Table of Contents
Key Points
- A Lagos High Court dismissed a petition by Herbert Wigwe’s parents seeking to alter his estate’s management, upholding the existing structure.
- The court denied the request for interim administrators, citing the Administration of Estate Law of Lagos State, 2015.
- The ruling affirms Otutochi Wigwe, Uche Wigwe, and Aigboje Imoukhuede as estate managers, with further disputes left to the main trial.
A Lagos High Court has dismissed an application by Christian Wigwe and Pastor Shyngle Wigwe, parents of the late Nigerian banker Herbert Wigwe, challenging the control structure of their son’s estate. Their petition sought to alter the estate’s management, which includes Herbert Wigwe’s first daughter, Otutochi Wigwe.
In a ruling delivered on Feb. 6, 2025, Justice A.O. Adeyemi of the Lagos State High Court Family/Probate Division rejected their request to appoint interim administrators to oversee the estate of the former Group Managing Director and CEO of Access Bank. The court ruled that their claims lacked merit and upheld the existing estate management structure.
Legal battle over estate control
The lawsuit, filed under case number ID/7735FPM/2024, named Access Bank Plc, Coronation Merchant Bank Ltd, and United Securities Ltd as defendants. Other key parties included Herbert Wigwe’s younger brother, Uche Wigwe; his long-time business partner and co-founder of Access Holdings Plc, Aigboje A.I.G. Imoukhuede; and his first daughter, Otutochi Channel Wigwe.
Christian and Shyngle Wigwe, reportedly influenced by Emeka Wigwe, sought to restructure the estate’s control by appointing five interim administrators: Otutochi Wigwe, Uche Wigwe, Shyngle Wigwe, and two professional entities—Zedra Trust Company (Isle of Man), a subsidiary of Zedra Corporate Solutions UK Limited, and PricewaterhouseCoopers Limited.
They also requested joint guardianship of Herbert Wigwe’s minor children—Chituru David Wigwe, Wegu & Hannah Wigwe, and Okachi Great Wigwe—assigning supervisory responsibility for their welfare to Shyngle Wigwe. Additionally, they sought access to financial records from Access Bank, Coronation Merchant Bank, and United Securities regarding shares or assets held in Herbert Wigwe’s name.
Court’s decision
After reviewing arguments from both sides, Justice Adeyemi ruled that the claimants were not entitled to the reliefs sought. Citing the Administration of Estate Law of Lagos State, 2015, he noted that while courts can appoint interim administrators in cases where a will’s validity is disputed, this application did not meet those conditions. The judge found that the issues raised were already central to the main lawsuit and should not be decided separately at this stage.
Justice Adeyemi also referenced an earlier judgment that had appointed the third defendant as the legal guardian of Herbert Wigwe’s minor children. Since there was no appeal against that ruling, he stated that reopening the matter was not an option.
“The Contention of Learned Senior Counsel for the Claimants/ Applicants that given the issues involved in this suit, there might be a protracted trial is not only unfounded but also preemptive,” the judge ruled. He added that the court had already granted an accelerated hearing schedule to ensure that matters concerning the children’s welfare were resolved without unnecessary delays.
What’s next?
With the dismissal of the application, the estate remains under the control of Otutochi Wigwe, Uche Wigwe, and Aigboje Imoukhuede. The ruling effectively blocks any immediate changes to the estate’s management, leaving further disputes to be settled in the main trial. Attention now shifts to the substantive case, which will determine the final structure of the estate’s administration. Until then, the existing management arrangement remains intact.
