Legal Services

The Directorate if Legal Services Department is responsible for providing Legal advise to the Council. The Department also executes various functions like processing Land applications, trading licenses applications, preparation of Certificates of Title and occupancy licenses issued under the statutory Housing and improvement areas Act etc.The Directorate has six (6) sections and these are:-litigation

• Estates
• Licensing
• contracts
• Deeds Registry
• Administration

The sections perform the following functions:

Litigation
The litigation section is one of the core sections of the department. The department handles a lot of cases on behalf of the Council both as plaintiffs or defendants.

Estates
The main sphere of operation under the section is the processing of land applications within the are of Councils jurisdiction.
The Local Government Act in second Schedule provides that it is a Councils function to prohibit and control the development and use of Land and Buildings and the erections in the interest of public of public Health, Public safety and the proper and order development of the area of the Council.

The land a Council has power to deal with can be divided into two:-

• State land This is the land which falls directly under the control of the Commissioner of Lands and the Council acts as an Agent
• Housing (Statutory and Improvements) Area.

Statutory Housing areas are areas which are declared as such by the Minister of Local Government and Housing under the Housing (Statutory and Improvements Areas) Act.
Section 4 (1) of the Act provides that the Minister may by statutory order declare any land within the jurisdiction of a Council to be a statutory Housing Area.

Procedure in the allocation of land

• d for Service charges served to all successful applicants
• Land identification
• Approval of plan by Council
• Advertisement placed in newspaper for applications
• All applications reported to Plans, Works and development Committee, and full Council Offer letters and demand

The department also prepares offer letters for the sale of Council houses and all necessary documentation leading to the issuance of Title Deeds. Other documents prepared here include; Assignments, Mortgage Deeds, Discharge of Mortgage Deeds, etc.

Licencing

• The section processes applications for various trading licenses as provided for under the Trades Licensing Act
• Processing Liquor licenses on behalf of the Liquor Licencing Board
• Conducting inspections inconjuction with the Council Police Unit to ensure traders comply with the Trades Licensing Act
  Contracts

The section is responsible for the preparation of Contracts and Agreements concerning and relating to Council. These include ;

• Building Contracts
• Contracts of sale
• Lease agreements in respect of Council properties

Deeds Registry
The Registry handles all land transactions as provided for under the Housing (Statutory and Improvement Areas) Act. Certificates of Title, Occupancy Licenses and Land Records are prepared here.