The Supreme Court has fixed April 22 for a hearing in the appeal filed by the David Mark-led executives of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) over the leadership tussle in the party.

A five-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Mohammed Garba, chose the date after granting an accelerated hearing.

The apex court also ordered counsel to the former Senate president, Jibril Okutepa, to file the appellant’s brief and serve it on Wednesday.

It ordered the respondents to each file and serve on the appellant a respondent’s brief within three days of being served with the appellant’s brief.

Okutepa, according to the court, is to file a reply brief, if need be, within one day of being served with the respondents’ briefs.

Mark’s appeal is against the March 12 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which dismissed his appeal against the September 4, 2025, ruling by Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja, refusing to grant some injunctive reliefs contained in an ex parte application filed by a chieftain of the party, Nafiu Bala Gombe.

The Supreme Court decision is expected to end the months-long leadership crisis.

Top politicians like ex-vice president Atiku Abubakar; former presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi; ex-Kaduna governor, Nasir El-Rufai; a former governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola; ex-Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, and a former national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mark Odigie-Oyegun, and others adopted and joined the opposition party as the coalition platform for the 2027 elections. 

David Mark took over the chairmanship of the party in July 2025 after the resignation of the former executives led by Ralph Nwosu. 

But a former national vice chairman of the party, Nafiu Bala, challenged the decision, filing a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja, where he sought recognition as the ADC national chairman. 

INEC was joined as the fourth defendant in the suit. 

As the case was pending, the Federal High Court mandated all parties to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the substantive suit. 

Later on, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal by the Mark-led executives and asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to maintain the status quo as ordered earlier by the Federal High Court. 

In the wake of the decision, INEC said it won’t recognise any leadership group in the party. It removed Mark’s and Aregbesola’s names as chairman and secretary, respectively, of the ADC, on its website. 

The Mark-led group thereafter approached the court to challenge the Court of Appeal’s ruling.