Ghana`s Forex regime is governed by the Foreign Exchange Act, 2006 (Act 723). The BoG regulates foreign exchange transactions and transfers between residents and non-residents. Payments to or from Ghana between residents and/or non-residents must be made through a bank. However, transfers to or from Ghana must be made through a bank, merchant or person authorized to make money transfers. The BoG regularly publishes guidelines on Forex-related trading, and investors should make sure to stay informed about the new rules. The Faculty of Law of Ghana organizes a special 9-month program for the lawyer`s certificate for individuals already admitted to practice in another common law jurisdiction. The main courses of the post-appeal programme are Criminal Procedure Law, Civil Procedure Law, Law of Evidence, Family Law and Practice, Law of Interpretation of Documents and Laws, Ghanaian Constitutional Law and the Ghanaian Legal System. The main campus of the Faculty of Law of Ghana is located in Makola, Accra. It has now opened three more satellite sites, at the University of Ghana, Legon, KNUST Faculty of Law in Kumasi and GIMPA Law School in Greenhill, Accra. Due to the prevalence of nurturing LL.B. programs, Ghana`s Faculty of Law receives far more applicants than its institutions can accommodate. The Faculty of Law of Ghana has introduced an entrance exam and interview for prospective students. The country operates a legal system based on English common law.
The laws of Ghana consist of the following texts: the Constitution; laws passed by Parliament; orders, rules and regulations of a person or authority vested with powers conferred by the Constitution; applicable law; and common law, defined as the rules of law commonly referred to as the doctrines of equity and the rules of common law, which are standards of law applicable in common law to certain communities in Ghana, including those established by the Superior Court of Justice. At present, the legal education system includes an academic component that is completed at one of the many public and private universities and colleges, the LL.B. degree programs. Public universities are the University of Ghana Faculty of Law, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Faculty of Law, the Faculty of Law of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) and, since 2013, the Faculty of Law of the University of Cape Coast. The Faculty of Law of the University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA) is the newest to join the Faculties of Public Law. Private institutions that now have programs designed to award LL.B. degrees include Central University, KAAS University College, Lancaster University Ghana, Mountcrest University College, Wisconsin International University College and Zenith University College in collaboration with the University of London. The admission requirements for these public and private institutions are certain minimum passes for the West African Secondary School Certificate (WASSCE) examinations, the Upper Secondary School Certificate (SSSCE) examinations or the General Certificate of Education (GCE) at the ordinary and advanced levels. In addition, the General Legal Board has established an independent Examination Board to administer the entrance examination procedure.
This initiative was criticised and legal action was eventually taken to challenge the legality of the measures taken by the General Legal Council. The complaint, Asare v. General Legal Council, was decided by the Supreme Court of Ghana on 22 June 2017. The Court ruled, inter alia: states that, although section 14 of the Legal Professions Act, 1960 (Act 32) empowers the General Law Council to legislate and impose new conditions for admission to the Ghana Faculty of Law, it must do so by first amending its rules by means of a legal instrument. By introducing new admission conditions without amending its old legal instrument, the Council has acted unconstitutionally. Meanwhile, Parliament is currently considering the Legal Profession Amendment Bill 2018, which aims to streamline legal education in Ghana. Ghana`s capital markets are regulated by the SEC, which has a legal mandate to protect investors and maintain the integrity of the securities market and GSE. There is also the Ghana Alternative Market (GAX), which is a parallel market to the GSE and focuses on small and medium-sized enterprises that have potential, including start-ups. GAX offers companies the opportunity to raise long-term capital, broaden their investor base and provide liquidity to their shareholders and investors. The current 1992 constitution is available free of charge online (see also www.loc.gov/guide/ghana.html).
Land ownership in Ghana is required by the Constitution and related laws. Legal regulations distinguish between property rights and rights of use. Ghana`s 1992 Constitution provides for three categories of land ownership: The current 1992 Constitution is available free of charge online (see also WipoLex). In January 2010, the Government of Ghana established a commission to revise the 1992 Constitution. The Constitutional Review Commission submitted its report on 20 December 2011. In June 2012, the government published a White Paper on the report of the Constitutional Review Commission, which was submitted to the President, setting out its position on the report of the Constitutional Review Commission. Among the government`s positions was the creation of a committee for the implementation of the constitution. On 2 October 2012, the Attorney General of Ghana established a five-member Constitution Implementation Committee to prepare the people for a referendum on the enshrined provisions of the Constitution and to facilitate the adoption of laws amending the unentrenched provisions of the Constitution. They would do the latter by drafting legislative proposals for legislative amendments recommended by the Constitutional Review Commission. The legality of the Constitutional Review Commission and the activities of the Constitutional Implementation Committee were examined in a legal dispute. However, in October 2015, Ghana`s Supreme Court rejected Asare v. Attorney General`s application as unfounded by a 5-2 majority.
The Securities Industry Act will be amended to introduce new operators such as commodity exchanges, credit rating agencies, hedge funds, nominee account operators, private equity funds and venture capital funds that will be subject to SEC regulation. The Constitution also provides for the establishment of regional courts, which may also include non-lawyers. The Government Procurement Act 2003 (Act 663) was passed as an integral part of public financial management reforms in Ghana to promote decency and accountability in public sector financial management and expenditure. The law regulates the acquisition of goods, works and services financed in whole or in part by public funds, as well as the sale of State reserves. In addition, all government agencies, institutions and agencies in which the government has a majority interest are required to comply. In Ghana, land may be owned by a company that may have acquired its shares either from the PVLMD or from a stool or a family. The conditions for the transfer of land older than three years must be set out in a contract. It is a constitutional requirement that a non-foreigner cannot be granted an interest in land for more than 50 years. Land use is subject to a number of restrictions, which are as follows: Selected bibliography of Ghanaian secondary documents You have reached the limit of premium articles that you can check for free. Under Ghanaian law, movable and immovable property may be used as collateral for a credit transaction. The use of land as security is reflected in the Mortgage Law, the Basic Law and the Companies Act, under which the security right is created by a company. Personal property, including receivables, shares and securities, can be used as collateral for transactions by creating fixed or variable charges for the identified security.
In order to assess whether a proposed guarantee is free of privileges and can be used as collateral for a transaction, an application for ownership must be addressed to the BoG`s Commercial Register and Collateral Register, as well as to the Land Registry in respect of real estate. In the communications sector, the national communications authority must authorise the transfer of shares in an authorised entity if the transfer results in a change of control of that entity and results in the breach by that company of the licensing conditions relating to its ownership structure.
