Chief Justice urges Ghanaians to access unclaimed monies with courts
Litigants who have legitimate claims with the Judicial Service have been advised to apply to access the unclaimed funds paid into the courts by parties.
Justice Anin Yeboah, Chief Justice, made the call through a circular dated, May 27, 2022, on the Court’s notice board seen by the Ghana News Agency.
“The public is hereby informed that over the years monies paid into court as a reset of court orders have been lodged in deposit accounts of the Judicial Service, unfortunately, some of the orders did not carry any form of further directive for investments of the funds by the courts.
“Regrettably, some of this money has been held in the deposit accounts for decades unclaimed by successful parties/beneficiaries of the funds or their successors as the case may be whereas the value keeps on depreciating with time.
The Judicial Service appreciates that it has no authority to hold depositors’ funds perpetually without paying those beneficiaries entitled.”
It added that, “Consequently, the Judicial Service invites legitimate claimants only to submit applications to access these moneys into court by following the procedure outlined below:
that a claimant may directly or through a lawyer submit an application supported by all the relevant documentation, which discloses the details of the case, to the registry of the court which issued the order for payment of moneys into court.”
The Registrar of the court will conduct a preliminary assessment of the application and transmit only claims with proper documentation to the Judicial Secretary, saying that a detailed evaluation of the application with supporting documents will be undertaken to establish the legitimacy of the claim.
It said once established, successful claimants will be advised of the necessary steps to take to access the funds.
“This special exercise will commence from June 1, 2022, and end on December 30, 2022, and as stated above it will be limited to legitimate claims.”
“The public is henceforth advised to take immediate steps to reclaim any money due them after cases are heard to finality,” it stated.
The cooperation of all stakeholders and the public would be appreciated, it said.
Source: GNA