BENJAMIN AMPONSAH MENSAH & ORS v. MARGARET ANN MENSAH

In this Supreme Court of Ghana ruling, Jones Dotse JSC, with Julius Ansah JSC and Paul Baffoe‑Bonnie JSC concurring, granted an application by Bernard and Barbara Mensah, executors of the late Benjamin Amponsah Mensah, to discharge two ex parte orders previously issued by a single Justice: substituting the executors into the long‑running matrimonial cause between Benjamin and Margaret Ann Mensah, and permitting service of that substitution order outside the jurisdiction. The Court held that the single‑Justice jurisdiction under Article 134 must be exercised according to Rule 73 of C.I. 16, which requires motion on notice served on interested persons; executors are such persons, making the ex parte substitution improper. The Court also found no pending cause in the Supreme Court: the only appeal concerned an interlocutory maintenance order, an in personam matter that lapsed upon Benjamin’s death and the High Court’s final judgment. The Court corrected a prior per incuriam statement regarding Rule 73’s existence and discharged both orders. Baffoe‑Bonnie JSC concurred in the outcome but viewed an ex parte single‑Justice application as not fatal where placement was administrative.