THE REPUBLIC vs. THE DISTRICT COURT, SHAMA EX PARTE: EBUSUAPANYIN KWESI KWABO AND 2 OTHERS AND EBUSUAPANYIN ATTA CHECK & CHARLES KWEKU YALLEY [2014]DLCA4549

THE REPUBLIC vs. THE DISTRICT COURT, SHAMA EX PARTE: EBUSUAPANYIN KWESI KWABO AN... [2014]DLCA4549

Date	2014-06-12
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. HI/09/2014
Citation No.	[2014]DLCA4549

C. J. HONYENUGA J.A. (PRESIDING)

D. D. ADJEI J.A.

B. F. ACKAH-YENSU (MS) J.A.

NANA KONDUAH FOR THE APPELLANTS

MR. SAMUEL AGBOTTAH FOR THE REPONDENTS

[2014]DLCA4549
																																						<div class="restriction-wrapper">
														<div class="container-lg">
															<div class="row">
																<div class="col-md-12 restricted-content">
																	<div class="restricted-content-img-wrapper">
																		<div class="lock-icon bounce-7">
																			<img class=""
																				src="https://www.dennislawgh.com/dl-assets/dl-images/lock-content.png"
																				alt="Subscription based content">
																		</div>
																	</div>
																	 
																		<a href="https://www.dennislawgh.com/login"
																		class="btn btn-primary btn-lg"
																		style="font-family: 'open sans'; text-transform: capitalize; border-radius: 8px"> 
																		Login to Read Full Case </a>
																	 
																	
																</div>
															</div>
														</div>
													</div>
													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>THE DISTRICT COURT, SHAMA<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>EX PARTE: EBUSUAPANYIN KWESI KWABO
AND 2 OTHERS (APPLICANTS/APPELLANTS) AND EBUSUAPANYIN ATTA
CHECK &amp; CHARLES KWEKU YALLEY (INTERESTED
PARTIES/RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p>[COURT
OF APPEAL, CAPE COAST]<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">

CIVIL
APPEAL NO.&nbsp; HI/09/2014&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;12TH
JUNE, 2014<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>NANA
KONDUAH FOR THE APPELLANTS<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">

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p>C. J. HONYENUGA
J.A. (PRESIDING), D. D. ADJEI J.A., B. F. ACKAH-YENSU (MS) J.A.<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border-top:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
border-left:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;border-right:none;
padding:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in">

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:
115%;border:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;mso-border-bottom-alt:
solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>HONYENUGA, J.A.<o:p></o:p>This is
an appeal against the Ruling of the High Court, Sekondi dated the 19th
day of June, 2013.&nbsp; The said Court
dismissed the application for judicial review by way of certiorari.<o:p></o:p>The facts
of this appeal are that the applicants/appellants as plaintiffs issued a writ
of summons against the Interested parties/respondents as the defendants
claiming title to a piece or parcel of land, general damages for trespass and
perpetual injunction at the District Court, Shama.&nbsp; The interested parties/respondents also file
a counterclaim.&nbsp; Both parties also filed
accompanying statement of claim and statement of defence respectively, as
ordered by the court.&nbsp; The District Court
heard the matter to its logical conclusion and delivered a reasoned judgment
against the applicants/appellants on the 18th day of March 2012 and
in favour of the interested parties/respondents.&nbsp; The applicants/appellants filed an appeal out
of time against the judgment of the district court but same was dismissed.&nbsp; The applicants/appellants later filed an
application for extension of time to file an application for judicial review by
way of certiorari which was granted by the High Court.&nbsp; The applicants/appellants subsequently filed
the substantive motion for judicial review to apply for certiorari to quash the
judgment of the District Court, Shama.&nbsp;
On the 19th day of June 2013, the learned High Court Judge
dismissed the application as misconceived and an abuse of the process.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Being
aggrieved by the decision of the High Court, Sekondi, the applicants/appellants
filed the instant appeal based on the following grounds:-<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; “(a)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That the judgment is against the weight of
evidence.<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;(b)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That High Court holding that since the District Court, Shama
had jurisdiction to hear the matter that went before it if there was any error
made in the District Court, Shama’s judgment dated 1st March 2012,
that error cannot be quashed by way of certiorari, the High Court failed to take
into consideration the fact that merely having jurisdiction to hear a matter is
not sufficient ground to refuse an application for certiorari just as in
situations where a Court might have jurisdiction to hear a matter but if there
is breach of natural justice any decision made by Court can be quashed by way
of certiorari.<o:p></o:p>(c)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That, the High Court
Sekondi erred in law when it failed the quash the judgment of the District
Court, Shama.<o:p></o:p>(d)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Additional grounds will be
filed upon the receipt of the record of proceedings”.<o:p></o:p>No
further grounds of appeal were filed.&nbsp;
They are therefore considered as abandoned.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>In this
appeal, the applicants/appellants would be referred to as the appellants and
the Interested parties/respondents as the respondents.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Learned
Counsel for the appellants argued all the grounds of appeal together.&nbsp; He referred to Tuakwa v Bosom [2001-2002] SCGLR 61; 65 and Abbey &amp; Others v Antwi [2010] SCGLR 17; 20 and stated that from
these decisions, an appellant who complains that the judgment is against the
weight of evidence must show:-<o:p></o:p>