Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa of the Federal High Court in Lagos on Thursday granted an interim Mareva injunction to freeze funds from copyright levies intended for the Musical Copyright Society of Nigeria.
The order bars the Central Bank of Nigeria and at least 20 commercial banks from releasing or disbursing the funds pending the resolution of the ongoing suit.
Justice Lewis-Allagoa issued the ruling on an ex parte application filed on February 5, 2026, by the Record Label Proprietors’ Initiative and 11 major record labels and music companies.
The plaintiffs include Mavin Records Ltd, Davido Music Worldwide Ltd, Premier Music Publishing Limited, Chocolate City Music Limited, Hypertek Digital Limited, Digital Music Commerce & Exchange Limited (DMCE), Beggars Group Media Limited, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment Africa, Warner Music South Africa (Pty) Ltd, and Gamma Media Middle East DMCC.
The second to twelfth plaintiffs are represented collectively by the Record Label Proprietors’ Initiative.
In the motion filed and argued by their lawyer, Oragwu Nnamdi, the plaintiffs sought an order to prevent the CBN from disbursing, releasing, transferring, or paying out copyright levy funds connected to sound recordings for MCSN until a formal hearing.
The motion also requested that MCSN, its agents, or associates be barred from receiving or handling the funds, whether directly from the CBN or routed through banks.
The plaintiffs further asked the court to require the CBN and the banks to preserve the funds and submit affidavits within three days detailing the amounts credited to MCSN from the levy payments.
The court’s order directs that the CBN and its officials refrain from disbursing sums payable to MCSN for copyrighted sound recordings until the suit is fully heard. MCSN is instructed to cease further dealings with the funds, and the banks and CBN are required to safeguard the sums and disclose amounts within three days of receiving the order.
Funds already received by MCSN for recordings of the second to twelfth plaintiffs, who had validly opted out of collective management, must also be preserved. MCSN is required to account for these funds and halt any further transactions until the formal hearing.
The affidavit supporting the application was sworn by Dr. Chinedu Chukwuji of Lekki, Lagos. During the hearing, lawyer Oragwu Nnamdi presented the motion, which the court approved, setting the next hearing for March 12, 2026.
