The Federal High Court sitting in Ilorin has dismissed a preliminary objection filed by the Kwara State Government regarding a copyright infringement lawsuit initiated by designer Winjobi Abdulafeez. The ruling allows for the substantive hearing of the case, which centers on the alleged unauthorised use of the "Palm Academy" logo.

Justice Olu Ariwoola (Jnr), in a ruling delivered on December 3, 2025, found in favour of Abdulafeez, the author of the logo. The suit, marked FHC/IL/CS/12/2025, alleges that the Kwara State Ministry of Health utilised the designer's work without permission in public health campaign materials and for the rebranding of the Kwara Teaching Hospital.

Abdulafeez, who originally designed and published the Palm Academy logo on the creative platform Behance.net in 2021, contends that the state's actions constitute a direct violation of his intellectual property rights.

According to court documents, the designer discovered the alleged infringement on July 22, 2024, after the Ministry of Health posted the rebranded hospital materials on social media. Following this discovery, Abdulafeez sent a formal letter on July 29, 2024, demanding the immediate withdrawal of the materials and seeking damages for the unauthorised use of his work.

The dismissal of the government's objection signifies that the court will now proceed to examine the core merits of the copyright claim.

While the Ministry and the office of the attorney general acknowledged receipt of the letter, no corrective action was taken.

The state's preliminary objection argued that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction, citing Sections 20 and 21 of the Trade Marks Act.

Counsel to the defendants claimed that the suit should have first been taken before the Registrar of Trade Marks.

The defendants sought the dismissal of the suit on the grounds of alleged non-compliance with pre-action requirements.

In response, Abdulafeez's counsel from Kunle Gbade & Co. argued, "This suit is rooted in copyright law, not trademark registration.

"The court's jurisdiction is determined by the claim itself: authorship, ownership, and unauthorised usage of the Palm Academy logo, which falls squarely within the Federal High Court's competence," he said.

While delivering judgment, Justice Ariwoola held that, "While the logo may enjoy protection both as a trademark and as an artistic work, the provisions relied upon by the defendants are limited to disputes over registration.

"The instant action concerns infringement of a copyrighted work, over which this Court has full jurisdiction under Section 251(1)(f) of the 1999 Constitution."

The Court therefore dismissed the preliminary objection, allowing the substantive suit to proceed.

"The plaintiff is seeking declaratory relief confirming his authorship and ownership of the logo, perpetual injunctions restraining further unauthorised use, an order mandating a public retraction, and damages totalling N100m for reputational harm and loss of goodwill."

Counsel to Abdulafeez hailed the ruling as a landmark moment for intellectual property rights in Nigeria.

"This decision reaffirms the principle that creative works, even when used by public institutions, cannot be appropriated without lawful authorisation," lead counsel Kunle Gbade said.

The substantive hearing will now determine the merits of the infringement claim and the quantum of damages.