The Court of Appeal has disqualified Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN and Dr. Muiz Banire SAN from representing Nestoil Limited and Neconde Energy Limited in the company’s ongoing $2 billion debt dispute with its lenders.
The ruling was delivered on Thursday, January 23, 2026, by a panel of justices of the Court of Appeal, according to the information made available to Naijaonpoint and also confirmed by the Nestoil legal team.
The decision marks a major turning point in the long-running receivership battle between Nestoil and a consortium of Nigerian banks and creditors, as the appellate court also struck out all legal processes filed by the affected law firms.
What the Court is saying
In its ruling, the Court of Appeal clarified the legal status of Nestoil’s board and its authority to engage counsel while under receivership.
Nestoil’s alleged $2 billion indebtedness to its lenders is said to exceed the minimum capital requirement of four Nigerian banks with international licences.
The legal battle between Nestoil and its lenders has been brewing for months and cuts across multiple courts.
In November, Nestoil Limited dragged eight Nigerian banks and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) before the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking restraining orders to halt receivership proceedings initiated after a Notice of Default was issued against the company.
The freeze was linked to an alleged $1.01 billion and N430 billion debt owed to FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited and First Trustees Limited, both subsidiaries of First Bank of Nigeria Limited.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Court of Appeal in Lagos adjourned a receivership case involving FBNQuest Merchant Bank, First Trustees Limited, Nestoil Limited, Neconde Energy Limited, and two others due to controversy surrounding who could validly appear for the respondent companies.
Presiding judge, Justice Yargata Nimpara, adjourned the matter to January 15, 2026, holding that the question of legal representation for Nestoil and Neconde must first be resolved before the court could proceed to hear the case on its merits.
The latest ruling disqualifying senior advocates Olanipekun and Banire directly addresses that concern and clears the procedural hurdle identified by the court.