COMFORT NORKAI BARNOR v. AMASSEY COMMEY _ ORS.
2004
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
- Farkye J.A. — Presiding
- Addo J.A.
- Quaye J.A
Areas of Law
- Civil Procedure
- Property and Real Estate Law
- Tort Law
2004
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
Comfort Barnor, incumbent head of the Lartey-Cudjoe family of Osu, sued defendants linked to the Odoi Quao family for general damages for trespass, compensation for damaged materials of about ¢1,000,000.00, and a perpetual injunction after they demolished her building project. She traced title to her maternal grandfather, Lartey-Cudjoe, via a 1938 written memorandum and long, uninterrupted possession; the property was recorded as F5/12, later F5/1 Animansah, Osu-Accra. The defendants asserted justification based on Odoi Quao family ownership and counterclaimed for declaration of title. The trial court, presided over by B.O. Tetteh J. sitting as additional Circuit Judge, found the land belonged to Lartey-Cudjoe, undermining the counterclaims. On appeal, the defendants raised a single ground alleging the judgment was “grossly and profoundly unreasonable” and legally unwarrantable. Justice E. A. Addo reviewed the record, found the trial court’s conclusions sound and not impeachable, and dismissed the appeal. Justices Farkye J.A. and Quaye J.A. concurred.
JUDGMENT
ADDO J.A.:
My Lords, this is an appeal against the decision of B.O. Tetteh J. Chairman of the Regional Tribunal sitting as additional Circuit Judge. The plaintiff in this case, Comfort Barnor has brought this action against the defendants jointly and severally for general damages for trespass ¢1,000,000.00 (One Million Cedis) being cost of materials damaged and perpetual injunction. The plaintiff by her statement of claim states that she is the incumbent head of the Lartey-Cudjoe family Osu. She says the land the subject-matter was acquired by her maternal grandfather, Lartey-Cudjoe in 1938. According to her the transaction was covered by a written memorandum dated 21st March, 1938 by which the original owner transferred title to the said Lartey-Cudjoe. She went on to state that the house thereon was at the time of the said transaction numbered F5/12, Osu Accra and subsequently changed to read F5/1 Animansah Osu-Accra. Plaintiff’s case is that her said grandfather, Lartey-Cudjoe continued to remain in uninterrupted possession till his demise. Further, as successor to Lartey-Cudjoe they have remained in uninterrupted possession. That with the consent of the said Lartey-Cudjoe family, she in or about December 1990 commenced a building project on the part of the land, the subject of dispute, which project had advanced to lintel level.
She says in the first quarter of 1992 the defendants purporting to be either members or supporters of an Odai Quao family without any justification destroyed her building project extensively. She said the damage done was at the time ¢850,000.00 (Eight Hundred and Fifty Thousand Cedis) in value. She currently requires about ¢1,000,000.00 (One Million Cedis) to make good the required damage. She says upon her complaint to the Police the Police arrested the defendants and arraigned them before the circuit court on 1st day of September 1993, convicted them and cautioned and discharged them. The gravamen of the defendant defence is that they had justification for destroying the plaintiff’s structure on the grounds that the same was being unlawfully put up on the Odoi Quao family land; defendant further counter claimed for declaration of title.
On the totality of the evidence adduced before the trial court, the trial court found that the land subject-matter of this dispute belongs to Lartey-Cudjoe and not the Odoi Quao family and therefore this finding destroys the basis of the defendants counterclaims.
From this, the de