Court Grants Ex-Miss Nigeria 50% Of Deceased Hubby’s Assets
A Federal High Court in Lagos, Tuesday declared that a former Miss Nigeria, Helen Prest-Ajayi, is entitled to 50 per cent of the net assets of her late husband, Dr Tosin Ajayi, founder of First Foundation Medical Engineering Company Limited.
Justice Tijjani Ringim who presided over the court, gave the ruling in a suit filed by Miss Tomisin Ajayi and Mrs Helen Prest Ajayi as first and second applicants, through their counsel Mr Abiodun Jellili Owonikoko, (SAN).
The first to fourth respondents in the suit are; First Foundation Medical Engineering Company Limited, Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC); Mrs Oluwayemisi Ajayi and a lawyer, Mr Patrick Abak.
First Foundation Medical Engineering Company was owned and registered by the late Dr. Tosin Ajayi.
The judge granted all the 13 reliefs sought by the applicants, following the respondents’ failure to controvert or file any counter against them.
The reliefs granted by Justice Ringim include; that Prest-Ajayi is “entitled to 50 percent (or so much as the Court may sanction upon audit and valuation) constituting the net assets of the firm, after satisfying all just taxes and debts as family and investment partner of Dr. Tosin Ajayi, from 1996 till 26 April, 2020 to the exclusion of Mrs Oluwayemisi Ajayi;
“An order of court directing an investigation into the affairs of the firm by the Registrar-General and for the Registrar-General to call for an extra-ordinary general meeting to appoint additional directors for the firm.
“An order directing the Registrar-General to audit and verify the firm’s assets, a perpetual injunction restraining the Registrar-General from recognising the Mrs Oluwayemisi Ajayi as entitled to run the firm and a perpetual injunction restraining Mrs Oluwayemisi Ajayi from dealing with the assets and properties belonging to the Defendant and/or Late Dr Ajayi”.
In granting the reliefs, Justice Ringim held that: “Despite the service of processes filed on the the respondents and affidavits of service duly filed in court, the respondents failed to use the opportunity afforded to them by law to controvert the averment of the plaintiff in the affidavits.
“However, it is a settled law that evidence not controverted are deemed admitted.
“In consideration of the applicant’s motion on notice and the affidavits in support and exhibits attached together with the legal submissions of senior counsel for the applicant Jellili Owonikoko SAN, all the reliefs sought in this application is hereby granted as prayed.
“Applicant to file undertaking as to damages in the event it turned out that this order ought not to be made in the circumstances”.
The judge however returned the file back to the Administrative Judge for assignment, being a vacation matter.
According to the application, Dr Ajayi was a renowned medical doctor, businessman and a philanthropist before his demise on April 26, 2020.
He was married to Oluwayemisi and they had children. But they were separated for 35 years before Tosin’s demise.
In the course of the separation, he married former Miss Nigeria, Helen Prest-Ajayi and they had a child, Tosin, who lived with Prest-Ajayi until his demise.
