High Court in Accra has dismissed the lawsuit brought by former Minister of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Nana Oye Bampoe Addo, against her ex-husband, Tony Lithur, accusing him of damaging her reputation domestically and internationally.
According to GHOne TV, the court ruled that Bampoe Addo’s claims were unjustified. She had sought $500,000 in general damages and $1 million in exemplary damages from Lithur.
“Accra High Court dismisses $1.5 million suit filed by Nana Oye Bampoe Addo against her ex-husband, Tony Lithur, for no reasonable cause of action,” part of a post shared by GHOne TV on Monday, May 27, 2024, reads.
The media outlet also reported that the court imposed a GH¢5,000 cost on Nana Oye Bampoe Addo. This ruling follows Tony Lithur’s notice of appearance to contest the libel suit filed against him by his ex-wife, the former Gender Minister.
In April 2024, Bampoe Addo, who is also a lawyer, sought $1.5 million in damages for alleged libelous statements made by Lithur in their divorce petition filed years prior.
In Lithur’s notice of appearance filed on May 14, 2024, he was seeking “an order dismissing or staying or striking out the Plaintiff’s (Nana Oye) writ of summons and statement of claim.”
According to Accra-based Starr FM, the notice of appearance was filed in accordance with Order 11 Rules 18(1)(a)/(b)/(d) and was scheduled to be heard on May 27, 2024.
In his filings, Tony Lithur outlined three grounds on which he sought to have the case dismissed, stayed, or struck out.
“Take notice that the Plaintiff shall move the Honourable Court for an order dismissing or staying or striking out the Plaintiff’s writ of summons and statement of claim filed on April 25, 2024, on grounds (a) that they do not disclose a reasonable cause of action against the Defendant; and/or (b) that the same are frivolous and vexatious; and/or (c) that they constitute an abuse of the process of the Court; and for such further order(s) as the Court may deem fit,” he stated.
Nana Oye Bampoe Addo Drags Ex-Husband to Court in $1.5 Million Damages Suit
At the heart of the latest suit is the “alleged malicious contents of the divorce petition Mr. Lithur filed on May 2, 2018, to end their 27-year-old marriage,” a report by The Chronicle newspaper said.
Nana Oye stated that this has resulted in significant damage to her reputation both domestically and internationally. She further claimed that the divorce has maliciously subjected her to hatred, ridicule, and public contempt.
“The divorce petition, which was variously reported by the media, stated that the Plaintiff was a lazy, irresponsible mother, an adulterous, cruel and violent person, as well as engaged in acts that contradict her professional ethics as a human rights lawyer. These claims, Nana Oye Bampoe Addo says, have maliciously injured her image.
“Nana Oye (Plaintiff) said Mr. Lithur’s (Defendant) claims could be understood to mean that she is a cruel and violent philanderer, adulteress, human rights violator, mean and wicked person, and unfit to hold public office.
“In reference to the divorce petition, the former minister said her ex-husband accused her, as a human rights lawyer, of acts of cruelty and violence, including pouring water, beating, slapping, and using her fingernails to harm their domestic staff,” portions of the suit read.