FRANCO ESTATE & COLD STORE ENTERPRISE & ANOR VS GROFIN AFRICA FUND (GH) LTD & ORS
2024
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
- HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE NABEELA NAEEMA WAHAB MS.
Areas of Law
- Contract Law
- Property and Real Estate Law
- Civil Procedure
- Evidence Law
2024
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The case involves a property dispute where the Plaintiffs claimed ownership and unlawful trespass by the Defendants. The property was sold to the Plaintiffs by Hope Capital Limited, allegedly acting on behalf of the 1st Defendant. The Court found that Hope Capital had no authority to sell without a reserve price and that the Plaintiffs did not pay the full purchase price nor took possession. The 2nd Defendant legally redeemed the property, making her the lawful owner. The transaction by Hope Capital was found to be tainted with fraud, rendering it unenforceable. Thus, the Plaintiffs’ case was dismissed, and costs awarded to the Defendants.
I. PLAINTIFFS’ CASE
1. The 1st Plaintiff Enterprise and the 2nd Plaintiff, its Managing Director, instituted the instant action against the Defendants by a Writ and Statement of Claim filed on 4th October 2022. 2. The action was instituted in respect of a property stated to be of an approximate area of 1. 633 acres, registered with Land Title Certificate No. GA 29534 and located at Pokuase in the Greater Accra region, hereafter referred to as “property” or “subject property”. 3. It is the case of the Plaintiffs as stated in their Statement of Claim that the 1st Plaintiff Enterprise is registered under the laws of Ghana and engaged in Real Estate Business.
The Plaintiffs stated that sometime in the year 2021, the 2nd Plaintiff saw a notice advertising the subject property for sale.
They added that on the notice advertising the property for sale, there was a contact telephone number for people interested in purchasing the property to call.
4. The Plaintiffs stated that interested in purchasing the property, the 2nd Plaintiff called the telephone number provided on the notice and spoke with one Richard Akowuah of Hope Capital Limited.
The Plaintiffs added that Richard Akowuah informed the 2nd Plaintiff that Hope Capital Limited is a Debt Recovery Company and that it had been authorized by a Power of Aꢀorney provided by the 1st Defendant Limited Liability Company, its principal, to take steps/ initiate actions for and on behalf of the 1st Defendant to recover its loans from persons and / or institutions who have defaulted in repaying same.
5. The Plaintiffs also stated that they learnt from Mr. Akowuah that Banner Medical Center and Funeral Homes had defaulted in repaying a loan given to it by 1st Defendant and that Hope Capital Limited had initiated steps to recover the monies owed by Banner Medical Center and Funeral Homes to its principal, the 1st Defendant.
6. The Plaintiffs added that they conducted due diligence on the property at the High Court and at the Lands Commission to verify and authenticate the documents that were made available to them by Hope Capital Limited and thereafter purchased the subject property.
The Plaintiffs also stated that the sale transaction is evidenced by a contract of sale executed by the Plaintiffs and Hope Capital Limited as agent of the 1st Defendant.
7. It is the further case of the Plaintiffs as stated in their Statement of Claim that they paid an amount of Two Million, Three Hundred and Twenty-Five Thousand Ghana Cedis (GH