment so as to prevent him from disposing of those assets." A. I. C. LIMITED v. NIGERIAN NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION(2005) LPELR-6(SC)
"It is settled law that an order of interim injunction is a temporary form of injunction which remains in force until a named day and date. By its nature, it is expected to last for a very short period. see Okechukwu v. Okechukwu (1989) 3 NWLR (Pt. 108) 234; Kotoye v. CBN (1989) 1 NWLR (Pt.98) 419; Enekwe v. I.M.B Ltd (1997) 10 NWLR (Pt.526) 633." A. I. C. LIMITED v. NIGERIAN NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION(2005) LPELR-6(SC)Per Edozie, JSC (Pp. 28-29, paras. G-A)
"The reliefs sought by the Appellant in his case before the trial Court have since become otiose and academic taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of this case. The Appellant herein sought Six (6) declaratory reliefs, which if granted will confer no utilitarian advantage or value to him without the grant of the injunctive orders which he has sought.
"Therefore it accords with all common sense and all well known principles of law that an interim injunction can be granted by the court in appropriate circumstances for Rules are made for the administration of justice and if the justice of the case demands that the res be protected in the interim so as not to dissipate the substratum of the case pending the hearing of same, strict adherence to the rules of court will defeat the aim of equity and justice.
"In Hanbury and Maudsley Modern Equity (ante), page 69 the learned author explained the meaning of "perpetual injunction" as follows: "Perpetual and Interlocutory Injunctions: Prohibitory or mandatory injunctions may be perpetual or interlocutory.
"The learned trial Judge has to consider whether the action of the party that applied for an interlocutory injunction is frivolous, or there are triable issues in granting or refusing an application for an interlocutory injunction.
"In Hanbury and Maudsley Modern Equity, 1976 Edition by Harold Greville Hanbury appears the following statement on the nature of an interlocutory injunction pending the determination of the substantive suit at pages 78 to 79 to wit: "The jurisdiction is related not to the most just method of protecting established rights, but to the most convenient method of preserving the status quo while rights are established.
"A decree of specific performance is a form of relief that is purely equitable in origin and is one of the earliest examples of the maxim that equity acts in personam.
"A grant of an injunction as sought by the plaintiff cannot be proper or right in law as in this respect the plaintiff has nothing to protect.