Legal Problems In Gambia



Legal Advice, Services & Representation in Gambia

Solie Law are a truly international law firm that happens to be based in the Gambia, rather than a firm of Gambian lawyers that happens to do some international work. We work with paralegals, supporting staff and with independent lawyers and business professionals located around the world. Solie Law are Gambian attorneys at law advising on the acts, regulations, statutes, laws, requirements, processes & procedures enforcable in The Gambia.

Buying Residential Property in The Gambia

Whether you are buying a holiday home, a place for retirement or an investment property in The Gambia, let our team of specialist property lawyers transfer the ownership safely into your name – and deal with all of the other vital issues that must be taken into account when buying property in The Gambia.
Selling Residential Property in The Gambia

If you are selling your property in The Gambia your main concern is getting your hands on the money as quickly as possible. But there can be a lot more to do, especially if you want to minimise your taxes both in The Gambia and in the country where you live. Let our Gambia based team of specialist international property lawyers help you deal with the sale safely.

Buying Commercial Property in The Gambia

When you are buying a hotel, an office, a warehouse or a shop in The Gambia there are many more things to think about than the basics of making sure you get good legal title. These will require a knowledge of the legal system in the country where you live and also of The Gambia. We specialise in dealing with cases involving the law of more than one country.

Selling Commercial Property in The Gambia

If you are selling commercial property in The Gambia you will need to bear in mind not just the legal issues in the country in question but also the tax and business law consequences of the sale. Our team of lawyers can help you save a lot of money and a lot of aggravation!

Property Rental Contracts in The Gambia

So you have bought you investment in The Gambia and you want to let it out. Are you really going to allow the tenant into possession without a signed rental contract? You need to protect your legal position. Let us prepare a specimen contract that you can use over and over again. Just check every couple of years that the law has not changed!

Mortgaging Your Gambian Property

Most of our clients now borrow to finance the purchase of their property in The Gambia. Let us discuss with you whether a mortgage in your own country or a mortgage in The Gambia will best suit your needs. Note that we are not mortgage brokers and we are not trying to sell you any particular mortgage product.
Mortgages of Shares or Debentures
If you wish to raise money on the strength of the shares in a Gambian company or to grant a general charge over the assets of that company you will need to put in place the right legal paperwork and/or check that the paperwork supplied by your lender is both fair and reasonable and that it will not cause any undesirable consequences in the country where you are living.
Setting Up A Company in The Gambia

Whether you wish to start a business or buy an investment property, doing so using a company may be the best way forward. Which type of company should you use? The options will be different from what you are used to. What are the tax consequences and costs involved? Let us explain the process and help you set up the companies in The Gambia that you require.

Offshore Companies

Companies based offshore (ie: in tax havens) can still have number of advantages for some of our clients but can be a disaster for others. Let us guide you through the advantages and disadvantages of each type of company and then help you set up any companies in The Gambia that you may need.

Trusts

Some of our Clients will benefit from the use of trusts. Very often they do not understand the options available to them or they think that trusts are only for people who are much richer than they are. So they do nothing. And it costs them a fortune in unnecessary taxes. Let us guide you through this minefield.

Wills in The Gambia

If you are the owner of a property in The Gambia it is very often a good idea to prepare a will relating to your property. You will then also need to modify your existing will or any other wills. You will need to make sure that both are operating in the most tax efficient manner and, most importantly, that they do not contradict each other. Let our team of lawyers with experience from many different jurisdictions guide you through this process.

Dealing with an Inheritance in The Gambia

It is bad enough when your parents die and they live just down the road. It can be much more complicated if they live in The Gambia. The laws are different, the tax is different and you don’t know who to turn to. Even if your parents used a local lawyer, will that lawyer know enough about Gambian law to guide through these complicated waters? Let our team of lawyers in The Gambias help you.
Setting up a Business in The Gambia

When you are starting business in The Gambia you will normally need far more advice than a ‘local’ person. You will probably need help not just with the legalities involved in registering your business but also with tax issues, the drafting of contracts and other documents and about many aspects of the local business culture. Few local lawyers will be able to give you this advice.
Business Problems in The Gambia

It is always the same. No sooner have you started your business than somebody refuses to pay you or you fall out with a supplier. Our team of lawyers will be happy to give you advice about the many types of business problems in The Gambia we deal with.

Development Opportunities in The Gambia

Development of land – i.e. buying land in The Gambia and building on it or buying a property and improving it – is becoming increasingly common, even for ‘ordinary’ investors. Choosing the right opportunity, drawing up a business plan that will work in The Gambia and making the right contacts can be a major challenge. Let our team of lawyers use our years of Gambian legal experience to help you get it right and maximise your profit.

Grants and Grant Aid in The Gambia

Sometimes taxes can be a good thing! In some countries there are bucketfuls of money available by way of grants, soft loans and tax incentives when you are starting a new business. The sums can be huge and, sometimes, the obstacles to claiming the grants can be quite small – providing you know what you are doing. Speak to one of our team of international lawyers in The Gambia to see whether we can help you claim the money to which you are entitled.

