Nominal damages in Ghana case law.

2 passages from 1 case, grouped by point of law. Each passage is in the court's own words and links to the place in the judgment.

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Award where the subject matter of the loss is proved but not its value

The claim for loss of use was a claim for special damages, and the law governing such claims is settled. Special damages must be specifically pleaded and strictly proved, both as to the subject matter of the loss and as to its value. The two requirements are distinct, and the consequences of proving the one but not the other are important. Where a claimant proves the subject matter of his loss but fails to prove its value, the court does not dismiss the claim and send him away empty-handed; it awards nominal damages, representing a reasonably fair approximation of the value of what was lost: NORGBEY VS. ASANTE [1992] 1 GLR 506.

C. A. LIMITED VRS ANOINTED STAR CONSTRUCTION & 2 ORS CIVIL APPEAL NO. J4/03/2022 [2026] SLR (SC) 36 · Supreme Court · 2026 · TANKO AMADU JSC

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A court cannot construct a fair award out of a figure proved by nothing; to award the Gh¢357,750.00 the Appellant claims would be not to assess damages but to invent them. In these circumstances the award of nominal damages was not merely permissible but orthodox, and its quantification was pre-eminently a matter for the discretion of the court seised of the facts.

C. A. LIMITED VRS ANOINTED STAR CONSTRUCTION & 2 ORS CIVIL APPEAL NO. J4/03/2022 [2026] SLR (SC) 36 · Supreme Court · 2026 · TANKO AMADU JSC

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More in Damages: General damages Remoteness of damage Special damages

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