November 7, 2022
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The court adjudicated a dispute over House No. 65, Link Road, Mamprobi, between Philomena Comfort Magnusen and several Defendants, including Nii Okai Aryee Lartey. Magnusen claimed she was the lawful administratrix of the estate of Emmanuel Aryee Lartey and the sole beneficiary, asserting the property derived from her maternal family through Auntie Tawiah (Tawiah Ferguson). The court found that Tawiah’s 1939 Temporary Occupation Permit conferred only a one-year occupancy and that Emmanuel Aryee Lartey subsequently applied to purchase the property and completed payment acknowledged by the State Housing Corporation. The Plaintiff’s Letters of Administration application omitted disclosure of Lartey’s surviving children and excluded the property from the estate inventory, yet she vested it in herself. Applying evidentiary burdens and principles that fraud vitiates legal acts, the court revoked the Letters of Administration, ordered the State Housing Company to reverse the vesting, restrained the Plaintiff from dealing with the property, declared her lack of capacity and intermeddling, denied substantial damages, and awarded costs of GH¢10,000 to the Defendants.
J U D G M E N T
1.0 The Plaintiff by his amended writ of summons filed on the 5th day of
June 2015 sought for the following reliefs:
a) An order perpetually restraining the 1st Defendant from dealing
with, entering or renting the property known as H/No. 65, Korle
Gonno, Accra
b) An order ejecting the 2nd to 4th Defendants from the above
forthright.
c) An order for recovery of all rents collected by 1st Defendant from
the above property.
d) Cost.
2.0 The 1st to 4th Defendants also filed an amended defence to Plaintiff’s
amended writ of summons dated 20th day of October 2014 and
counterclaim for the following reliefs:
1. A declaration that the Plaintiff herein fraudulently obtained the
Letters of Administration in reference to the Estate of Emmanuel
Aryee Lartey (deceased).
2. An order revoking (annulling/cancelling) the Letters of
Administration granted to the Plaintiff to administer the Estate of
the deceased in accordance with law.
3. An order directing the State Housing Company to reverse the
vesting of House No. 65, North West Korle Gonno (Link Road
Mamprobi) A 634/3 Edwardo Mohdlana road, Mamprobi, Accra
which being the bona fide property of the late Emmanuel Aryee
Lartey.
4. An order of perpetual injunction restraining the Plaintiff, her
servants, agents, assigns, heirs and all deriving authority from
her from dealing with the property in issue.
5. A declaration that the Plaintiff has no capacity to deal with House
No. 65, North West Korle-Gonno (Link Road Mamprobi) A634/3,
Edwardo Mohdlana Road, Mamprobi, Accra.
6. A declaration that the Plaintiff is liable and guilty of
intermeddling.
7. Substantial damages.
8. Cost including Attorney’s fees.
9. Any further or other relief(s) found due by the honourable court.
3.0 Nii Okai Aryee Lartey was subsequently joined to the suit as the 5th
Defendant.
THE PLAINTIFF’S CASE
4.0 The Plaintiff, Philomena Comfort Magnusen’s case is that she was
the Lawful Administratrix of the Estate of the late Emmanuel Aryee
Lartey and also the sole beneficiary of the property in dispute, House
No. 65 Link Road, Mamprobi Accra formerly known as H/No. 65
North West Korle Gonno Estate, Accra.
5.0 The Plaintiff avers that after consensus and a family meeting of all
family members she was authorized and appointed as the Sole
Administratrix of the Estate of the late Emmanuel Aryee Lartey. The
Letters of Administration certificate was attached as Exhibit “A”.
6.0 It is the case