BREAKING: Appeal Court fines MTN N15 million over unsolicited messages and caller tunes on lawyer’s phone 

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has awarded N15 million as general damages against MTN Nigeria Communications Limited for disturbing its Nigerian customer’s phone number with unsolicited messages and callertunes, without the customer’s subscription to these services.

The Appeal Court passed the judgement on Friday that this action was a violation of the right to privacy and quiet enjoyment of airtime purchased by Barrister Ezugwu Emmanuel Anene, a public interest lawyer.

The judgment was delivered on Friday by Justice Okon Abang.

Facts of the Case 

The matter arose from the judgment of the High Court of the FCT, delivered by Justice U.P. Kekemeke, on September 22, 2021.

The claimant, Anene, sought a declaration that the eighty-eight unsolicited calls made by MTN to him at odd hours caused embarrassment, inconvenience, distraction, and anxiety, thereby breaching his right to privacy.

“All services complained about by the claimant were subscribed to by him, and the defendant merely debited him for the services,” the respondent said. 

“In all, I award N15 million in damages in favour of the appellant and against MTN. The appeal succeeds and is allowed,” the judge concluded. 

Regarding MTN’s cross-appeal, the Appeal Court dismissed it, stating it lacked merit.