Justice Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court in Lagos will on September 29 decide whether he has the jurisdiction to hear the intellectual property infringement case filed by Times Multimedia Limited against the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank)
Justice Osiagor fixed the date for ruling after entertaining arguments on Afreximbank’s preliminary objection, where the bank argues that it is immune from judicial proceedings in Nigeria under its Establishment Agreement, the Diplomatic Immunities and Privileges Act, and the African Export-Import Bank (Privileges and Immunities) Order, 2014.
Times Multimedia, a Nigerian media and events company, has claimed in its suit that it is the owner of “CAX” (Creative Africa Exchange), a trade and investment platform for Africa’s creative and cultural industries, conceived in 2017/2018
According to court documents, the company presented the CAX concept, framework and business model to Afreximbank in 2018 in pursuit of a strategic partnership to support the initiative.
The claimant alleged that after sponsoring its CAX programme held in Kigali, Rwanda, in 2019, Afreximbank subsequently launched the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) in 2020, which it claims substantially adopted the concept, objectives and structure of CAX without its authorisation, attribution or any contractual agreement.
The alleged appropriation of its intellectual property, Times Multimedia argued, prompted the present case seeking legal redress for infringement.However, Afreximbank urged the court to decline jurisdiction, arguing that Article 50 of its Establishment Agreement grants the bank immunity from legal process except where it expressly waives that protection .Opposing the objection, counsel for Times Multimedia argued that the bank’s immunity is not absolute and does not shield it from actions arising from commercial transactions.
The claimant further submitted that the court should interpret the relevant legal instruments alongside Section 6(6)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantees access to the courts, and avoid any interpretation that would unjustifiably deny a Nigerian company the opportunity to ventilate its grievance.
After listening to submissions from both parties, Justice Osiagor reserved the ruling until 29 September 2026.
The ruling will decide whether the substantive intellectual property dispute between Times Multimedia and Afreximbank will proceed before the Federal High Court.
