Studying Law with an American Degree

Dear Reader,

As far as I know, there is no special track for American B.A. degree holders who want to study law in Ghana. In fact, there is no such special track even for Ghanaian B.A. degree holders who want to study law. They all have to do the LLB in Ghana before they can go to the Ghana School of Law.

I do not know if you are really asking about about American law degree holders. I do not know the answer to that, but I will find out and put out an additional note for you.

Claiming Back Your House

Dear Reader,

1. Our Rent Act is very socialist (you see, it was enacted in the 1960s). Normally, when a lease or tenancy ends, and the tenant chooses to remain in the premises, they enjoy an 'Irremovable Status' unless the law says they should go.
2. Therefore, you will have to get a court order to remove a tenant who has overstayed the agreed period.
3. You have not stated how long your lease was, but it is not a hard-and-fast rule that you should give a tenant 3 months' notice to quit. Sometimes, it is less. Sometimes, it is even 6 months.
4. If your tenant refuses to quit, you may want to consider suing them in a magistrate court.
5. Having said all that, there is a concept known as 'Self-Help', where a property owner 'helps' themselves by throwing out the property of the tenant and locking up the premises. This has been upheld by the courts in some cases (although reluctantly). 
6. What you must know about 'Self-Help' is that you must not do it, if it will be resisted physically by the tenant, which might cause a brawl or an altercation.That would be a criminal offence.
7. Another thing is you must ensure that the you have not accepted any rent from the tenant for a further period since the tenancy ended, or you would have waived your right to let them leave. Throwing them out whether by force or by putting inconveniences in their way, while they are still 'legally' in your premises, amounts to another offence - inducement to quit.
8. The best and most risk-free advice I can give you is to sue them in a magistrate's court.

Good luck.

Handing Over Your Licence

Dear Reader,

Pardon me for taking so long to get back on this one.

1. The Road Traffic Act provides that a person driving on a road has to produce their licence for examination if a police officer asks them to.
2. The law does not say exactly what it means to produce the licence, and it could mean a certain number of things. I believe the best view to take of this is, a person cannot claim to have produced their licence if they merely hold it up from a distance or provide a photocopy.
3. The law also gives up to 24 hours to produce the licence.
4. If a person suspects that a police officer will take the licence in order to extort money, well, they can produce it within 24 hours at the officer's police station. I believe you can insist politely that you would like to produce your licence at a police station (if it is convenient for you).
5. Please note that refusal or failure to produce your licence can be punished by conviction and a fine of up to GHS 600 or 1 year's imprisonment or both the fine and the prison term.