The court postpones Falana and Falz's lawsuit against VDM for defamation until January 23

Preliminary objections to the defamation suit brought by human rights attorney Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) and his artist son Folarin Falana, also known as Falz, against social media activist Vincent Otse (also known as Very Dark Man, VDM) have been scheduled for January 23, 2025, by Lagos High Court, Ikeja, judge Mathias Dawodu.The Falanas initiated the lawsuit over alleged defamatory online content posted by Otse. Although the matter was previously set for a hearing yesterday, some court documents were missing from the file. Otse was joined by applauding followers when he appeared in court dressed in traditional Edo garb. He was already ordered by the court to remove the controversial video he released on October 14, 2024.

The claimant's attorney, Mr. Muiz Banire (SAN), told the court during the resumption of the proceedings that Otse's attorney, Mr. Deji Adeyanju, had been served with the originating process since October 30, 2024. Banire requested an adjournment to address administrative matters after Justice Dawodu pointed out that the procedure was not in the court's file. VDM’s lawyer, Mr Marvin Omorogbe, argued that there was no valid writ of summons before the court and raised concerns about the duplication of suit numbers. Following Omorogbe’s submission, Justice Dawodu struck out a pending motion and adjourned the case for hearing on January 23, 2025.