[1982]DLSC2069 • December 20, 1982 • Supreme Court •
HAMMOND vs. ODOI AND ANOTHER
The appellant (plaintiff) claimed title to a parcel of land at Kotobabi, Greater Accra, originally granted by the Nii We family of Ashanti Blohum quarter in 1949. The defendants claimed title based on a deed of gift from the same family in 1956, later confirmed by the Osu stool. The land was part of Osu stool rural lands, and a 1960 Supreme Court decision (Akwei v. Awuletey) held that the Osu Mantse and his elders are the proper authorities to grant such lands. The plaintiff's grant was customary and unregistered; the defendants' grant was confirmed and registered. The plaintiff sued for declaration of title, damages for trespass, and injunction after defendants trespassed and commenced building on part of the land.
read moreJUDGMENT OF ARCHER J.S.C. This appeal has been brought with leave granted by the Court of Appeal in July 1972. In granting leave, the Court of Appeal (see Hammond v. Odoi [1972] 2 G.L.R. 459, C.A.) took the view that the substantial questions of law raised were so involved with other issues of fact and mixed law and fact that the leave granted should apply to all the three grounds to enable the Supreme Court to do full justice to the case. With great deference to the court below, I wish to say that I do not find any complexities in this case, for it seems to me that this case should be disposed of by applying strictly, the conveyancing laws of this country and no more and I intend to adopt that attitude. In March 1958, the Land Court at Accra found that: (a) The Maamobi-Kotobabi-Dzorwulu lands are part of the Osu village or rural lands under the care and control of the head of the Ashanti Blohum quarter, namely the Mankralo. (b) The Mankralo of Osu, head of the Ashanti Blohum qu...