2018
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
Plaintiff Elizabeth Abbew Jackson’s claim was that she had sent goods to her brother to acquire properties on her behalf. Upon her brother's death, she alleged that Defendant took control of these properties. The High Court ruled in her favor, and Defendant appealed, raising issues of misjudgment and procedural errors. The appellate court dismissed the appeal, upholding the trial court's ruling, stating that the burden of proof was met by the Plaintiff, and procedural objections raised by the Defendant were either invalid or irrelevant.
L. L. MENSAH, J.A.
This is an appeal against the judgment of the High Court, Sekondi dated the 17th day of March 2006 in favour of the Plaintiff/Respondent who will in this judgment be referred to as the Plaintiff against the Defendant/Appellant who will be referred to as the Defendant.
Facts:
The facts of this case are that Elizabeth Abbew Jackson left the shores of Ghana for the United Kingdom in 1975. She got employed at the British Railways in Liverpool as a ticket examiner. Out of her earnings she sent goods in commercial quantities among which were shoes, clothes, fridges etc. to her brother James Abbew Jackson (deceased) who died in February 1988. The brother was instructed by Plaintiff to use the proceeds of the goods to acquire a number of houses, three of which are in Takoradi and one at Bubiashie, Accra. The houses however seemed not to have documents on them to bear Plaintiff’s name. The Plaintiff however tendered a number of documents as correspondence between her and her late brother as proof of her claim that the four houses in dispute were acquired by her brother upon her instructions.
Upon the death of Plaintiff’s brother, her two widows the Defendant herein, Mary Howard and the deceased and Plaintiff’s brother by name John Abbew Jackson were granted letters of administration to administer the estate of the deceased.
Alleging that the Defendant has coveted all the four houses built by her deceased brother for her, the Plaintiff instituted action in the registry of the High Court, Sekondi claiming the following reliefs from the Defendant:
1. A declaration of title to Plots Number 7D Airport Ridge, 300A, West Tanokrom and Plot 8 West Tanokrom and the houses thereon.
2. GH¢10,000.00 damages against Defendant for trespass
(a) Accounts of rents from the three houses collected by the Defendant.
(b) Perpetual Injunction restraining the Defendant from interfering with the Plaintiff’s ownership of the said properties.
The Defendant resisted the claim of the Plaintiff. She averred that all the three houses in Takoradi do not belong to the Plaintiff but to her husband. Specifically Defendant said the house on Plot No. 8 West Tanokrom Takoradi was assigned to the late James Abbew Jackson by one Kwame Kesse in 1978. By the time Plaintiff came to Ghana the house on Plot No. 8 was completed and the deceased and the children were staying there. As regards Plot No. D7 Airport Ridge Takoradi or Plot 300D West Tanokrom, the document covering D7 A