Sierra Leone’s Lands Minister Dr. Turad Senesie has challenged lawyers over their interpretation of a 19th-Century property law, saying those relying on the legislation should read it before debating the government’s position.
Dr. Senesie made the challenge in a Facebook post as a dispute grows over the government’s proposed changes to land administration and the legal status of existing land ownership.
The minister questioned why lawyers were relying on the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act 1881, pointing out that it was enacted by the UK Parliament on 22 August 1881 and did not extend to Scotland.
He urged his critics to read what he referred to as Chapter 41 of the Act and accused them of spreading misinformation.
The Lawyers’ Society has taken a different position.
The Society has cited the 1881 legislation in arguing that individuals have legally recognised rights to own and transfer land. Its position has also been publicly discussed by its public relations officer, Claude Bhamee Davies, on radio, amid the controversy over the government’s interpretation of existing land rights.
But the legal history of the 1881 Act is more complicated than its British origin suggests.
Sierra Leone’s Imperial Statutes (Law of Property) Adoption Ordinance, Cap. 18, incorporated the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act 1881 into the country’s legal framework, subject to specified exceptions.
A legal review published by SierraLII identifies the 1881 Act as part of Sierra Leone’s laws and discusses its continuing relevance, including in mortgage transactions.
This means that the central legal question is not simply whether the legislation was originally enacted in Britain.
It is whether the provisions relied upon by the Lawyers’ Society remain applicable today and how they interact with Sierra Leone’s subsequent land legislation.
The National Land Commission Act 2022 introduced a new framework for land administration and registration. The legislation repealed the Provinces Land Act and the Concessions Act, but did not expressly repeal the 1881 Act or Cap. 18.
The 2022 law also makes an important distinction between registration and ownership. It provides that non-registration of land subject to customary law does not invalidate its title or ownership.
The Customary Land Rights Act 2022 separately recognises customary land rights and provides a framework for their administration.
The dispute therefore extends beyond the question of whether an old British statute can still be cited in Sierra Leone. It raises questions about how inherited property law, modern land legislation and customary land rights operate alongside one another.
Dr. Senesie says the government’s reforms are intended to correct longstanding problems in land administration and reduce land grabbing and disputes.
“We are taking steps to correct the lapses of the past,” he wrote on Facebook. “The Land Sector must be quiet and there must be peace in land governance in Sierra Leone.”
The Lawyers’ Society, meanwhile, has maintained that existing legal rights to land cannot simply be displaced by administrative changes or the introduction of a new registration system.
The disagreement is likely to remain significant as the government advances its proposed nationwide land registration and title-certification programme.
