Fidelity Bank wins Appeal Court judgement over fundamental rights violation suit

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has agreed with Fidelity Bank in its appeal against the judgment of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, which awarded N10 million in costs against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, a former EFCC boss, and the bank over a fundamental rights violation dispute in 2024.

A three-man panel of the Court of Appeal agreed with the bank in a lead judgment delivered by Justice Adebukola Banjoko on September 14, 2026.

According to processes seen by Nairametrics, Justice Peter Kekemeke of the High Court had, in 2024, imposed costs against the bank and the EFCC in his judgment in a suit filed by Michael Kundera to enforce his fundamental rights.

Court backs Fidelity Bank appeal

In its judgment, the court considered the bank’s brief of arguments, where its lawyer, Uzomah Ibegbulem Esq., argued that the petition authored by the appellant bank to the EFCC was based on allegations of the commission of a crime against known legal entities that obtained a N100 million loan procurement order (LPO) from the appellant for a defined project but diverted the funds for their personal use.

• The bank added that the petition was never against Kundera and, therefore, could not warrant the trial court’s finding that it had violated his rights.
• The Court noted the bank’s argument that no credible evidence was placed before the trial court to show that Kundera’s fundamental rights, as guaranteed under the Constitution, were infringed upon by the appellant.
• The court also noted the bank’s argument that Kundera did not discharge the burden of proof required to substantiate any wrongdoing by the appellant that would merit the granting of the reliefs sought against the bank at the trial court.

Consequently, Justice Banjoko held that the three-man panel of the court was in agreement with Fidelity Bank’s appeal.

Why Fidelity Bank challenged ruling

As seen in the documents, the trial judge held that the bank and the EFCC violated the applicant’s fundamental rights by arresting and detaining him from May 15 to May 16, 2023, without charging him to court or releasing him on bail.

• Mr Kundera, through his legal team, had told the court that the subject matter of his alleged harassment concerned a plot of land at the Foreign Affairs Quarters, which he claimed lawfully belonged to him.

The bank disagreed with the lower court’s judgment and approached the Court of Appeal, urging it to determine whether the trial judge had misdirected himself when he granted the reliefs against it in the absence of any material facts placed before the court to entitle Kundera to the reliefs sought against the appellant.

Recent court wins for banks

The development adds to the list of favourable court outcomes secured by financial institutions against individuals.

In August 2026, the Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed a N100 million alleged privacy breach suit instituted against First City Monument Bank (FCMB).

Delivering the verdict, the court observed that the applicant failed to prove, by credible and convincing evidence, that the bank deliberately or recklessly violated his constitutional rights or processed his personal information in a manner that attracted the reliefs sought.