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BULLEY-NEEQUAYE v. BULLEY-NEEQUAYE

1999

HIGH COURT

GHANA

CORAM

  • BROBBEY J

Areas of Law

  • Family Law
  • Civil Procedure

AI Generated Summary

Brobbey J dismissed an action brought by Mr. Eric Bulley‑Neequaye seeking to set aside a 1978 High Court adoption order obtained by his then wife, Mrs. Alicia Edith Bulley‑Neequaye, before Griffiths‑Randolph J. Mr. Bulley‑Neequaye argued that the child’s new surname, ‘Bulley‑Neequaye,’ was exclusively associated with his Ga family, that he risked being treated as the putative father of a child he never consented to adopt, and that the Adoption Act’s provisional order requirement for non‑Ghanaians was breached. The court held he was a complete stranger to the adoption proceedings and not a ‘party affected’ under Mosi v. Bagyina, so he lacked standing. Applying English common‑law principles via Courts Act s.49(6), and authorities including Du Boulay and Cowley, the court rejected any proprietary right in surnames and affirmed that an individual, even a married woman, may adopt under s.1(3) without imposing parentage on her spouse. The action was dismissed as incompetent, with costs to the defendant.

JUDGMENT