Law and Social Change in Ghana

While Professor of Law and Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Ghana from 1962 to 1964, the author personally observed the evolving legal order in Ghana during a crucial period in that country’s development. Here, he considers statutes and judicial decisions. Working from the premise that law is a value-neutral technique of social ordering and derives its value content from a dominant elite, Professor Harvey places the important Ghanaian constitutional and legal developments in their social context. He concludes that although democratic values have dominated the basic structure of public power, autocratic values have determined the realities of political life in Ghana.

Originally published in 1966.

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