ACCESS BANK VS ROCKSHELL INTERNATINAL LTD. & ANOR
2015
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
- HER LADYSHIP, JUSTICE DOREEN G. BOAKYE- AGYEI
Areas of Law
- Banking and Finance Law
- Contract Law
- Civil Procedure
2015
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
This case involves a debt recovery action by a bank (Plaintiff) against borrowers (Defendants) for an unpaid loan facility. The court ruled in favor of the Plaintiff, finding that the Defendants failed to repay the loan as agreed. The court rejected the Defendants' claim of an alleged Bill of Sale that would have limited repayment to proceeds from selling a specific asset. The judgment emphasizes principles of contract law in banking, burden of proof in civil cases, and the obligation of borrowers to repay loans regardless of the success of the venture funded. The court awarded the Plaintiff the full claimed amount plus interest, highlighting the enforceability of loan agreements and the importance of providing credible evidence to support defenses in such cases.
An action having been commenced against the Defendants herein by the issuance of a Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim on 11/03/2014, Defendants responded by their Entry of Appearance on 20/03/2014 and a four paragraph Statement of Defence on 10/06/2014 to which Plaintiff filed a four paragraph Reply on 17/06/2014. The Reliefs the Plaintiff claimed were fourfold as follows: i. Recovery of the sum of Seven Hundred and Forty Six Thousand, Nine Hundred and Twenty Nine Ghana Cedis and Ninety-Five Pesewas(GHS 746, 929. 95) being the total indebtedness of the defendants to the Plaintiff as at February 6th , 2014. ii.
Interest on the said sum at the interest of 25% default rate till the date of final payment.
Cost on a full indemnity basis iv.
Any further Reliefs the Court may deem fit.
At the close of Pleadings, the matter was set down for Pre-Trial Settlement Conference as per the rules of Court.
The matter could not be resolved thus the sole issue was set down for trial as Whether or not the Plaintiff is entitled to its claim.
Upon the Amendment of Defendants Statement of Defense, a new and second issue also arose therefrom for determination as to Whether or not there was a Bill of Sale which stipulated that the proceeds from the sale of the crane was to be the sole funds to be applied in repayment of the facility.
As a backdrop, undisputed facts from the Pleadings on record will serve a useful purpose and put the case in perspective.
Of the 12 paragraph Statement of Claim, Defendants admitted paragraphs 1 to 8 and denied paragraphs 9 and 10. Plaintiff attributed the reason for the default in the payment to the suspension of the contract between Amandi Ltd and the Government of Ghana(GOG) which caused the said company to also suspend its contract with 1st Defendant.
This was what had in paragraph 8 resulted in a restructuring in the loan facility of GHC590, 615. 79 being offered to 1st Defendant to extend the tenure of the repayment over a period of 18 months on 23/04/2013. Then in paragraphs 9 and 10, Plaintiff averred that Defendants still defaulted in the repayment such that as at 27/04/2011, the Defendants were to the Plaintiff indebted in the amount endorsed on the Writ.
Defendants answer was that they were not indebted to the Plaintiff in the amount claimed or at all and that the action was premature because Plaintiff was aware that they had not been operating for some time now hence the difficulty in making the monthly payments.
The Plaint