Court Strikes Out Euracare’s Bid to Stop Inquest into Adichie’s Son’s Death

The Lagos State High Court has struck out an application by Eurapharma Care Services Nigeria Limited, operators of Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital, seeking to stop the coroner’s inquest into the death of Nkanu Esege, the son of Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Justice Aishat Opesanwo delivered the ruling on Monday, rejecting the hospital’s arguments that the cremation of the child’s body deprived the coroner of jurisdiction and that the procedure for receiving evidence breached its right to a fair hearing.

The judge held that the inquest was required by law and that the absence of the deceased’s body did not, in itself, invalidate the proceedings.

Nkanu died on January 7, 2026, following medical procedures at Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital in Lagos. His death prompted an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his demise.

In its application, Euracare challenged the coroner’s authority to proceed without a body available for post-mortem examination. The hospital also objected to the decision to receive statements and evidence from medical personnel and other parties associated with the facilities where the child had been treated.

However, Justice Opesanwo said Section 15 of the Coroners System Law of Lagos State 2007 empowered the coroner to conduct an inquest where the statutory conditions were met.

She explained that the law did not require the deceased’s body to remain within the coroner’s district on the date of the inquiry, noting that jurisdiction depended on the circumstances surrounding the death rather than the body’s subsequent location.

The judge also rejected the argument that cremation would make the inquest speculative, describing the hospital’s concerns about the eventual outcome as premature because the inquiry had yet to commence formally.

Justice Opesanwo emphasised that a coroner’s inquest was a fact-finding exercise intended to establish who died, how the person died, when the death occurred and where it happened.

“It is not a trial; no one is on trial in a coroner’s court,” she said, explaining that the process was inquisitorial rather than adversarial and was not designed to apportion blame or punish any party.

On the hospital’s fair-hearing objection, the judge held that the coroner had the discretion to determine the sequence in which witness statements and evidence would be received. She said disagreement with that sequence did not automatically amount to a breach of fair hearing.

The court consequently upheld the preliminary objections raised by the respondents and struck out the substantive application.

The ruling clears the way for the coroner’s inquest to proceed. It does not determine the cause of Nkanu’s death or establish liability on the part of the hospital or any other party.</WritingBlock>