IN THE GAMBIA COURT OF APPEAL

stage of the trial, is not a trifling legal issue, but one that is paramount to the
case of a party at the trial court e.g. the question of wrongful admission or
rejection of evidence, in that case, the litigant must weight the paramouncy of
the evidence wrongfully admitted or rejected, to his case, and that should be the
criteria for lodging an appeal at that stage. I say so because, it is
commonsensical in my views, that if evidence rejected at the trial nisi prius
forms the very crux of a party’s case at the trial stage, as is the position in this
case, prudence demands that the litigant either pursues an appeal at that stage
or in the very least, timeously files an appeal within the time statutorily
prescribed for filing same, whilst he awaits the conclusion of the substantive suit.
This is to ensure that his right of appeal is not extinguished, regard being had to
the length of time it takes for cases to be determined across jurisdictions. My
views, ante, are in accord with the current judicial position on this subject
matter, as demonstrated by case law across jurisdiction, which is, that, where
subsidiary issue decided in the course of a trial is not a trifling legal issue, but is
essential and crucial to the just determination of the substantive issue between
the parties, and is also the factor upon which the determination of other issues
at the trial court is predicated, a determination of such a subsidiary issue by an
appellate court cannot abate the determination of the substantive issue at the
trial court. The foregoing is the purport of the decision in Saraki V Kotoye
referred to by both sides to this contest. Their Justices of the Supreme Court of
Nigeria in pages 165-166 of that case, made very graphic and illuminating
statements on the question of wrongful admission or exclusion of essential
evidence and the exercise of a right of appeal thereon. I find a need to
reproduce these statements as they appear on page 8 of the Respondents brief.
“In every case, there are principal and subsidiary issues in respect of which
parties are before the court. Where a subsidiary issue is essential or critical to
the just determination of the principal issue, the controversy in respect of which
the parties are before the court, as for example where there is an allegation of
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