NIB cleared of judgment debt case brought by Standard Bank

The Supreme Court has dismissed an application for judicial review filed by Standard Bank Offshore Company (substituted by Dominion Corporate Trustees Limited) against the National Investment Bank (NIB). According to the apex court the application failed to meet the requirement set for review. A seven-member panel presided over by Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo, with Justices William Atuguba, Julius Ansah, Sophia Adinyira, Jones Dotse, K. Anin Yeboah and A.A. Benin assisting, sat on the case. Justice Jones Dotse who delivered the judgment stated emphatically that the option for review should not be an avenue for dissatisfied litigants to reargue their case. The court was of the view that the application failed to establish a case of miscarriage of justice and the ordinary bench did not misapply the facts. The only condition met was filling the application within the one month period stipulated by law. The court dismissed the application on the basis that it lacked merit. The review was praying the Supreme Court to set aside its decision to dismiss a $60 million judgement debt entered against NIB. A Commercial Division of the Accra High court in February 2013 ordered NIB to pay the money to Standard Bank Offshore Company; and the decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal in October 2013, following an appeal from NIB. Not satisfied with the court’s ruling, NIB took the matter to the Supreme Court asking it to quash the decisions of the two lower courts. In a unanimous decision on June 21, 2017, the five-member panel of the Supreme Court, presided over by the Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, held that both Standard Bank Offshore Company Limited and Dominion Corporate Trustees Limited had no capacity to initiate the action which resulted in the $60 million judgement debt. The court, therefore, nullified all proceedings in relation to the case that took place at the high court and the Court of Appeal, as well as the judgements given by the two courts. It further granted cost of GH¢500,000 against Dominion Corporate Trustees Limited. Meanwhile MD of NIB John Kwaku Asamoah who admitted this suit had  adversely affected the bank in the past eight  years also expressed optimism the judgment would increase the confidence of the customers of the bank. Source: 3news.com | Ghana]]>