AUGUSTINA MENSAH BAMIDELE v. FRANCIS BAMIDELE

ANTHONY OPPONG JA:

The Petitioner/Respondent (hereinafter to be called Petitioner) and the Respondent/Appellant (hereinafter called to be called Respondent) customarily got married in 1990 and subsequently converted it to Ordinance Marriage at the Registrar General’s Office on 9th July, 1996. The marriage lasted for 18 years. On the 28th of June, 2010 the High Court dissolved the marriage based on the evidence that had then been adduced on record. Thereafter, the trial High Court proceeded to gather more evidence in full for purposes of determining the ancillary reliefs relating particularly on property right settlement.

After the full trial of the petition, the High Court settled or decided the property rights of the parties as follows:

a I order the Respondent to convey all his title and interest in the school known as Integrity International with all structures and buildings and the land at Anyaa to the Petitioner

b I order the Respondent to convey all his title and interest in the land at Mallam Junction with all structures and buildings thereon to the petitioner

c I order the Petitioner to convey all her title and interest in the sawmill at Anyaa together with the land, structures and machinery thereon to the Respondent

d I declare that the house at Sowutuom and the land at Ablekuma are commonly owned by the parties and shall be held in equal shares.

The Respondent being dissatisfied with the decision of the High Court pertaining to the property settlement as indicated above appealed to this Court. The relief the Respondent sought from this court on the notice of appeal is for an “order to settle the Integrity International School jointly on both the Petitioner/Respondent and the Respondent/Appellant”

It may be observed that in the Amended Petition, the Petitioner sought a declaration that the matrimonial home at Sowutuom was largely developed by her and same be declared her bona fide property subject to her paying the assessed value of Respondent’s contribution. She again sought declaration that Integrity International school, the land at Ablekuma, the land at Gbawe, land at Malam Junction, school at Anyaa as well as the sawmill at Anyaa are her personal properties. The Respondent also made a case by way of cross petition that the house at Sowutuom, the Integrity International school at Anyaa, sawmill at Gbawe and lands situate at Gbawe and Ablekuma are his personal properties.

In the main, both parties laid claim of exclusive ownership to t