The High Court in Accra has granted an application by the First Atlantic Bank to be excluded from a civil suit mounted by a former National Service Person, Deborah Seyram Adablah, against the bank and its former Chief Finance Officer, Ernest Kwasi Nimako.
The Court, presided over by Justice Olivia Obeng Owusu, upheld the application on last week Friday, July 21, 2023.
The Plaintiff, Adablah, was awarded a cost of GH¢6,000 as compensation to the bank.
This was after the lawyers of the First Atlantic Bank had requested for GHc50, 000 and the Plaintiff offered to pay GH¢5,000.
Adablah, dragged Ernest Kwasi Nimako, a former Chief Finance Officer (First Defendant) and the bank (2nd Defendant) to court and alleged among other things sexual harassment.
Lawyers of the Bank filed a motion to have the name of the Bank struck out of the case.
Prior to the ruling, lawyers of the plaintiff had filed a motion on June 15, 2023, to set aside the decision of the court for execution and order for preservation of the vehicle, which is one of the subject matters in dispute.
On the other hand, lawyers of Kwasi Nimako have also filed a contempt case against Adablah for certain publications made after the court had barred the parties from doing so.
Background
The plaintiff filed a writ alleging sexual harassment against Ernest Kwesi Nimako, former Chief Finance Officer and the bank.
Following the action, the Bank has requested that its name be withdrawn from the lawsuit filed by the former NSS worker.
In that application dated January 24, 2023, the Bank requested that seven paragraphs of the writ be dismissed “on the ground that they disclose no reasonable cause of action against the applicant.”
It contends that Paragraphs 7,8,9,10,11,31,32,33,34,36 and 37 which were requested to be excluded comprise portions of the writ that accuse the bank of watching on for female workers being harassed sexually by senior male officers of the bank.
The substantive case alleging sexual harassment against Kwasi Nimako would be dealt with after this preliminary application.
