The Coroner’s Court, located at the Igbosere Magistrate Court on Lagos Island, has postponed further proceedings in the inquest concerning the death of 21-month-old Master Nkanu Adichie-Esege, son of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Dr. Ivara Esege.

The decision follows a High Court order that stays the proceedings until a judicial review application is resolved.

On Wednesday, Coroner Magistrate Atinuke Adetunji scheduled October 8, 2026, for the next mention of the case after being notified that the Lagos State High Court had issued an order to suspend the inquest.

The inquest, which was set to begin hearings, was interrupted after Professor Taiwo Osipitan, SAN, representing Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital, informed the court that the hospital had secured permission from the High Court to contest the jurisdiction of the Coroner’s Court in conducting the inquiry.

Osipitan explained to the court that a significant issue raised in the judicial review proceedings is whether the Coroner’s Court rightfully assumed jurisdiction to investigate the child’s death, given that the remains had reportedly been cremated prior to the commencement of the inquest.

He further stated that the main application also questions whether a coroner is legally permitted to investigate the cause of death when the body is no longer available for examination.

“There is also a consequential order that pending the determination of our substantive suit, this Coroner’s Court be stayed,” Osipitan informed the court.

In response to the situation, Lagos Governor Sanwo-Olu has ordered an investigation into the death of Chimamanda Adichie’s son.

“We have a return date of June 8, 2026. We have served all parties, and our request is that this court should postpone the proceedings until we return, in compliance with the order,” he added.

However, Adebola Araba, counsel from the Lagos State Attorney-General’s Office, informed the court that he had not personally reviewed the enrolled order.

In response, Osipitan asserted that the Attorney-General’s office had been properly served.

“We submitted our filing on Monday and served the Attorney-General’s office on Wednesday. While he may not have personally received it, the office has indeed been served,” he stated.

On behalf of the family of the deceased, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, notified the court that four witness statements under oath had already been filed and distributed to all involved parties.

He indicated that the proposed witnesses consist of the child’s father, Dr. Ivara Esege; Dr. Chinwe Ego from Arizona, United States; another medical expert from Minnesota, United States; and Prof. Adekola from the Lagos University Teaching Hospital.

Pinheiro noted that although the family would comply with the High Court’s stay order, they remained dedicated to pursuing the inquest.

“He who has nothing to conceal should not fear an open inquest. An innocent individual has nothing to dread. It is the darkness that fears the light,” he remarked.

The senior advocate requested that the Coroner’s Court postpone the matter until after the court vacation instead of indefinitely.

Counsel for Atlantis Paediatric Hospital, Efe Ize-Iyamu, informed the court that his client, who is listed as the sixth respondent in the judicial review proceedings, had been served with both the originating motion and the enrolled order.

He aligned himself with the arguments presented by Pinheiro, asserting that although the parties were obligated to adhere to the High Court’s order, Atlantis Paediatric Hospital had already submitted its response to the application.

Osipitan maintained that the primary concern remained the legal ramifications of the purported cremation of the child’s remains prior to the activation of the Coroner’s Court’s jurisdiction.

“Regardless of whether one is fearful or fearless, there was intentional destruction,” he contended.

He stated, “You cannot assume jurisdiction. What they did is subject to a penalty of 15 years’ imprisonment. The question is whether an individual who has committed an offense under the law can advocate for an inquest.”

Pinheiro, on the other hand, disagreed, arguing that the submissions constituted an affront to the stipulations of the Coroner’s Law.

“We will provide examples where inquests have been carried out even in the absence of the body,” he informed the court.

After considering the counsel’s arguments, Magistrate Adetunji postponed the matter until October 8, 2026.

The development followed an order issued on May 26, 2026, by Justice Aishat Opesanwo of the Lagos State High Court, Osborne Foreshore, which granted Eurapharma Care Services Nigeria Limited permission to contest the proceedings of the Coroner’s Court and mandated that the grant of leave should function as a stay of the inquest until the substantive suit is resolved.

The parties involved in the judicial review proceedings include the Coroner, Mrs. A.A. Adetunji; the Chief Coroner of Lagos State; the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of Lagos State; Dr. Ivara Esege; Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie; and Atlantis Paediatric Hospital Limited.

The hospital is contesting the decisions made by the Coroner’s Court on January 21, February 25, and April 14, 2026, concerning the ongoing investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Master Nkanu Adichie-Esege, who passed away on January 7, 2026, at Euracare Multi-Specialist Hospital in Victoria Island, Lagos.

Among other requests, the hospital is pursuing orders of certiorari and prohibition to annul and prevent the Coroner’s Court from proceeding with the inquest.

It contended that the body of the deceased had been cremated prior to the activation of the Coroner’s Court’s jurisdiction, rendering it unavailable for any post-mortem examination.

The applicant also contested the Coroner’s Court’s ruling that required it to present its defense and call witnesses first during the inquest, despite the allegations of gross negligence and medical misconduct made against it by the family of the deceased.

In granting leave, Opesanwo determined that the application was neither frivolous nor vexatious and raised matters warranting judicial review.

“The Court is satisfied that the Applicant has met the threshold for the grant of leave. The application is, after all, not frivolous or vexatious. It raises issues of procedure and fairness that ought to be ventilated at the substantive stage,” the judge stated.

As a result, the court granted leave to pursue judicial review through orders of certiorari and prohibition aimed at quashing the decisions and orders of the Coroner’s Court in Suit No. MCL/1/CONA/2026.

The judge additionally mandated, in accordance with Order 44 Rule 3(6)(a) of the High Court of Lagos State (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019, that the granting of leave shall function as a stay on all further proceedings in the coroner’s inquest until the hearing and resolution of the substantive application.

Opesanwo instructed Eurapharma Care Services Nigeria Limited to submit its substantive documents within 14 days and to serve all respondents appropriately.

The adjournment is coming months after the proceedings in the Coroner’s Court were temporarily halted on May 5, 2026, due to an intervention by the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro, SAN, who sought consultations among all parties involved in the case.

At that time, representatives from the Attorney-General’s office informed the court that a meeting had been arranged between the Attorney-General and all legal counsel engaged in the matter.