The Federal High Court, Abuja, did not sit on 10 July 2026 to deliver judgment in the EFCC's final forfeiture suit over 57 properties linked to former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami, SAN, and has adjourned the matter a second time, to 15 July 2026.
The Federal High Court, Abuja, did not sit on Friday, 10 July 2026, the date on which it had been scheduled to deliver judgment in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission's suit for the final forfeiture of 57 properties linked to former Attorney-General of the Federation Abubakar Malami, SAN. The properties are valued at over ₦212.8 billion.
The judgment date had already been moved once, from 6 July to 10 July 2026. Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, who presides over the matter, did not sit on the rescheduled date. No reason for the non-sitting had been reported. The matter has now been adjourned a second time, to 15 July 2026.
The suit before the court is the EFCC's application for final forfeiture of the 57 properties to the Federal Government. Malami is named in the proceedings in his capacity as respondent. Final forfeiture is a distinct stage from interim forfeiture: where an interim order freezes or vests property in the state on a provisional basis pending determination of a claim, final forfeiture — if granted — permanently vests the property in the Federal Government and closes that limb of the proceedings. A court does not reach the final forfeiture stage until it has heard the substantive application, meaning the current proceedings turn on whether the court grants or refuses that application, not on any fresh allegation.
A non-sitting is procedurally distinct from an ordinary adjournment. An adjournment ordinarily follows a sitting at which the court hears the parties, or a party, and then fixes a fresh date, often for a stated reason such as further argument, an outstanding process, or the unavailability of counsel. A non-sitting means the court did not convene on the scheduled date at all, and no proceedings — substantive or procedural — took place before the matter was moved. The reason for a non-sitting can vary widely, from an administrative cause to a judge's other commitments.
This is the second time in under a week that judgment in the case has been rescheduled without being delivered. The matter returns before Justice Abdulmalik on 15 July 2026, when judgment is next scheduled to be delivered.
