THRESHOLD COMPANY LIMITED vs. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL [2016]DLCA4693

Date	2016-04-28
Suit No.	CIVIL SUIT: NO: H1/163/2014
Citation No.	[2016]DLCA4693

M. OWUSU (J.A.) – PRESIDING

KORBIEH (J.A.)

DZAMEFE (J.A.)

NANA ABUA BRENYA OTCHERE FOR DEFENDANT/APPELLANT

MR. GORDON AKPADIA FOR THE PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT

[2016]DLCA4693
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THRESHOLD COMPANY LIMITED<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFFS/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>THE ATTORNEY GENERAL<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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CIVIL SUIT: NO:&nbsp; H1/163/2014&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; 28TH
APRIL, 2016<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>NANA ABUA BRENYA OTCHERE FOR DEFENDANT/APPELLANT <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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MR. GORDON AKPADIA FOR THE PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT &nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p>M.
OWUSU (J.A.) – PRESIDING, KORBIEH (J.A.), DZAMEFE (J.A.)<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border-top:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
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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>MARIAMA OWUSU, J.A.:<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>On the 12th
March, 2013, the High Court, Accra, granted the plaintiff’s application for
summary judgment.&nbsp; In his ruling, the
trial Judge held among other things that:<o:p></o:p>“I have studied the entire pleadings
filed in the action together with the attachments.&nbsp; I have also considered submissions by counsel
for the plaintiff and I have come to the conclusion that the statement of
defence filed by the defendant on 8-3-2013 discloses no defence to the action
at all, neither does it raise any triable issues.&nbsp; The defendant raises the fact that the action
is statute barred but looking at the attachments, I think that the alleged
defence is a sham.&nbsp; I therefore grant the
plaintiff’s application and enter summary judgment for the plaintiff for the
reliefs endorsed on the writ of summons as follows:<o:p></o:p>i.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Interest
on the contract value from the date of supply in 1997 on a reducing balance on
a simple yearly average interest rate assessed at GH¢7,937,484,645.51 old Ghana
cedis or new Ghana cedis ¢793,748.50 to July, 2003.<o:p></o:p>ii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Interest
at the prevailing commercial bank rate on reliefs (27.1) and (27.2) from July,
2003 to date of final payment.”<o:p></o:p>Dissatisfied with the
decision of the High Court, the defendant appealed to the Court of Appeal on
the following grounds:<o:p></o:p>i.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The
learned trial Judge erred when he ruled that the defendant’s defence discloses
no defence to the action.<o:p></o:p>ii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The
learned trial Judge erred when he concluded that the attachments filed by the
plaintiff was enough for him to draw the conclusion that the defendants did not
have a defence.<o:p></o:p>iii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The
learned trial Judge erred when he failed to rule that the defence raised
triable issues which could only be settled by a trial.<o:p></o:p>