SALIFU MOHAMMED v. ISSAH MOHAMMED

DENNIS ADJEI:

The High Court Koforidua on 13th November, 2012 dismissed the appeal emanating from the judgment of the District Court, New Tafo delivered on 28th January, 2010. The District Court entered judgment for the Plaintiff to recover possession of the three rooms occupied by the defendant in the Plaintiff’s house.

The grounds of appeal filed by the Defendant/Appellant/Appellant hereafter called the Defendant in the High Court were as follows:

“i. The judgment is against the weight of evidence

ii. The trial Judge did not adequately consider the case of the Defendant

iii. The Trial Judge drew wrong conclusions and came out with wrong findings

iv. Erroneous admissions of inadmissible evidence”.

The High Court in exercising its appellate jurisdiction affirmed the conclusion arrived by the District Court. The High Court Judge criticized the unnecessary interjections during the trial by the Magistrate but concluded that they were colourless and could not impact on the conclusions arrived by the Magistrate.

The Defendant dissatisfied with the judgment of the High Court filed an appeal against it to this court on 13th February,2013. The Defendant filed three grounds of appeal against the decision of the High Court. The grounds of appeal filed by the Defendant are as follows:

“a) That the judgment is against the weight of evidence.

b) That the appellate Judge failed to consider the matter before him on the principle of preponderance of probability and this resulted in miscarriage of justice.

c)That the Judge failed to evaluate the evidence before him objectively and judiciously and this accasioned a miscarriage of justice”.

We are in doubt as to the competence of the appeal before us and we can address it without deferring it to the Lawyers for the parties to address us. Where of the grounds of appeal are not alleging that the judgment is a nullity and we are bound to consider the competence of the appeal before we assume jurisdiction to determine its merits. Now the law has developed to a stage that void judgment could be set aside on appeal in cases where the appeal is filed out of time. The rational is that time does not run in cases of void judgments. Why should time run in void judgments when the Courts are mandated to set them aside irrespective of the shape or form they come to their notice? Where a person alleges that a judgment is void and the appeal is filed out of time, the recent developments in the law enjoin the Court to entertain t