Courts Act, 1971 (Act 372) as the courts read it.

But the true basic principle remains that Ghana law is the lex situs and on each occasion, the court attempts to find the personal law of the deceased and applies it. If it cannot ascertain the personal law, then it adapts the customary law of the area in furtherance of justice. Indeed, these principles are now embodied in Rules 2 and 4 of section 49 (1) of the Courts Act, 1971, which read respectively as follows: “In the absence of any intention to the contrary, the law applicable to any issue arising out of the devolution of a person’s estate shall be the personal law of that person.” “In applying [Rule] 2 ... to disputes relating to titles to land due regard shall be had to any overriding provisions of the law of the place in which the land is situated.”

YOUHANA v. ABBOUD [1974] 2 GLR 201 [1974] SLR (CA) 4 · Court of Appeal · 1974 · LASSEY JA