[2007]DLSC6750 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-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; color:#00B0F0">NANA OPOKU AKWAA II AND 4 OTHERS<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><i><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">(</span></i></b><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">PETITIONERS/RESPONDENTS/APPELLANTS/ APPLICANTS<b>)<o:p></o:p></b></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="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%; tab-stops:center 3.25in left 402.0pt"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";color:#00B0F0">RICHARD EBO ANNAN HAGAN AND ADWOA NYARKOA</span></b><i><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";color:#00B0F0"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt;text-align:center; line-height:115%;tab-stops:center 3.25in left 402.0pt"><i><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">(</span></i><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">RESPONDENTS/APPELLANTS /RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p></span></i></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"">[SUPREME COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;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-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;line-height:115%;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 MOTION NO. J8/43/2007</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%; font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""> <b> </b> DATE<b>: </b>21ST NOVEMBER, 2007<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: 115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">COUNSEL:</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">MR. JAMES AHENKORAH FOR APPLICANT <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="text-align:justify;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-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">MR. RICHARD AMAMOO FOR RESPONDENT.<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">CORAM: <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="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-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">ATUGUBA J.S.C.(PRESIDING), DR. DATE-BAH J.S.C., PROF. OCRAN J.S.C., ANSAH J.S.C., ANINAKWAH J.S.C.<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%"><b><span style="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="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%; border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in; mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">RULING<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">ATUGUBA, J.S.C. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""> The applicants were some of the petitioners in a chieftaincy case in the Central Region House of Chiefs. Their capacity to continue with the action was challenged unsuccessfully before that trial tribunal. However on appeal the National House of Chiefs allowed it by a 4-1 decision and dismissed the action. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The applicants then appealed to this court. However upon receipt by counsel of his clients, copy of the record of appeal, he, instead of filing a statement of their case rather raised certain objections to the state of the record in a letter, exhibit D, dated 29th March, 2004, which, ex facie, was copied to the Respondents or their Solicitors. In sum these complaints related to the absence of exhibit A, a letter of abdication; otherwise they related to a slight mix up in the paging and positioning of other exhibits. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">This letter was unheeded, for, on the 25th day of June 2007 the Registrar issued his certificate of the applicants' non compliance with r 15(1) of C.I. 16, the Rules of this Court; returnable on the 17th day of July 2007. The applicants would seem to have been revived from their litigation comma by this notice, for on the 13th day of July 2007 their counsel filed a search as to the fate of the record of appeal. This search is revealing. The very first question thereof runs thus: "(a) <u>Whether or not pursuant to the letter dated 29/3/04 by the Appellants' Solicitors requesting for the record of proceedings to be corrected as such corrections have been effected (see copy of letter attached)."</u> This search was also ignored. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">On the 17th day of July 2007 this court ordered the applicants to file a motion for rectification of the record (apparently holding that that was the appropriate procedure for seeking rectification of a court record). The pursuant motion was to be taken on the 26th day of July 2007. On the return day that motion was dismissed and the court also struck out the applicants' appeal. Hence the present application for Relistment and Extension of time to file their statement of case. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><i><u><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">Jurisdiction to Relist appeal struck out unddr[sic] R.15 (2) of C.I 16.<o:p></o:p></span></u></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The Respondents contend that this court lacks jurisdiction to relist an appeal that has been struck out for failure to file the appellant's statement of case as laid down in r. 15(1) of the Rules of this court. In their affidavit in opposition they contend thus: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">"3. That the supporting Affidavit of <i><u>the Applicants have failed to disclose under what principle of law or Rule of this Supreme Court the Applicants are seeking to invoke to support the reliefs they have applied for from this Court. <o:p></o:p></u></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">4. That under the Supreme Court Rules 1996 (C.I. 16), as amended by C.I. 24 an Application to Re-list as provided under Rule 26 of C.I. 16 relates only to Rule 24 of C.I.16 for Non-Appearance of the Appellant or Rule 25 of C.I. 16 for Non-Appearance of the Respondent. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">5. That both Appellants and Respondents appeared before Your Lordships on the 17th and 26th July 2007 respectively and therefore Rule 24 and 25 aforementioned are inapplicable and for that matter Rule 26 of C.I. 16 as amended by C.I. 24 cannot be invoked’. (e.s.) <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">This contention ignores the history of R. 15(2) of C.I. 16. Nothing turns on the old Supreme Court Rules, 1962 L.I. 218 since at that time the rule about filing an appellant's statement of case had not been introduced. A similar rule was introduced by way of a Practice Direction, in respect of applications for Review to the Full Bench of the Court of Appeal. See PRACTICE DIRECTION REVIEW BY THE FULL BENCH OF COURT OF APPEAL (1973)2 GLR 39. It is to be noted that even though that Practice Direction did not provide for relistment of an application that was struck out for failure to file a Statement of the applicant's case the Full Bench of the Court of Appeal granted that relief, see A/S Norway Cement Export Ltd. V. Addison (1974) 2 GLR 177 C.A. (Full Bench). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The present rule on filing an appellant's statement of case was introduced by r. 13 of the Supreme Court Rules, 1970 C