Advising About an Accident in The Gambia

In most countries if you suffer an accident as a result of the negligence of some other person you will be entitled to compensation. Knowing where to claim, what to claim and how to claim needs specialist legal advice. Speak to one of our team of international lawyers in The Gambia to see whether we can help you claim the money to which you are entitled.Immigration and Nationality

If you are thinking of moving to The Gambia you may well need help understanding what visas are available and how you get them. If you want to claim Gambian nationality you will also need to understand the rules and procedures involved. Speak to one of our Gambian based international lawyers to see whether we can help you.
Debt Collecting in The Gambia

If someone in The Gambia owes you money and won’t pay you will, unfortunately, usually have to go to court. Bringing a court case in another country can be complicated but need not be excessively so. Speak to one of our team international lawyers based in The Gambia to see whether we can help you claim the money to which you are entitled.

Work Permits in The Gambia

If you want to work in The Gambia – whether as an employee or running your own business – you will often need a work permit or other official authorisation to do so. Obtaining work permits in the fastest possible way involves not only a knowledge of the law in The Gambia but also good local contacts who can guide you as to the attitudes and preferences of the local officials in question. Let our team of lawyers qualified in The Gambia help you get it right!
Contract Checking Service in The Gambia
Some of our clients do not wish to take advantage of our full property transfer service but prefer us only to check their contracts and advise them about any problems that we find. This can be quite a lot cheaper than (but nearly as secure as) our dealing with the whole transaction. Other clients ask us to carry out a preliminary review of their contracts right at the outset of the transaction and before they instruct us to proceed with our full property transfer service. Either way we are happy to fit in with your wishes.
‘One to One’ Preliminary Meetings
Increasingly clients recognise the value of discussing their affairs at the earliest possible opportunity. For example, if they are buying a property in The Gambia they will talk to us about the key issues such as who should be the legal owner of the property (not always obvious), which type of mortgage would be best, how to deal with any inheritance complications produced by the local law and how to minimise their tax bills in their own country and in The Gambia BEFORE they go to look at any properties. Early advice will almost always save quite a lot of money!
Criminal Cases in The Gambia
If you or a member of your family gets into trouble whilst in The Gambia you need expert assistance from somebody accustomed to dealing with the laws of the Gambia but who is also familiar with the law in your own country so that they can explain to you in terms that you will understand the procedures, penalties and options available in relation to the charges that you face. In association with our correspondent lawyers around the world we can provide this service. We also operate a 24 hour emergency service.
Matrimonial Cases in The Gambia
Family problems are always difficult and stressful. They are even more so if you live in one country and your husband/wife lives in another or where the case is being dealt with by the courts in another country using a legal system with which you are not familiar and a language that you do not speak. In association with our correspondent lawyers around the world we can provide this service. We also operate a 24 hour emergency service.
Family Disputes in The Gambia
Sadly, it is not uncommon for families to fall out. Perhaps children fall out with stepmother on the death of their father. Children also fall out with parents and parents fall out with each other, often in relation to their children. To deal with these problems you need expert assistance from somebody accustomed to dealing with the laws of The Gambia but who is also familiar with the law in your own country so that they can explain to you in terms that you will understand the procedures and options available in relation to the problems that you face.
‘Maintenance’ and Financial Provision in The Gambia

The rules setting out how much financial support you must pay/are entitled to receive vary greatly from country to country. Getting this right has huge financial implications for the parties concerned. You need expert assistance from somebody accustomed to dealing with the law in The Gambia but who is also familiar with the law in your own country so that they can explain to you in terms that you will understand the procedures and options available.

