BREAKING: UK Supreme Court Rules in Favour of Nigeria in £44m Legal Costs Battle Against P&ID
In a landmark judgment delivered on 22 October 2025, the United Kingdom Supreme Court has ruled in favour of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in its £44 million legal costs dispute with Process & Industrial Developments Limited (P&ID). The apex court, led by Lord Reed, President of the Supreme Court, dismissed P&ID’s appeal and affirmed that Nigeria is entitled to recover its legal costs in pounds sterling (GBP) rather than in naira (NGN). The ruling upholds earlier decisions of both the Commercial Court and the Court of Appeal. The dispute arose after Nigeria successfully overturned two massive arbitral awards—worth over US$11 billion including interest—granted to P&ID, which were later declared fraudulent and void by the Commercial Court in 2023. During its legal challenge, Nigeria incurred £44.2 million in legal fees, paid through 116 invoices between November 2019 and November 2024, all billed in sterling. P&ID had argued that the cost order should in...