PLANGE v. PLANGE

On appeal from the High Court in Accra, the Court of Appeal reconsidered whether Alice Aku Bart Plange had been validly adopted under customary law by the late Bart Kojo Plange and his widow, the appellant. The trial judge, Ollennu J.A. sitting as an additional High Court judge, had analogized adoption to severance of family ties and imposed rigid formalities, concluding there was no adoption and limiting the widow’s interest to one‑third. Relying on Tanor v. Akosua Koko, Anin J.A. held that the essential requirements are a public declaration of intention to adopt before witnesses and consent from the adoptee’s natural parents and family; elaborate joint-family ceremonies are nonessential. The evidence showed libation, renaming, handing-over, and the natural father’s participation, as well as Alice’s unchallenged testimony and the co‑defendant’s acquiescence. The court concluded Alice was validly adopted in 1952, was lawful issue under section 49 of Cap. 127, and, under section 48 (as interpreted in Coleman v. Shang), the widow and Alice take two‑thirds of the estate. Under Act 63, section 79, letters of administration were ordered to issue jointly to the widow and the customary successor; the appeal was allowed, with Sowah J.A. concurring and Francois J.A. agreeing.