BARCLAYS BANK (GH) LTD vs. HELI ENTERPRISES (KOFI KROM CO LTD, THIRD PARTY)

The plaintiff bank sued the defendant, Heli Enterprises, to recover a liquidated sum of US$12,855.44 plus interest after a cheque for US$15,717 paid by the defendant into its account was dishonoured. The bank had initially credited the defendant’s account and the defendant transferred the funds to overseas suppliers before the bank reversed the credit upon dishonour. The defendant admitted benefiting from the proceeds of the dishonoured cheque, made part-payments, and judgment was entered for the bank. The defendant then issued a third-party notice against Kofi Krom Co Ltd, alleging that the dishonoured cheque had been issued by that company in satisfaction of an earlier debt owed to the defendant and seeking indemnity or, alternatively, the amount of the cheque with interest. Portion of judgment: “The defendant subsequently issued a third party notice against Kofi Krom Trading Co Ltd calling on it to indemnify the defendant in respect of the judgment debt; in the alternative, the defendant claims against the third party $15,717 plus interest...”

JUDGEMENT Dordzie J. The plaintiff herein instituted this action against the defendant, Heli Enterprises, for the recovery of a liquidated sum of US$12,855.44 plus interest at the prevailing lending bank rate from 10 October 2002 till the date of final payment. The circumstances under which the debt arose was given by the plaintiff as follows: The defendant on 7 August 2002 paid into its account a cheque with the face value of US$15,717. The plaintiff-bank credited the defendant’s account with the value of this cheque and on 15 August the defendant transferred the said amount to its overseas suppliers. The plaintiff later reversed the entry of the value of the cheque, ie $15,717 on the defendant’s account when they discovered that the said cheque was dishonoured. The defendant admitted it benefited from the dishonoured cheque and agreed to pay the debt; it made part-payments, the balance due the plaintiff is what is indorsed on this writ. The defendant submitted to judgmen...