ERNEST & YOUNG ADVISORY SERVICES LTD. vs. GRID PETROLEUM (GH) LTD. [2017]DLHC9087

Date	2017-12-04
Suit No.	SUIT NO. CM/TOCC/0014/2016
Citation No.	[2017]DLHC9087

HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE JENNIFER ABENA DADZIE

WILFRED BABA AVIO ESQ. OF PWAMANG & ASSOCIATES ACCRA COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFF

MICHELLE AKUFFO ESQ. AKUFO-ADDO PREMPEH & CO. ACCRA COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT

[2017]DLHC9087
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >ERNEST
&amp; YOUNG ADVISORY SERVICES LTD.<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>GRID PETROLEUM (GH) LTD.<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANT)<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;
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:normal;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">SUIT NO.
CM/TOCC/0014/2016&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &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: 4TH DECEMBER,
2017<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>WILFRED BABA AVIO,
ESQ., OF PWAMANG &amp; ASSOCIATES, ACCRA, COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFF<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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MICHELLE AKUFFO, ESQ., AKUFO-ADDO, PREMPEH &amp; CO.,
ACCRA, COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p>HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE JENNIFER ABENA DADZIE<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:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:normal;border:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The Plaintiff is a Company registered under the
laws of the Republic of Ghana and brings this action per its lawful attorney,
Johnson Complex (GH) Ltd., while the Defendant is also a company registered
under the laws of Ghana.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>On March 3, 2016, the
Plaintiff sued the Defendant for the following reliefs endorsed on its Writ of
Summons and Statement of Claim:<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; “(a)&nbsp; An Amount of GH¢108,881.92 being the value of
tax services rendered to Defendant.<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-top:0cm;margin-right:36.0pt;
margin-bottom:0cm;margin-left:54.0pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;
text-align:justify;text-indent:-18.0pt;line-height:150%;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1;
tab-stops:36.0pt">(b)&nbsp;&nbsp;
Interest
on the said at the prevailing lending bank rate from 9/6/2015 till date of
final payment. <o:p></o:p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-top:0cm;margin-right:36.0pt;
margin-bottom:8.0pt;margin-left:54.0pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:justify;
text-indent:-18.0pt;line-height:150%;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1;tab-stops:36.0pt">(c)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Cost, including lawyer’s fees.”<o:p></o:p>The material facts which gave rise to the
matter before me are as follows.&nbsp; The
Plaintiff claims that in the years 2014 and 2015 and at the request of the
Defendant, it rendered Tax Compliance Services to the Defendant in respect of
2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 years of assessment.&nbsp;
In respect of this work, the Plaintiff states that it submitted two (2)
invoices dated October 24, 2014 and June 9, 2015, respectively, for work done
amounting to One Hundred and Eight Thousand, Eight Hundred and Eighty-one Ghana
Cedis, Ninety-two Pesewas (GH¢108,881.92) to the Defendant for payment.&nbsp; The Plaintiff avers that it was compelled to
file this law suit to force the Defendant to effect payment on the invoices due
to the failure of the Defendant to do so in spite of persistent demands made on
it by the Plaintiff.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>In its defence, the Defendant totally denied
its indebtedness to the Plaintiff in the amount claimed on the Writ of Summons
and contended further that the action was incompetent as the Plaintiff’s lawful
attorney did not have the capacity to institute the present action. According
to the Defendant the action was clearly the result of a lack of communication
between the Plaintiff’s attorney and the Plaintiff itself as the Defendant, prior
to the institution of the suit, had agreed with the Plaintiff on an amount far
lower than the sum claimed by the Plaintiff’s attorney on the Writ of Summons
as the amount due for the services rendered to it.&nbsp; The Defendant further averred that because of
this understanding with the Plaintiff, the Defendant actually started making
monthly instalment payments towards satisfying the agreed debt.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>This case, it is noted, was initially filed
in the General Jurisdiction of the High Court, Accra.&nbsp; Pursuant to an Order of Transfer signed by
Her Ladyship, the Chief Justice, on August 18, 2016, the case was transferred
to this Court for continuation and adjudication.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>It is also
relevant to note here that in the course of the proceedings and before the
Plaintiff was to open its case, the parties agreed that the dispute between
them boiled down to how</main>