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There are 1868 (One thousand eight
hundred and sixty- eight) Civil Suits in this Department pending
in various High Courts of the State as well as 43 in appellate
courts.
(The Department of Legal Drafting
on the other hand has the responsibility of preparing draft
bills for the legislative programmes of the Executive Arm of the
Government.
This is done through:-
(a) Amendment of
existing laws;
(b) Drafting of subsidiary
legislations including orders required under
the Constitution.
(c) Advising on and
interpreting legislations;
(d) Drafting and
vetting agreements in which the State Government is a
party and rendering advice on them;
(e) Producing of
annual volume of the state laws;
(f) Revising the
laws of the State as and when required.
(g) Drafting
Memorandum and Articles of Association and other legal
documents.
(h) Arbitrations
The Drafters in the Department are
highly skilled. During the year about 200 important bills like
Local Government Bill, State Electoral Bill, AKIIPOC,
Environmental and Waste Management Agency, Ethical Re-
Orientation Bill, and Remuneration of Public Officers Bill were
signed into law. Agreements for the construction of various
roads, bridges and hospitals, installation of web-offset
printing machines and the supply of fire fighting vehicles were
executed.
The Department of Estate
Administration is another important department of the Ministry
which strives to achieve some of the set objectives of the
Ministry through the establishment of the office of the
Administrator-General which is a creation of statute namely the
Administrator-General Law. The Department is headed by a lawyer
and the staff also consists of other lawyers, accountants and
clerks. The Department administers un-represented estates after
obtaining grant of probate or letter of administration; it also
administers estates surrender to it by the legal beneficiaries
thereof. The Administrator-General may be appointed the sole
executor of a will. The Administrator-General is a corporate
sole, has perpetual succession and an official seal and may sue
or be sued in the corporate name. He also acts as a general
'Trustee' and proffers legal advice to Government on related
matters. The Department of Planning, Research and Statistics as
the name implies handles the documentation of all vital
documents/information in the Ministry. The central library is a
unit under this Department. The library unit is a very important
arm of the Ministry. It is well stocked with current books and
materials and is used by both lawyers in the Ministry and
private legal practitioners. The Department also aids the smooth
running of the Ministry through planning. Presently the
Department is reporting Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and High
court decisions on new points of law for publication.
Lastly, the Administration
Department co-ordinates all the non-legal duties in the
Ministry. It takes care of Personnel Matters including:
i. Pensions
and Gratuity;
ii. Compensation/Benefits
iii. Protocol
iv.
Recruitment/Training
The Finance and Supplies Unit of
the Ministry although subsumed under the Administration
Department wraps it all by advising the Hon. Attorney-General
and Solicitor-General/Permanent Secretary on financial matters.
It prepares annual estimates; pays salaries; answers audit
queries; arranges for special imprests, augmentation of votes
and liaises with the State Accountant-General on financial
matters affecting the Ministry.
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