‘Access’ (Visitation) and ‘Custody’ (Residence) of Children
Will you be entitled to see your children? Is the local court likely to permit the children to live with you? Attitudes vary dramatically from country to country. The position of a foreigner can be especially complicated, particularly if they are in dispute with a local person.
Child Abduction (Child Snatch)
This most distressing of situations needs a rapid response from someone who understands the law and procedures in the country where you are living, the country from which the child was taken and the country where the other party resides. In association with our correspondent lawyers around the world we can provide this service. We also operate a 24 hour emergency service.
Property Purchase Problems in The Gambia
Have you agreed to buy a property only to find that you have been deceived? Do you want someone to check out your property purchase contract and to advise you about whether it is safe to proceed? Dealing with property purchases and problems is something we have been doing for over 20 years. We pride ourselves on giving clear, practical and low cost advice.
Property Investment Club or Fund Purchase Problems
Have you agreed to buy a membership of a Property Investment Club or a Property Investment Fund only to find that you have been deceived? Do you want someone to check out your property investment purchase contract and to advise you about whether it is safe to proceed? Dealing with property investment purchases and problems is something we have been doing for over 20 years. We pride ourselves on giving clear, practical and low cost advice.
Assistance to Property Investment Club or Fund Owners’ Groups and Committees
Many investment club or fund constitutions provide for an owners’ group or committee dealing with the management of the property or, at least, giving advice to the professional management company running the property investment. Those committees will need legal advice from lawyers familiar with the law relating to property investments. They will need to know the law in The Gambia , in the country where the buyers live and the international or European law governing these types of operations. We have been advising Investment committees for over 20 years. See whether we can help you.
Setting Up Property Investment Club or Fund
If you are thinking of setting up a property investment fund, find out the ways that we can help you. This might include locating suitable land, dealing with the planning and building consents, dealing with the fund’s constitution, drafting and/or dealing with the property sales documentation and giving you the invaluable general advice that comes from nearly 20 years specialising in international transactions.
Powers of Attorney in The Gambia
If you have dealings with another country – whether these involve buying a house, dealing with a court case or running a business – you are likely to need to appoint somebody locally to take steps on your behalf. This will require a Power of Attorney. The Power needs to be drafted carefully to ensure that it give the person appointed – the Attorney – all of the powers needed but no more. It will usually need to be in the format and style used and in the language of that country. It will also have to be authenticated for use in the country in question. We produce hundreds of such Powers every year.
Process Serving
If you want to bring a court case against someone who lives in The Gambia there are special rules to be followed when it comes to the serving of the court papers. Through our network of correspondent offices throughout the world we can deal with this task in many countries.
Court Cases in The Gambia
Nobody likes being involved in a court case. It is always stressful, time consuming and expensive. A court case in another country is even worse. Dealing with such a case in The Gambia requires a knowledge of the law and the ability to explain it to you in terms that you will understand. Let out team of Gambian international lawyers guide you through the maze. We will try to find the shortest and most cost effective way of dealing with the problem. Where possible we will try to reach a settlement that will avoid you having to go to court .
Enforcement of Judgments
If you have obtained a court judgement in one country and wish to enforce it in another – e.g. you wish to seize assets from the person who lost the case – it is often possible to do so via the courts of the other country. The process varies hugely from place to place. Let out team of Gambian lawyers guide you through the maze.
Property Investment Clubs
Many of our clients wish to invest in international property but do not wish – or do not have the funds – to build up their own portfolio of properties around the world. Owning a diversified portfolio of property is often the safest and most profitable way of investing in real estate. These very simple and tax efficient structures can be a great way of investing in property abroad. We can advise, set up the clubs and help you find the best investments. We even sometimes act as dating agencies for people who do not have friends or family who want to join them.
Property Investment Funds
Property Investment Funds (Real Estate Investment Trusts – REITS, Property Unit Trusts – PUTS etc.) can be a sensible way for people who do not wish to invest huge amounts of money in overseas real estate to dip their toes into this market. We can assist in the setting up of these funds, by helping the funds find a and buy property and in many other ways. We can also help individuals who wish to invest in such funds do the due diligence needed to check out what is being offered to them. Note that we are not Independent Financial Advisors and we will not advise about whether you would be better investing in fund A or fund B.
Property Investment Advice
Unusually for a law firm, we have for many years been giving advice to clients about which areas, places and types of property might best suit their personal investment requirements. There is no ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to making this choice. What is right for you will depend upon your age, financial situation, timescale, personal preferences, attitude to risk, etc. There is now a huge range of property in The Gambia available to investors in the UK and we can apply our unrivalled experience of international property to help you pick your best options. This service is greatly appreciated by our clients.
Owning Property via your SIPP (Self Invested Personal Pension)
Yes! SIPPs can own property abroad. They can own commercial property (hotels, bars, offices, land etc.) and – subject to certain restrictions – they can own residential property via indirect means (e.g. via a company or property fund rather than directly by the SIPP), where they own no more than 10% of the property and where it is not for their personal use. Ownership through the SIPP can be incredibly tax efficient. If you and your financial advisors decide that this is for you we can help you by introducing you to a suitable SIPP provider, by finding and/or buying the property in question and by dealing with all of the ongoing paperwork that will be required.
Disputes with Developers
Unfortunately not all property developers are honest and some honest developers get into difficulties which mean that the development cannot be completed. This can leave people who have bought property in the developments (especially if they did not use an independent lawyer to protect their position) with losses of thousands of pounds. We can help by trying to recover those losses, through the courts or in other ways. We can do this for individuals or for whole groups of people who have been affected.
Advice to Action Groups/Committees
Very often you can find yourself in a position where you have perfectly good legal rights but where the cost of protecting those rights is just too high for one person to pay. In these cases we can sometimes set up or act for a group of people who have all been affected by the same problem. For example, a group of people who have bought property in the same development and where the developer has failed to deliver the properties or honour his contract. Or for a group of people who are in dispute with an unscrupulous timeshare operator. This can reduce the cost per person from thousands of pounds to a few hundred and make taking action economically viable.
International Tax Advice

If you live or work in another country or if you have holiday home in another country, you will need to understand the tax system in that country. You will need to file tax returns and you will want to minimise your tax obligations both during your lifetime and on your death. If you are an investor what matters is the amount you receive after tax and so you too will need good tax advice to limit your obligation to pay. Giving that advice requires an understanding of the tax law in the country in question AND in your own country. There is no point in saving tax in The Gambia only to find that the steps you have taken greatly increase your obligations in (say) the UK. International tax advice is an integral part of many of the cases we deal with on a day to day basis.