QUAGRAINE vs. ADAMS [1980]DLCA1618

Date	1980-12-18
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1980]DLCA1618

JIAGGE JA

EDUSEI JA

MENSA BOISON J.A.

SACKEYFIO FOR THE APPELLANT.

M. ATADIKA (HAMMOND WITH HIM) FOR THE RESPONDENT.

[1980]DLCA1618
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >QUAGRAINE <o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; vs. <o:p></o:p>ADAMS<o:p></o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA] <o:p></o:p>[1980] GLR 599<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

DATE:
18 DECEMBER 1980<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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SACKEYFIO FOR THE APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:
<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

JIAGGE, EDUSEI AND MENSA BOISON JJ.A.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF MENSA BOISON J.A.<o:p></o:p>The point
for decision in this appeal is whether the respondent, who built a house
gratuitously on the appellant’s land, is entitled to recover the money spent on
the construction. It is only necessary to state briefly the facts found by the
trial Circuit Court, Cape Coast, to enable an appreciation of the issue posed.
Both the appellant (hereafter called the defendant) and the respondent
(hereafter called the plaintiff) are Fantis and belong to the same family at
Saltpond. The plaintiff who was orphaned at a very tender age, was adopted
(informally) by a relation, Aba Nyamoaba, the mother of the defendant.
Consequently, the plaintiff and the defendant grew up together under the same
parental nurture and care, and regard each other as a brother and sister. Some
time in 1969, the plaintiff, who had made good as a pharmacist at
Dormaa-Ahenkro visited home, and expressed to the defendant and other members
of the household, including Aba Nyamoaba, his desire to build a dwelling-house
at Saltpond for himself. At the meeting, during the household discussion, the
defendant offered to the plaintiff, a building plot she had previously acquired
for herself and promised that she would later convey the plot to him. But she
advised the plaintiff to start with the building in the meantime.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Build
indeed he did, and by 1970, the building was at roofing level. There is no
doubt that when the defendant offered the plot to the plaintiff it was
understood by all that the plaintiff was to’ [p.603] of [1981] GLR
599-612’build for himself, although the family expected to have some use and
enjoyment of it in the normal course of things. So when in 1970 the defendant
pressed upon the plaintiff to have the name on the building plan changed into some
other name, impliedly hers or some other female member of the family, the
plaintiff refused, for fear that if he acceded to the suggestion his own
children might be turned out of the house after his death.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>His
refusal eventually brought matters to a head. The defendant stopped the mason
and workmen engaged on the building from continuing further. The mason was
obliged to pack off to Dormaa Ahenkro to report to the plaintiff. At a meeting
afterwards at Saltpond, the defendant confirmed to the plaintiff that she had
stopped work on the house as she had decided to build for herself, with the
husband, on the self-same plot, and added that the plaintiff could submit an
account of his expenses so far to her for payment.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Protracted
petitions and solicitations, through elders of the family and other persons, in
an endeavour to get the defendant to rescind her decision having failed, the
plaintiff was obliged to resign himself to it and to give up the project. Four
years had passed in the meantime, when the plaintiff made a demand for ¢8,000
as his expenses for the ¢3,000 he had spent by 1970 when work ceased. The
plaintiff’s expenses were still unsatisfied when on 14 April 1977, he caused a
writ to issue against the defendant in the following terms:<o:p></o:p>“The
plaintiff claims from the defendant specific performance of an agreement to
transfer a plot of land to the plaintiff for building purposes or alternatively
for ¢3,000 damages for breach of the said agreement”.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The trial
court on 30 April 1979, was unable to sustain the plaintiff’s claim for
specific performance, on the ground that the agreement was unenforceable for
want of consideration. The court was, however, of the opinion that the
plaintiff was entitled to a “refund of reasonable sums expended for the benefit
of the defendant’. It accepted the claim for ¢3,000 as at 1969-70 and gave
“judgm</main>