An Accra Circuit Court has ordered a businessman to pay GH₵200,000 in damages after ending an 11-year relationship built on a promise of marriage, in a ruling that highlights the legal and financial consequences of failed engagements.

The Court entered judgment in favour of Ernestina Torgbor on her counterclaim for breach of promise to marry against Vince Kontoh, who had earlier sought to eject her from a property following the breakdown of their relationship.

Presiding judge Sedinam Awo Kwadam, a High Court judge sitting with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court judge, awarded GH₵50,000 as general damages and GH₵150,000 as compensation for the breach. The Court also ordered Kontoh to pay interest at prevailing commercial bank rates from February 16, 2026, along with GH₵20,000 in costs.

Beyond the monetary award, the Court declared that Torgbor holds a beneficial interest in a two-bedroom apartment at East Legon and directed that she continues using a Toyota RAV4 vehicle and an industrial blender, as no ownership claim had been made against them. Both parties were also instructed to regularise her interest in a six-unit, two-bedroom apartment block in the same area.

The dispute arose after Kontoh filed a writ seeking to evict Torgbor, describing her as a mere licensee whose right to occupy the property had been revoked. Torgbor resisted and filed a counterclaim, arguing that she had relied on repeated promises of marriage throughout their relationship.

Court records showed the couple began their relationship in 2013, with Kontoh living abroad and providing financial support for industrial machinery, a vehicle, the education of Torgbor’s children, and the construction of the East Legon apartments. Torgbor supervised the project and later relocated at his request.

Evidence also indicated that Kontoh presented her with a ring, publicly acknowledged himself as her “in-law” during her father’s funeral, and participated fully in family rites. The pair cohabited until the relationship ended.

While Kontoh claimed the ring was merely to “ward off male attention,” the Court found the explanation unconvincing and held that the ring, long-term cohabitation, financial interdependence, and public acknowledgment constituted a serious and unequivocal promise to marry.

The judge ruled that the breach entitled Torgbor to damages and that her contributions created an equitable interest in the property that must be protected, even though legal ownership remains with Kontoh.

Kontoh’s claim for ejectment was consequently dismissed. Justice Kwadam noted that the decision addresses a significant social and legal issue, recognising that informal promises of marriage can carry substantial emotional and economic consequences when broken.