GEORGINA NAA AHINEY AMARTEY vs. MRS. WINIFRED IDDRISU [2009]DLSC2482

Date	2009-04-29
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. J4/26/2007
Citation No.	[2009]DLSC2482

DATE-BAH J.S.C (PRESIDING)

ANSAH J.S.C.

ADINYIRA J.S.C.

DOTSE J.S.C.

B. BONNIE J.S.C.

JAMES AHENKORAH FOR THE APPLICANT.

CHARLES TETTEY FOR THE RESPONDENT.

[2009]DLSC2482
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >GEORGINA NAA AHINEY AMARTEY<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>MRS. WINIFRED IDDRISU<o:p></o:p>[SUPREME
COURT]<o:p></o:p>CIVIL
APPEAL NO. J4/26/2007<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: 29TH APRIL, 2009.<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;JAMES AHENKORAH FOR THE APPLICANT.<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">

CHARLES
TETTEY FOR THE RESPONDENT.<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<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-BAH
J.S.C (PRESIDING), ANSAH J.S.C., ADINYIRA J.S.C., DOTSE J.S.C., B. BONNIE
J.S.C.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>J U D G M E N T<o:p></o:p>DOTSE, J.S.C:<o:p></o:p>This
is an appeal by the Defendant/Respondent /Appellant, hereinafter referred to as
the Defendant, against the judgment of the Court of Appeal dated November 26,
2006 wherein judgment was given in favour of the
Plaintiff/Appellant/Respondent, hereinafter referred to as the Plaintiff. The
Plaintiff instituted action in the High Court, Accra on May 26, 2000 against
the Defendant, claiming the following reliefs:-<o:p></o:p>1. A declaration of her title to a
piece of land situate at Tesano in Accra in the Greater Accra, Region of the
Republic of Ghana described as parcel No. 376 Block 1, section 050 as
delineated on Land Registry Map No. 004/050/88 in the Land Title Registry
Victoriaborg, Accra and edged with pink colour on plan No. 281/98 annexed to
Land Certificate No. GA 13477 issued by the land Title Registry on January 22,
1999.<o:p></o:p>2. &nbsp;Damages for trespass committed by the
defendant, her servants, workmen, agents and or privies on the said land.<o:p></o:p>3. An order of perpetual injunction
restraining the defendant, her servants, workmen, agents and or privies from
trespassing on the said land.<o:p></o:p>After
service of the writ of summons and statement of claim on the Defendant, she
entered appearance and filed her Defence personally.<o:p></o:p>Thereafter
she engaged the services of Counsel, James Ahenkora Esq. who subsequently filed
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT of Solicitor on her behalf and has remained her Solicitor
to date.<o:p></o:p>Learned
Counsel for the Plaintiff filed a reply to which Counsel for the Defendant
filed objections to the following effect:-<o:p></o:p>1. That the Plaintiff had used the
reply to plead new matters which the Defendant would ordinarily not have the
opportunity to react to because of the stage at which it had been introduced in
the reply, which is the last pleading before summons for Directions.<o:p></o:p>2. The Defendant argued that the
offending pleadings be removed from the Reply and instead form part of
amendment so that the Defendant can also reply to same by filing an amended
Defence.<o:p></o:p>The
objections raised by Counsel for Defendant therefore sought to introduce
amendments by the Plaintiff to enable the defendant also amend her Statement of
Defence. Reference pages 20 and 21 of the appeal record.<o:p></o:p>From
the appeal record, it is clear that both Counsel for the parties briefly argued
this case on the objections raised by learned Counsel for the Defendant.<o:p></o:p>Thereafter,
the learned trial Judge at the time Ofoe J as he then was, adjourned the suit
to the 9th day of November, 2000 for Ruling. See page 23 of the appeal record.<o:p></o:p>We
have perused the entire record of appeal spanning some 444 pages but there is
no record of any such Ruling. We have also requested for the original case
docket from the Registry of the Supreme Court for perusal. We have not been
able to get any assistance from that either, as there is a complete blank on
what happened on November 9, 2000 the date the Ruling was supposed to have been
given.<o:p></o:p>Despite
the absence of this Ruling in the appeal record, there is a process that had
been filed on December 18, 2000 by the Defendant titled, “FURTHER DEFENCE TO
REPLY AND COUNTER CLAIM” – Pages 30 – 32 of the appeal record.<o:p></o:p>A
study of the appeal record indicates that the Plaintiff changed her Counsel
shortly after the filing of the above process in rapid succession.<o:p></o:p>One
of the plaintiff’s Counsel filed an application to wholly discontinue the
Plaintiff’s suit. As a result, the court, this time presided over by Georgina
Kusi-Appouh J, as she then was, on June 29, 2001 granted the Plaintiffs
application in the following terms:-<o:p></o:p>“
The suit is wholly discontinued with liberty to apply, the injunction and
counterclaim should proceed, till then,&nbsp;
both parties, agents etc. are hereby restrained from dealing in anyway
(sic) the property the subject matter suit is adjourned to July 6, 2001.”<o:p></o:p>After
the discontinuance of the Plaintiffs suit, the case proceeded apace in rapid
succession as follows:-<o:p></o:p>1. The Defendants application for
inter</main>