[2020]DLSC9917 Login to Read Full Case <span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%"><a name="_Hlk35510717"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma;color:#00B0F0">JIBRIL MAHAMA <o:p></o:p></span></b></a></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma;mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">(PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpLast" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma;color:#00B0F0">AKWASI MENSAH<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">(DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormalCxSpLast" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; line-height:150%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">[SUPREME COURT, ACCRA]<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-bottom:6.0pt;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif">CIVIL APPEAL</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"> </span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">NO. J4/45/2019 </span><b><span style="font-size: 10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"">DATE: </span></b><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">4TH NOVEMBER, 2020</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">G. AGYABENG AKRASI FOR THE PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT/APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">BENONY AMEKUDZI FOR THE DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT/RESPONDENT.</span><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin"><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-style:italic">CORAM: <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">YEBOAH, CJ (PRESIDING), BAFFOE-BONNIE, JSC, MARFUL-SAU, JSC, AMEGATCHER, JSC, TORKORNOO (MRS.), JSC<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><div style="border-top-width: 1.5pt; border-top-color: windowtext; border-left: none; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; border-right: none; padding: 1pt 0in;"> <p class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height: 150%;tab-stops:147.0pt;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"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><b><u><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">TORKORNOO, (MRS.) JSC:-<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">The Plaintiff/Appellant/Appellant (Plaintiff) is contesting the leave granted by the High Court to the Defendant/Respondent/Respondent (Defendant) to amend his defence to the Plaintiff’s action. In his Statement of Claim, the Plaintiff had averred in his paragraph 4 that <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">4. <b>Plaintiff avers that it was a term of the sale and purchase agreement he entered into with defendant that he was to pay GH</b></span><b><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">₵</span></b><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">40,000 to the defendant whilst the remaining balance of GH</span></b><b><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">₵</span></b><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">30,000 ‘shall be paid after the transfer’ of the necessary land documents’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">In his original defence to the Plaintiff’s claims, the Defendant had denied all averments in the Statement of Claim and pleaded in Paragraph 4 of his Statement of Defence that<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">4. <b>In further denial, the defendant will contend that the said plot of land was to be sold to the plaintiff for Gh</b></span><b><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">₵</span></b><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">70,000 and the plaintiff paid GH</span></b><b><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman",serif">₵</span></b><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">40,000 leaving a balance of 30,000 to be paid after the transfer of the document thereof</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">’<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">The Plaintiff applied for judgment on admissions pursuant to <b>Order 23 rule 6(1) and Order 11 rule 18 (1) (a) of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 CI 47</b> on the basis of this Paragraph 4. Before the Plaintiff’s application for judgment could be heard, the Defendant filed an Amended Defence and opposed the application for judgment on admissions. This amended Defence was struck out on account of failure to seek leave prior to filing same.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">Thereafter, the Defendant applied to the High Court for leave to amend his Defence. The Plaintiff opposed the hearing of this application for leave to amend the Defence before the hearing of his application for judgment on admissions on the principal ground that the application was incompetent on account of seeking to defeat his prior application for judgment on admissions.. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma">The court heard the Defendant’s application for leave to amend his Defence first, granted same, and the Plaintiff appealed to the Court of Appeal to set aside the order granting Defendant leave to amend his defence. The appeal to the Court of Appeal was dismissed, leading to the present appeal on the following grounds:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; text-indent:-.25in;line-height:150%;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo1"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:"Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua"">1.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">The judgment is against weight of evidence<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph; text-indent:-.25in;line-height:150%;mso-list:l2 level1 lfo1"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:"Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua"">2.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">The court of appeal erred in law by affirming the ruling of the high court granting leave to defendant to amend his pleading, even though the court agreed with plaintiff about the defendant’s motion on notice to