Mrs. Joana Quaye, wife of the self-acclaimed Ghanaian billionaire Richard Nii Armah Quaye, has filed an appeal against a rather strange judgment of the High Court, Accra, granting her only GHC300,000 out of the well-known vast fortune she built with the rich businessman, to whom she was married for sixteen (16) years and has three (3) children with.
Richard Nii Armah Quaye, popularly known as RNAQ for short, has been locked up in a bitter divorce case with Joana Quaye for the past four years, culminating in “final orders” issued by the High Court presided over by Justice Kofi Dorgu on 20th January, 2026.
In the final orders, in spite of the evidence led in the matter showing that Richard Nii Armah Quaye established his famous company, Quick Credit & Investment Micro-Credit Limited (renamed Bills Micro Credit Limited) with Joana Quaye as shareholders, out of which RNAQ built his wealth and established numerous other companies, the judge granted to the wife only one-third share of a house at Dansoman, GHC300,000 as financial provision and GHC5,000 to be paid by RNAQ each month for the upkeep of all the three children.
Mrs. Quaye, who is very aggrieved by the orders of the court and is of the opinion that she has been “given a raw deal”, has hired prominent Accra-based law firm, Dame & Partners, as her new lawyers to pursue an appeal against the award.
The evidence led in the matter further indicated that all the properties owned by RNAQ, including houses at Trassacco Estate, East Legon and other rich neighbourhoods in Accra, a Rolls Royce car, Bentley, Range Rover and other luxurious vehicles and companies were all acquired by RNAQ after her marriage to Joana Quaye.
The new lawyers in a notice of appeal filed at the Court of Appeal Registry on 1st April, 2026, contend that that the final orders issued by Justice Dorgu are “inconsistent with the principles and framework governing the identification and equitable distribution of marital property upon the dissolution of marriage enshrined in the Constitution and laws of Ghana, and affirmed by the Supreme Court of Ghana”.
They further assert that the trial judge committed a fundamental error of law by failing to recognise that all the immovable and movable properties claimed by respondent, including shares in companies, were acquired during the subsistence of the marriage and thus constitute marital property to be distributed equitably between the parties.
They also say that the position of Ghanaian law is that all property acquired during the subsistence of any marriage is marital property that must be distributed equitably.
Other grounds of appeal filed by Messrs. Dame & Partners on behalf of RNAQ’s wife are that the trial court erred in not lifting the veil of incorporation in Quick Credit & Investment Micro-Credit Limited (renamed Bills Micro Credit Limited) and other related and affiliated companies, despite clear and compelling evidence that the parties jointly established the initial company, which served as the financial and operational foundation for the Respondent’s subsequent business ventures.
The lawyers have also challenged the award of one-third of the “Dansoman House”, GHC300,000 as financial relief and GHC5,000 per month for the maintenance of three children of the marriage, as “manifestly inadequate, inequitable and unfair”.
Mrs. Quaye seeks from the Court of Appeal two orders from the Court of Appeal which are “an order setting aside the final orders of the judgment dated 20th January, 2026” and “an order granting to her an equitable share of all assets (immovable and movable) acquired during the subsistence of the marriage to RNAQ, including his shares and beneficial interests in all companies set up after the parties got married”.
RNAQ touts himself as a billionaire and regularly gives away expensive gifts to the public, such as cars and gold. He lives in a Trassacco Estates house acquired during his marriage to Joana Quaye, with Mona Faiz Montrage, popularly known as Hajia For Real. The plush parties he holds on various occasions and his generally luxurious lifestyle are matters of public record.
Legal experts opine that the stage is set for a long, intense, and interesting battle between the couple since the orders of the High Court, on the face of it, seem to depart from the recent trend of the Supreme Court in matrimonial cases.
