EMMANUEL KWAKU DAWUDU VS STELLA AKOR
2024
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
- HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE PATRICIA QUANSAH
Areas of Law
- Evidence Law
- Contract Law
2024
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
This case involves a dispute between two businesspersons over the payment and import of jewelry from China to Ghana. The Plaintiff claimed GH¢32,255 from the Defendant for paying the balance on jewelry imported on the Defendant's behalf. The Defendant disputed the claim, asserting that it was the Plaintiff who offered to pay. The court held in favor of the Plaintiff, establishing that the Plaintiff indeed paid for the jewelry and the Defendant only partially repaid. The Defendant was ordered to pay the balance with interest and costs.
1. INTRODUCTION [i] The controversy in this matter has to do with trade and business and both the Plaintiff and the Defendant are said to be business persons.
The Plaintiff herein, claims the following reliefs against the Defendant: RELIEFS SOUGHT BY THE PLAINTIFF 1. The recovery of cash the sum of Gh¢32, 255. 00 being money used to pay for Defendant’s goods and imported same from (sic) China to Ghana since 3rd October, 2014 which money Defendant has deliberately refused to pay despite several demands.
2. Interest and costs.
2. FACTS OF THE PLAINTIFF’S CASE[ii] According to the Plaintiff, sometime in August 2014, the Defendant approached the Plaintiff and informed him that she had made part payment of some jewelleries in China but had ran short of money so the Plaintiff should pay the balance and import the goods from China to Ghana for and on behalf of the Defendant.
Per the Plaintiff, he obliged and left Ghana on the 11th of September 2014 for China; and in China, the Plaintiff stated that he was able to pay the balance of the Defendants jewelleries to the tune of the equivalent of Gh¢32, 255. 00 and the goods were imported to Ghana on the 3rd of October 2014. [iii] The Defendant however refused to buy the goods from Plaintiff as promised and she has also since failed to refund the Plaintiff’s money to him.
Whenever the Plaintiff called or visited the Defendant for his money, the Defendant rained insults on the Plaintiff.
The Defendant’s failure to repay the Plaintiff’s money as promised has also resulted in the collapse of the Plaintiff’s business and the Plaintiff has thus become jobless and cannot go back to China without any money and so the Plaintiff stated he was compelled to institute this action and prayed the Court to make an order to compel the Defendant to pay the Plaintiff’s debt with interest and costs; as endorsed on the writ of summons.
3. STATEMENT OF DEFENCE[iv] In her defence, the Defendant denied that she pleaded with the Plaintiff to pay the balance for her, stating instead that it was the Plaintiff who offered to pay for the remaining balance of the jewelleries and have same shipped to Ghana because he was in China.
After paying the balance of the goods, the Plaintiff indeed ensured that the goods were shipped to Ghana, but according to the Defendant, the Plaintiff and herself could not agree on the price to sell the jewelleries when they arrived in Ghana. [v] The Plaintiff nonetheless delivered the goods to the