MRS. EVELYN FRIMPOMAA OWUSU vs. JAMES OWUSU [2011]DLCA6532

Date	2011-03-17
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. HI/144/2010
Citation No.	[2011]DLCA6532

H. ABBAN (MRS) J.A. (PRESIDING)

GYAESAYOR J.A.

ADUAMA OSEI J.A.

MR. KENNETH KUDORDJIE FOR RESPONDENT/APPELLANT

MR. ANDY APPIAH-KUBI FOR PETITIONER/RESPONDENT

[2011]DLCA6532
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >MRS. EVELYN
FRIMPOMAA OWUSU<o:p></o:p>(PETITIONER/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>JAMES OWUSU<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
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padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">CIVIL
APPEAL NO. HI/144/2010&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: 17TH
MARCH, 2011<o:p></o:p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
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padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">MR. ANDY APPIAH-KUBI FOR
PETITIONER/RESPONDENT <o:p></o:p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%;mso-outline-level:1;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">H. ABBAN (MRS) J.A.
(PRESIDING), GYAESAYOR J.A. AND ADUAMA OSEI J.A.<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;
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
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</div>ADUAMA
OSEI J.A. <o:p></o:p>The
Petitioner/Respondent is a businesswoman and a trader at Makola in Accra, and
the Respondent/Appellant is also a businessman and the Managing Director of
Capital Court Hotel at Tesano in Accra. Before their marriage under the
Marriage Ordinance on 12th September, 1992, they had been married under
customary law and had been living in England. They however co-habited at Dome
in Accra and thereafter at West Legon, also in Accra after their Ordinance
marriage. <o:p></o:p>The
children of the marriage are Sarah, Natalie, Shennel and Courtney, who were
aged 20, 18, 16 and 14 years respectively at the commencement of proceedings in
the High Court in Accra, for the dissolution of the marriage. The marriage was
dissolved by an order of the High Court on 10th November 2006, and
subsequently, in a judgment dated the 14th of April, 2008, the trial Court made
orders as to ancillary reliefs. In the judgment, the High Court awarded the
matrimonial home known as No.4, Royal Palm Avenue, West Legon in Accra, and
another property at Kwame Nkrumah Avenue also in Accra, to the
Petitioner/Respondent and her 4 children. The Court also held the
Petitioner/Respondent to be the owner of No. 7 Ashbury House in London, and
further declared the Petitioner/Respondent to be the sole proprietress of Anite
Enterprise at Okaishie in Accra. The High Court however directed that the
profit that had accrued from the operation of Anite Enterprise be valued and
20% thereof paid to the Respondent/Appellant. Also, while acknowledging Capital
Court Hotel at Tesano in Accra as jointly owned by the Petitioner/Respondent
and the Respondent/Appellant, the trial Court awarded the same to the
Respondent/Appellant. Custody of the 2 minors among the children of the
marriage was granted to the Petitioner/Respondent. <o:p></o:p>In
the Petition which commenced the divorce proceedings, the
Petitioner/Respondent, in addition to praying for the dissolution of the
marriage and for custody of the children of the marriage, had asserted an
interest in Capital Court Hotel and had prayed for an order for the
Respondent/Appellant to buy out her interest in the Hotel, after the same had
been valued. The Respondent/Appellant had also in his Answer and Cross-Petition
asserted an interest in the business operated by the Petitioner/Respondent at Okaishie
and had prayed for an order for the Petitioner/Respondent to buy him out of the
said business after the same had been valued. This was in addition to his
prayer for custody of the children of the marriage. After evaluating the
evidence, the trial Court resolved the opposing claims of the parties by making
the orders contained in its judgment of 14th April, 2008 and not satisfied with
the said judgment and the ancillary orders made therein, the
Respondent/Appellant has appealed to this Court against the same. What follows
is this Court’s judgment in the appeal. <o:p></o:p>In
this judgment, the Petitioner/Respondent is referred to as “the Respondent”,
while the Respondent/Appellant is referred to as “the Appellant”. The judgment
appealed against is at page 104 to page 110 of the Record of Appeal, and the
Notice of Appeal is at pages 111 and 112 of the Record. In the Notice of
Appeal, the Appellant urges this Court to set aside the judgment of the trial
Court and share the properties equally between the parties. He sets out the
following 7 grounds as the bases for the reliefs he seeks in this Court: <o:p></o:p>(i)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The judgment is against the weight of
evidence. <o:p></o:p>(i</main>