The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed February 4, 2026, for the hearing of an application by the Data Privacy Lawyers Association of Nigeria (DPLAN) seeking to halt the execution of a controversial settlement between Meta Platforms, Inc. and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC).
The application challenges a consent judgment delivered on November 3, 2025, by Justice J.K. Omotosho, which adopted an out-of-court agreement between Meta and the NDPC. The settlement effectively nullified a $32.8 million remedial fine earlier imposed on Meta for alleged violations of Nigeria’s data protection laws.
In its application, filed on December 16, 2025, the association alleges that the settlement was reached through collusion and a lack of transparency, accusing the parties of concealing material facts from the court and the public. DPLAN further argues that the NDPC acted beyond its statutory powers by compromising a remedial fine that, in its view, constitutes public revenue belonging to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The association also maintains that the settlement undermines the integrity of the judicial process. According to DPLAN, the agreement was concluded to sidestep a pending court determination that was likely to affirm the original sanctions imposed on Meta, thereby denying the public a clear judicial pronouncement on the alleged violations.
At the hearing scheduled for 9:00 a.m. on February 4, DPLAN’s lead counsel, Olumide Babalola, is expected to urge the court to grant several orders. These include a stay of execution to halt the enforcement and operation of the consent judgment, an order restraining the NDPC from waiving or compromising its enforcement powers under the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, and a directive preserving the legal and administrative status quo that existed before the settlement was reached.