Adunni Ade wins ₦20m privacy lawsuit over false Dino Melaye dating report

Nollywood actress Adunni Ade has won a ₦20 million judgment in her privacy lawsuit against a media outlet that falsely linked her romantically to Senator Dino Melaye.

Delivering judgment, the Lagos High Court ruled in her favour in case number LD/17781MFHR/2024, finding that the publication violated her constitutional right to privacy and data protection.

The disputed article, published in January 2023 and titled “Six Popular Nigerian Actresses Who Have Been Accused of Dating Dino Melaye,” listed Adunni Ade among those allegedly involved with the former senator.

She argued that the publication was false, misleading, and damaging to her reputation, constituting an invasion of privacy under Section 37 of the Nigerian Constitution and the Nigeria Data Protection Act.

In defence, the media platform and its reporter claimed that the actress had voluntarily shared personal photos online and that her legal action was delayed.

However, Justice Ibironke Harrison dismissed those arguments, ruling that the unauthorized use of a person’s name or image does not require prior consent to amount to a violation.

The court held that the report placed Adunni Ade in a “false light” — an emerging tort in Nigerian law — and ordered the defendants to remove her name and image from the story while awarding ₦20 million in general damages.

Legal experts hailed the decision as a landmark precedent for privacy and defamation law in Nigeria, particularly for its recognition of “false light” claims.

In recent months, Adunni Ade has publicly condemned the spread of fabricated stories and pledged to pursue legal remedies against online defamation.