[2015]DLCA4717 Login to Read Full Case <span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";color:#00B0F0">ERASMUS MARLAI COMMODORE AND MARGARETTE COMMODRE<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><span class="NoSpacingChar"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">(PLAINTIFFS / APPELLANTS)<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%; tab-stops:center 3.25in left 405.0pt"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";color:#00B0F0">ESMERALDA AYELE KUNTIN-NUAMAH<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%; tab-stops:194.25pt center 243.65pt"><span class="NoSpacingChar"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">(DEFENDANT / RESPONDENT)</span></i></span><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";color:#00B0F0"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;border:none; mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">CIVIL APPEAL NO.H1/54/2015</span></b><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma"> </span></b><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">DATE:</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""> <span class="NoSpacingChar">11<sup>TH </sup>JUNE, 2015</span></span><span class="NoSpacingChar"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Arial Unicode MS";mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">CORAM: </span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">M. OWUSU JA (PRESIDING), A. M. DORDZIE JA, L. L. MENSAH JA<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left:0in;mso-add-space:auto; text-align:justify"><b><u><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">A. M. DORDZIE JA:-<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left:0in;mso-add-space:auto; text-align:justify"><b><u><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">FACTS:-<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0in;text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The facts culminating in this appeal are that the plaintiffs, a couple lived in Dusseldorf, Germany, the greater part of their life. They jointly acquired a property described as Number 7 Mahogany Street, North Abeka-Lapaz. Sometime in the year 1993 they permitted the defendant, who is the 1<sup>st</sup> plaintiff’s daughter and a step daughter to the 2<sup>nd</sup> plaintiff to live in the house temporarily.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0in;text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""> She ended up living in the house for about 18 years. The plaintiffs who at the time of the trial were well advanced in age, (the 1<sup>st</sup> plaintiff was 86years old and the second plaintiff 75 years) decided to come back home finally and therefore needed the house. Their efforts to get the defendant out of the house proved futile. The defendant claimed she owns the house jointly with the 1<sup>st</sup> plaintiff.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0in;text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The plaintiffs had no choice but to institute an action against her in the Circuit Court Accra to get back possession of the house occupied by the defendant.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0in;text-align:justify"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The reliefs plaintiffs prayed for at the Circuit Court are:</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align:justify;text-indent:-.25in; mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua"">1.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">Ejectment of the defendant from House Number 7 Mahogany Street Abeka-Lapaz, Accra<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align:justify;text-indent:-.25in; mso-list:l1 level1 lfo1"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua"">2.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">Perpetual injunction restraining the defendant her agents, servants and children and assigns from interfering with the ownership and occupation of the House Number 7 Mahogany Street North Abeka-Lapaz, Accra.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0in;text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The plaintiff set out the facts supporting his claims in an amended statement of claim found at page 67 of the record of appeal as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-left:1.0in;mso-add-space:auto; text-align:justify;text-indent:-1.0in;mso-text-indent-alt:-.25in;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo2"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Book Antiqua";mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua""><span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span>i.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%; font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The plaintiffs are at all material time joint owners of House number 7 Mahogany Street Abeka-Lapaz.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left:1.0in;mso-add-space: auto;text-align:justify;text-indent:-1.0in;mso-text-indent-alt:-.25in; mso-list:l3 level1 lfo2"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-fareast-font-family: "Book Antiqua";mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua""><span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span>ii.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font