The Human Trafficking Act ("the Act") criminalizes the trafficking of persons within and across borders by the use of threat, fraud, and exploitation of vulnerability or by paying to gain consent. Under the Act, induced prostitution, all other forms of sexual exploitation, and slavery all constitute trafficking. The Act mandates that persons with information on trafficking have a duty to inform authorities.
The Intestate Succession Act governs family inheritance when a property owner dies without a will. The law provides a uniform system of intestate succession applicable regardless of the type of marriage (i.e., secular, customary, or Muslim). The estate is distributed through the various sections according to the number and type of heirs involved in the distribution. Section 5, for example, sets guidelines for how to divide an estate survived by both spouse and child, while section 6 dictates how to divide an estate when survived by a spouse only.
The Labour Act outlines workers’ rights in the public and private sectors. Part VI provides specific safeguards for women, such as the protection of pregnant women and the right to maternity, annual, and sick leave. Any violation of these provisions can be reported to the National Labour Commission. Section 55 prohibits employers from assigning pregnant women workers night work or overtime without their consent.
This Act relates to divorce, nullity of marriages, and child custody. According to Section 1, a petition for divorce will only be granted if the “marriage has broken down beyond reconciliation,” which includes adultery, unreasonable behavior, desertion, and unreconcilable differences. The petition may be filed by either party. Part 2 discusses other matrimonial issues, such as nullity of marriage, presumption of death, and neglect. Finally, Part 3 outlines the Court’s power to split property between the parties and decide child custody.
This case concerns the sharing of spousal property upon divorce. On 22 December 1986, the High Court dissolved the marriage between the husband (“H”) and his wife (“W”) on a petition and cross-petition for divorce filed by H and W, respectively. Subsequently, the Court heard the parties’ claims for ancillary relief in which both H and W claimed ownership of the same house. The High Court found that W was the sole owner of the house.
The petitioner filed for divorce and sought an equal share of assets acquired during the marriage. At the time of marriage, neither party owned any property.
In 2008, Mr. Mensah married ABI Dosu Theresa when they were both members of the Ghana Armed Forces. Because Mr. Mensah was an officer and Theresa was a female of a different rank, the marriage violated the Armed Forces Act, which requires that for a male officer to marry a lower-ranked woman, the woman must first resign and obtain the “requisite prior approval for her release from the Ghana Armed Forces.” Mr. Mensah was thus dismissed from the Armed Forces.
This case concerns the ability of women to pass on their life interest in an estate to their children under customary law. In this case, the deceased, the grandfather of the appellants, died intestate. According to the customary law of the Ga people of Osu, the deceased’s female descendants only have a life interest in the estate rather than ownership rights. The first respondent, having outlived his siblings, claimed the right as the head of the family to sell one piece of the estate’s property.
This divorce case involved a couple that was married for 25 years. The petitioner-wife filed for divorce due to unreasonable behavior and adultery. She requested custody of their minor child, property rights as the court deemed fit, and that the respondent-husband vacate the marital home, pay a dissolution settlement, and cover court costs. The respondent, who was the family’s primary source of financial support, funded the construction of the parties’ marital home.
This case concerns the criteria for what constitutes a valid customary marriage. In question was whether or not the respondent was precluded from marrying another as a result of the prior customary marriage alleged. The case arose after the complainant filed a caveat against the issue of a registrar’s certificate in respect to an alleged ordinance marriage between the respondent and another woman.
