MR DIVINE AHUMAH OCANSEY vs. MRS DOROTHY OCANSEY [2015]DLCA6525

Date	2015-04-16
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL: H1/53/2015
Citation No.	[2015]DLCA6525

GYAESAYOR (JA) PRESIDING

ACQUAYE (JA)

MARGARET WELBOURNE (JA)

MR. SENANU ASHIAGBOR FOR THE PETITIONER/RESPONDENT

MR. CHARLES BENTUM FOR THE RESPONDENT/APPELLANT

[2015]DLCA6525
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >MR DIVINE
AHUMAH OCANSEY<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>MRS DOROTHY
OCANSEY<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANT/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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APPEAL: H1/53/2015&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 APRIL 2015<o:p></o:p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
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RESPONDENT/APPELLANT <o:p></o:p>

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ACQUAYE (JA) AND MARGARET WELBOURNE (JA)<o:p></o:p>

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</div>JUSTICE
MARGARET WELBOURNE (JA) <o:p></o:p>This
is an appeal from the judgment of the Circuit Court, Accra, dated 29th
November, 2013. The petitioner would be known as petitioner and the respondent
as such in this appeal. <o:p></o:p>The
Grounds of Appeal are as follows: <o:p></o:p>a)
Having adverted[sic] his mind to the Supreme Court case of Gladys Mensah v
Stephen Mensah (2012) 46 GMJ 48 the learned judge erred by not following same
to share the Matrimonial home equitable[sic] between the parties but rather
chose the option of ordering the payment of a sum of money to enable the respondent
rent an alternative accommodation. <o:p></o:p>b)
The learned judge erred when he granted custody of the children of the marriage
age 17, 14 and 11 years to the petitioner in complete disregard of the welfare
principle of the child despite adverting[sic] his mind to same. <o:p></o:p>c)
The learned judge failed to observe that the vehicle acquired during the
subsistence of the marriage entitles the respondent to a half share of its
value and by denying the respondent same, it has occasioned for her miscarriage
of justice. <o:p></o:p>Rule
8(1) of the Court of Appeal Rules, C. I. 19 stipulates that: “an appeal to the court shall be by way of
rehearing and shall be brought by a notice of appeal”. It is therefore
incumbent upon the court to review the entire evidence before us to
determine whether there are pieces of evidence that will entitle us to
interfere with the findings made by the learned trial judge or to affirm his
findings. <o:p></o:p>This
principle has been reiterated in several cases including the following: African Automobile Limited v Tema Oil
Refinery [2011] 2 SCGLR 907 and Amoah v Lokko &amp; Alfred Quartey (substituted
by) Gloria Quartey [2011]1 SCGLR 705. <o:p></o:p>The
evidence on record discloses that the Petitioner works with the Ghana
Immigration Service whilst the Respondent is a Fashion Designer. It is not in
dispute that the parties had their marriage solemnised in 1995 at the St
Anthony Catholic Church, Nungua. Indeed they lived as man and wife for
seventeen years and would have continued to do so but for the petitioner's
decision to sever the bond between the parties. After the marriage, they lived
with the petitioner's family whilst they constructed their matrimonial home
situate at Kasoa. <o:p></o:p>At
page 18 of the record, this scenario was captured thus: "I was in Aflao when
my wife was in my family house. I have a piece of land at Kosoa[sic]. I managed
to put up a boys quarters but she refused to move in. I decided to construct a
separate bathroom and toilet but the respondent decided to go and look for
another accommodation. She gave birth eventually. We went to Kasoa." <o:p></o:p>&nbsp;From the above piece of evidence, it can be
inferred reliably that at the commencement of the marriage, the parties set up
their matrimonial home in the petitioner’s family house since at that time only
a piece of land then existed at Kasoa. Thus the house at Kasoa was built during
the subsistence of the marriage and became their matrimonial home. <o:p></o:p>The
record also discloses that the respondent assisted the petitioner to build a
house on his father's property situate at Teshie-Nungua estates. (See paragraph
11 of the Answer to the Petition at page 8 of the record), which was not
challenged by the petiti</main>