LA PALM BEACH LIMITED vs. DOREEN M. THOMAS [2010]DLHC7854

Date	2010-02-16
Suit No.	BL 129/03
Citation No.	[2010]DLHC7854

HIS LORDSHIP E. K. AYEBI SITTING AS AN ADDITIONAL HIGH COURT JUDGE

[2010]DLHC7854
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >LA PALM BEACH LIMITED<o:p></o:p><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;
color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p>DOREEN M. THOMAS<o:p></o:p>[HIGH COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

BL
129/03&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; &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; DATE:
16TH FEBRUARY, 2010<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:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

HIS
LORDSHIP E. K. AYEBI, SITTING AS AN ADDITIONAL HIGH COURT JUDGE<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">JUDGMENT <o:p></o:p>

</div>AYEBI J.A.<o:p></o:p>The plaintiff is engaged in the hotel
business.&nbsp; Defendant trading under the
name and style of EX-EL SALON is in the business of hairdressing.&nbsp; In July 2001, plaintiff leased a space in its
shopping mall within the hotel to defendant to carry on her business.&nbsp; The duration of the lease was for two (2)
years at an annual rent of the cedi equivalent of $12,296.00.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Defendant duly took possession of the shop and
carried out her business but reneged on the covenant to pay rent despite
repeated demands.&nbsp; As at the end of the
lease, defendant was in arrears of rent in the sum of GH¢17,411.02
(¢174,110,189.00).&nbsp; In addition to asking
for a reduction in the rent, defendant requested to pay the arrears by
installments.&nbsp; Plaintiff rejected both
proposals.&nbsp; Without paying the rent
owing, defendant vacated the shop.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Consequently, plaintiff sued the defendant for:<o:p></o:p>a.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Payment
of the sum of GH¢17,411.02 being rent arrears from October 2001 to September 2003.<o:p></o:p>b.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Mesne
profits<o:p></o:p>Although defendant indeed failed to pay the rent as
agreed in the lease, she denied any breach.&nbsp;
According to her, prior to the execution of the lease, the plaintiff
represented and warranted that it will establish a state of the art and western
European style shopping mall containing various facilities such as shops,
boutiques, casinos, exclusive cosmetics, perfumes and jewellery shops and
restaurants.&nbsp; The said mall according to
the defendant was to generate foot traffic which would constitute the core
customer base for the salon.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Defendant asserts that the said representations and
warranties induced her to enter into the lease and made capital and recurrent
expenditures in establishing the salon.&nbsp;
But after setting up the salon according to the specifications dictated
by the plaintiff, the plaintiff indefinitely suspended the shopping mall
project.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>It is the case of the defendant that by the failure
of the plaintiff to establish the shopping mall, the plaintiff has renegade on
its representations and warranties.&nbsp; As
such she could not make the expected money to pay the rent.&nbsp; Defendant thus accused the plaintiff of failure
to give consideration for the lease agreement.&nbsp;
She therefore counter-claimed for:<o:p></o:p>a.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The
lease agreement between the defendant and plaintiff be set aside for failure of
consideration or in the alternative be declared null and void.<o:p></o:p>b.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The
return of the sum of GH¢1,000.00 being rent received.<o:p></o:p><!--[if </main>