DR. KWABENA OSEI-BONSU & ANOR vs KWAME AMPONSAH-DARKO & ANOR
2015
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
- HIS LORDSHIP JUSTICE K. A. GYIMAH
Areas of Law
- Property and Real Estate Law
- Civil Procedure
- Evidence Law
2015
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The plaintiffs, based in Canada, sought the declaration of title, injunction, and damages concerning land they purchased in Ashongman, Accra. They claimed the defendants trespassed and that the 2nd defendant unlawfully bought the land after the 1st defendant defaulted on a loan. The court, after the defendants failed to defend, accepted the evidence presented by the plaintiffs, confirming their ownership and awarding damages and costs.
Plaintiffs’ Case
The plaintiffs are ordinarily resident in Canada and they instituted this action through their attorney Rev. Dr. Ahmed Kenneth Quarshie.
By a Writ of Summons issued on 9th September 2015, the plaintiffs claimed the following reliefs against the defendants: i. Declaration of title to the parcel of land situated and lying at Ashongman Accra and described in the Indenture as being Plot Nos. C5/9 and C5/10 in the Atomic Hills Estates, Ashongman, Accra.
Perpetual injunction against the defendants jointly and severally restraining them, their agents, servants and workmen from interfering or having anything to do with plaintiff’s land.
Reparation of any damage that may have been done to plaintiff’s land.
The Defendants were served with the processes through substituted service but they failed to enter appearance.
On 4th May 2016, this court differently constituted entered interlocutory judgment for the Plaintiffs and adjourned the matter for the Plaintiffs to lead evidence in proof of their title.
On 10th July 2017 after the defendants had once again failed to appear in court after they had been duly served, the plaintiffs were allowed to lead evidence in proof of their title which they duly did.
The case of the Plaintiffs is that they acquired the said land from AR and AK Properties Limited sometime in 1995 and they acquired a building permit for the construction of a two storey house and a single storey outhouse.
It is the case of the Plaintiffs that the defendants trespassed onto their land with the intention of trying to develop same.
Their enquiries revealed that the 2nd defendant purportedly bought the land at an auction after the 1st defendant had defaulted on a loan for which he had used the property in dispute as collateral.
It is the plaintiffs’ case that the 1st defendant has never owned the land in dispute and he could not have therefore used it as security for it to be put on auction after his default.
The plaintiffs claim that they are the bona fide owners of the property in dispute and they are therefore asking the court to grant them all the reliefs endorsed on their writ of summons.
Burden of Proof It is settled under our jurisprudence that a party who asserts assumes the burden of proving same.
The burden of producing evidence as well as the burden of persuasion is cast on such a party and the standard of proof required to discharge the burden of persuasion in civil matters is one of “preponderance of the probabili