MEANING OF TERMS
Concurrent findings of facts: This simply means that a trial court and an appellate court both agree on a particular issue. This usually happens when an appellate court upholds the findings of a trial court.
CASE STUDY:
Elechi v The State (SC/589/2015) on 17/07 /2026.
FACTS:
The Appellant was one of four persons arraigned before the High Court of Rivers State on a two-count charge of murder and resisting lawful arrest. After entering a plea of not guilty, the matter proceeded to trial. At the end of the trial, the court found the Appellant guilty of the charges brought against him. He was, therefore, convicted and sentenced.
Dissatisfied with the ruling of the court, the Appellant appealed to the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal held that while the Prosecution/ Respondent provided sufficient evidence to prove murder, it failed to provide satisfactory evidence to prove resisting lawful arrest. The Court, therefore, discharged and acquitted him of resisting lawful arrest while upholding his conviction of murder. Still dissatisfied, the Appellant appealed to the Supreme Court. The summary of his grounds of appeal included: I) whether the Court of Appeal was right in law to have have dismissed his appeal without giving him a fair hearing in accordance with Section 36 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) when he submitted that the evidence of the Respondent against him was not credible to grant a conviction. II) whether the concurrent findings of the two courts should be upheld.
DECISION:
On the concurrent findings of two lower courts- The courts would normally presume that concurrent findings of both a trial court and an appellate court are correct and should, therefore, not be interfered with unless they are proven to be perverse or in violation of the law thereby causing injustice. In the instant case none of these was the case, and so the Supreme Court upheld the concurrent findings of both lower courts. See also Atuche v. FRN & Anor (2024) LPELR 62994 (SC), Onwuprah v. People of Lagos State (2024) LPELR 62915 (SC), and Roe Ltd. V. UNN (2018) LPELR 43855 (SC).
