OKUDJETO AND OTHERS v. IRANI BROTHERS AND OTHERS

Sidul (Société Industrielle du Levant S.A.L.) and Mohamed Ashkar, minority investors holding 41% in Irani Brothers and Others Limited, sought High Court relief under sections 218 and 220 of Ghana’s Companies Code to investigate and restrain alleged oppressive conduct and to secure an accounting. Hayfron‑Benjamin J. dismissed the application for lack of admissible evidence but ordered the company to buy the applicants’ shares at a valuation. The appellants appealed only that purchase order. After Apaloo Ag.C.J. enlarged time, the Court of Appeal rejected preliminary objections (including arguments that the order was interlocutory and that the acting Chief Justice lacked jurisdiction), applied the Bozson test to hold the order final, and turned to the merits. Construing section 218(2)’s conditional language, the court held the High Court lacked jurisdiction to impose share purchase after dismissing the section 218 application, that respondents filed no counter‑application and the company could not invoke section 218, and that penalising the unsuccessful applicants offended natural justice. The appeal was allowed, the purchase order set aside, and the original application dismissed, with costs.