SAMUEL KORMLA AGBALE VS EKUVOR AGBALE LADZAGLA & ORS

ASIEDU JSC: -

INTRODUCTION:

My Lords, this appeal is against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Accra dated the 20th day of May 2020. In the said judgment, the Court of Appeal set aside the judgment of the High Court, Accra delivered on the 26th July 2016 in favour of the Plaintiff against the Defendants herein.

The Court of Appeal also dismissed the Plaintiff’s claims and entered judgment in favour of the Defendants herein on their counterclaim.

Aggrieved, the Plaintiff has appealed to this Court per a Notice of Appeal filed on the 24th June 2020. FACTS: William Quao Anipatie (deceased) was the owner of House Number D498/4 Jones Nelson Road, Adabraka Accra.

His father was Amega Agbale Ladzagla (deceased) who married five women.

William Quao Anipatie’s mother was Yedinu Agbale, the first wife of Amega Agbale Ladzagla.

The Plaintiff’s father, Dugbaza Kale Anipatie was a brother of the full blood with William Quao Anipatie.

The Plaintiff claims that after the death of William Quao Anipatie, Dugbaza Kale Anipatie succeeded him on the matrilineal side.

After the death of Dugbaza, the Plaintiff’s father; one Richard Awuku Ladzagla, a nephew of William Quao Anipatie, was appointed, by Christian Kwadzo Tay alias C. K. Akaho-Tay with the consent of the elders of the matrilineal family, to apply for Letters of Administration to administer the estate of William Quao Anipatie.

The Letters of Administration was granted on the 11th March 1991. Christian Kwadzo Tay alias C. K. Akaho-Tay is described as the current head of family of William Quao Anipatie at the maternal side.

Richard Awuku Ladzagla could not finish with the administration of the estate of William Quao Anipatie and so after his death in December 2004, the Plaintiff herein applied in Suit Number BDP 415/2006 for Letters of Administration to enable the Plaintiff continue with the administration of the estate of William Quao Anipatie but the said application was caveated by the Defendants herein.

Following the orders of the High Court therefore, the Plaintiff issued the instant writ against the Defendants herein.

The Plaintiff says that being half-brothers of William Quao Anipatie, the 1st and 2nd Defendants can neither administer the estate of William Quao Anipatie nor inherit his properties because the properties belong to the maternal family of William Quao Anipatie, that is, the descendants of Yedinu Agbale, the mother of William Quao Anipatie.

Plaintiff says also that House Number D498/4