High court slaps 13 family members with GH¢50,000 fine for defying marriage injunction

• 13 family members fined GH¢50,000 each for contempt of court

• Case involves alleged breach of marriage injunction

• Court issues bench warrants for 3 absent respondents

The Asante Mampong High Court has fined 13 family members GH¢50,000 each for contempt of court after they allegedly proceeded with a marriage ceremony despite an active injunction restricting the union.

The court found that the respondents ignored both traditional authority directives and a High Court order that had suspended the marriage pending the determination of a substantive marital dispute before it.

Presiding judge, Justice William Boampong, ruled that the actions of the respondents amounted to deliberate disobedience of the court’s authority.

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Each convicted person was ordered to pay GH¢50,000 or, in default, serve 30 days in prison. The sentence will remain in force until the main case is finally determined.

The court also issued bench warrants for the arrest of three respondents who failed to appear in court during the ruling.

Under Ghanaian law, court injunctions are legally binding orders that must be obeyed until they are lifted or set aside by the court.

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Any deliberate breach of such orders is treated as contempt of court, which can attract penalties including fines, imprisonment, or both, depending on the severity of the offence.

Legal practitioners note that parties who disagree with an injunction are required to challenge it through proper legal channels such as appeal or an application to vary the order, rather than disregarding it.