A Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has dismissed a preliminary objection filed by social media personality Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), in a ₦1 billion defamation suit filed against him by renowned human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), and his son, music artiste Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz.
In her ruling, Justice Fimisola Azeez described the objection as lacking merit and consequently awarded ₦200,000 in costs against the defendant—₦100,000 each in favour of the two claimants. The judge further ordered VDM to immediately file his defence in both suits.
The case stems from a video published on September 24, 2024, on VDM’s Instagram page (@verydarkblackman), which the Falanas allege contained defamatory and damaging remarks against them. Each is seeking ₦500 million in damages, bringing the total claim to ₦1 billion.
While Femi Falana was represented in court by his legal team, Ernest Olawanle and Femi Akinyemi, his son, Falz, was present during the proceedings. VDM, however, was absent and represented by his counsel, Marvin Omorogbe.
In their filings, the Falanas are asking the court to declare the publication defamatory and to issue a perpetual injunction restraining VDM and his agents from making or sharing similar content. They are also seeking an order mandating a public apology across VDM’s social media platforms and in a national daily.
VDM had sought to have the suit dismissed on the grounds of jurisdiction, arguing that the alleged defamatory act occurred outside Lagos State. However, the claimants countered with a sworn affidavit and legal argument insisting the Lagos court has jurisdiction.
Justice Azeez ruled in favour of the claimants, dismissing the objection and setting the next hearing for July 8, 2025, to allow the defendant file his defence.
This decision follows an earlier development in April 2025 when Justice Mathias Dawodu of another Lagos High Court struck out a pre-emptive suit filed by the Falanas. Justice Dawodu ruled that the matter had become academic due to the ongoing substantive case before Justice Azeez, stating, “The matter can no longer stand because it has no legs, and therefore, sustaining the matter amounts to a waste of precious judicial time.”
With the dismissal of VDM’s latest objection, the defamation case is now set to proceed in full.
