Case law note

The Ivorian land and property regime is scattered. This state of affairs is a real handicap to the development of transactions relating to real property rights in a healthy climate conducive to the economic and social development of the population. To the question of whether it is legal for a Minister of Construction to refuse to issue a Arrêté de Concession Définitive (ACD) to a person holding a provisional concession, the Ivorian administrative court has ruled in the negative. It considers the Minister's decision not to consider a refusal letter as an administrative act to be irrelevant. Schematically, the Ivorian CE analyzes the refusal letter as an administrative act. This analysis by the CE has lifted the veil on this institution's approach to individual acts. The administrative judge specifies that a simple letter of refusal is an administrative act, and therefore censurable by the juge de l'excès de pouvoir. Faced with such a situation, the administrative judge, without saying so clearly, seems to be proposing an additive solution, bringing a new layer of security to property rights under Ivorian law.