“If property is indeed a relationship of socially approved control over a valued resource, it has become quite clear that in the Britain of the 21st century, adverse possession of land is a form of control which is no longer socially approved.”[1] Introduction The crux of property law of almost every legal system is adverse possession,...
Introduction In 2008, His Lordship Anin Yeboah J.A. (as he then was) in the case of The Republic v. The Arbitration Committee of Mampong Gyase Council, Ex parte Opanin Kofi Twumasi,[1] expressed his admiration for the state of the law on capacity and warned against introducing new vistas into the concept thus: [T]he issue of...
Introduction The power to alienate and capacity to litigate are cornerstones of the law of Immovable Property and legal proceedings (Civil Procedure). The power to alienate literally enables a person or an entity to transfer or dispose of property, while capacity to litigate, on the other hand, determines who can sue and be sued in...
Introduction “Our word to you does not waver between ‘Yes’ and ‘No’. 2 Corinthians 1:18 NLT. The story of capacity is like the Biblical Reuben. In the Book of Genesis, Jacob said these about his eldest son: “Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength … unstable as water, thou...
Meaning of the term – Allodial The word ‘Allodial’ means absolute interest or original heritage’.[1] In Ghana, it is described as “the highest or ultimate interest in land”.[2] Historically, allodial pertained to land owned by a person without any feudal obligations or held without acknowledgement of any superior.[3] Allodial title can therefore be said to...
Introduction The problems that confronted land acquisition and administration in Ghana were daunting. It was therefore a big relief when a new land law was passed in 2020 to attend to the issues. The Land Act, 2020 (Act 1036) which came into force on 23 December 2020 is undoubtedly replete with innovative ideas. The Act...
INTRODUCTION Perhaps, you were wondering why during the trial of the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin[1], the court[2] sat on Good Friday and Easter Monday being days ordinarily expected to be holidays. Further still, did you observe that none of the court’s hearings took place on a Saturday or a Sunday? Are you at...
Introduction In 2014, Citifmonline.com[i] reported a news item in which a family lawyer and former lecturer of the Ghana Law School, Dr. Kofi Adinkrah who incidentally happened to be my Family Law lecturer[ii], in a post captioned ‘Prenups don’t generate controversy’, urged “Ghanaian couples to enter into prenuptial agreements to tackle unforeseen challenges associated with...
Introduction On 24th November 1933, the Privy Council delivered a decision that has had far reaching consequences on not only our jurisprudence but British West Africa in general. The case was Abotche Kponuglo and Others v. Adja Kodadja[i](known in our law reports simply as: Kponuglo v. Kodadja and in this article as ‘the Kodadja case’). The ratio of...
Anyone who has followed Justice Osei-Tutu’s Friday “Friday Legal Corner” will agree that the Learned Judge is making great contribution to legal education and legal practice, even as he serves in the country in the diaspora. The quality of research and the depth of knowledge exhibited by the Learned Judge in his writings make it...