Afe Babalola Obtains Court Order To Ban Farotimi’s Bestseller, Seize Royalties

The Federal High Court in Abuja has issued an order halting the production and distribution of ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’, a book authored by embattled human rights lawyer Dele Farotimi.

The book, which has stirred heated debates over its damning allegations of judicial manipulation, was recently ranked as a global bestseller in the politics category on Amazon.

The order, sought by legal luminary Afe Babalola, demanded the cessation of sales and distribution of both physical and digital copies of the book. It also included a directive for the seizure of royalties generated from its sales.

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Filed under suit number CV/5372/24 by Kehinde Ogunwumiju, SAN, the Head of Afe Babalola’s law firm, the application was dated December 6, 2024. The court granted an interlocutory injunction restraining Farotimi and all affiliated parties from further distributing the book.

The injunction read, “An order of interlocutory injunction restraining the defendant/respondent, whether acting by himself, his staff, employees, servants, privies, representatives, agents, publishers, distributors, sellers, re-publishers, re-sellers, or any other person however described including Amazon Online Bookstore, Rovingheights Bookstore, Booksellers Bookstore, Jazzhole Lagos Bookstore, Glendora Bookshop, Quintessence Lagos Bookstore and Patabah Books Limited from further publishing, selling, circulating, advertising, or distributing the physical/hard/digital/soft copies of the book authored by the defendant/respondent titled: ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’, online.

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“An order of interlocutory injunction directing the seizure of all physical copies of the book authored by the defendant/respondent titled, ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’n wherever they may be.”

The book accused Babalola of manipulating the judiciary to secure favourable rulings for his clients. The allegations have not only attracted significant public interest but have also put the veteran legal icon in the spotlight.

The legal move to block the book’s distribution came amid its soaring global popularity, with critics and readers alike praising its bold exposé of Nigeria’s criminal justice system.

As the legal battle unfolds, Farotimi’s supporters argued that the injunction posed a threat to free speech and accountability within the judiciary, while others saw it as a necessary step to protect reputations.