February 9, 2022
SUPREME COURT
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
This Supreme Court of Ghana review decision concerns long-running disputes over the Saviour Church of Ghana, involving registered trustees under the Trustees (Incorporation) Act, 1962 (Act 106) and a company limited by guarantee registered in 2007 under the Companies Act, 1963 (Act 179). The High Court and, in a split decision, the Court of Appeal ruled for the company, declaring it the sole legal entity entitled to operate under Saviour Church of Ghana, and restrained the trustees from using that name. On second appeal, the Supreme Court ordinary bench (32) reversed and canceled the companys registration. The company sought review, and the review bench by 43 majority allowed the application, finding exceptional circumstances and fundamental errors in the ordinary benchs departure from concurrent findings and its misapplication of estoppel per rem judicatam. The court set aside the ordinary bench decision, restored the High Court and Court of Appeal judgments, and affirmed the companys status as a duly incorporated legal entity entitled to operate and recover its properties.
MAJORITY OPINION
DOTSE JSC:-
On the 9th day of February, 2022 this court by a majority decision of 4 to 3, Pwamang, Lovelace-Johnson (Ms) and Prof. Mensa-Bonsu (Mrs) JJSC dissenting, allowed and granted a review application by the Plaintiffs/Respondents/Respondents/Applicants, hereafter Applicants, against the decision of the ordinary bench of this court dated 24th November, 2021 in favour of the Defendants/Appellants/Appellants/Respondents hereafter Respondents.
APPLICANT’S GROUNDS FOR THIS REVIEW APPLICATION
The Applicant, prayed this court for an order to review the judgment of this court, dated 24th November 2021 upon the following grounds.
1. The majority decision of the Supreme Court failed to take into consideration the fact that in all the litigations which preceded the instant action, no orders were directed at the Applicant as a distinct corporate entity.
2. The order by the majority of the Supreme Court for cancellation of the name of the Applicant by the Registrar-General’s Department is founded on a fundamental error which has resulted in a substantial miscarriage of justice to Applicant, there being no finding of fraud in the process of registration of the Applicant’s church.
3. The majority of the ordinary Bench granted the Defendants/Appellants/Appellants/Respondents, (hereafter Respondents) reliefs which did not belong to the appeal before the court and therefore exercised an irregular jurisdiction in favour of the Respondents when no case of impropriety had been established against the registration of the Applicant’s name thereby occasioning a gross miscarriage of justice to the Applicant.
In support of the Application for Review, one Peter Kwabena Adjei, deposed to a 20 paragraphed affidavit in support of the said review application. It is considered worthwhile to refer in extenso to the following paragraphs 4, 5, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15, 17, and 20 respectively as follows:-
4. That the grounds of the instant application which constitute an exceptional circumstance on the basis of which this Honorable court usually exercises its review jurisdiction, are as set out in the Motion paper, the gravamen of which, as advised by lawyer for applicant is that majority of the Ordinary Bench of the Supreme Court erred, which error has occasioned applicant substantial miscarriage of justice when , their Lordships gave judgment in favor of Respondent herein and ordered cancelation of the registration of Applicant for fraud when indeed and in fa