Ethiopia’s Customs Forfeiture Law And The Protection Of Third Party Rights: A Critical Analysis

Abstract

Today, customs forfeiture has become a powerful weapon in the fight against contraband and other illegal goods in several jurisdictions. Ethiopia is also not an exception. The present statutory authority that enables the government to take the property involved in illegal activities is found in customs proclamation and related laws enforced by Ethiopian Customs Commission, such as firearm administration and control proclamation. These laws aren't clear from the outset that only the offender’s interest in the property is subject to forfeiture, and hence the interests of innocent third parties who have engaged in legitimate dealings with the alleged offender are also affected by the system. Nevertheless, there are no robust substantive and procedural safeguards in place to protect the rights of these individuals. This creates undesirable legal uncertainty that leads to discretionary and arbitrary administrative decisions as well as inconsistent court rulings, increasing both the costs and the volume of litigation. The thesis aims to identify these gaps within Ethiopian customs forfeiture law that affect third parties and provide a workable solution to protect their interests while still achieving the public goal behind customs forfeiture. The research methodology employed is a doctrinal legal research approach supported by qualitative data from key informants to examine the practical application of the law. Through this methodology, the study finds that customs forfeiture has an adverse impact on innocent third-party rights due to a lack of clear and adequate legal remedies. Therefore, the thesis concludes by recommending a complete legislative revision of Ethiopian customs law, such as a definition that includes all third parties with potential legal and economic interests to challenge the forfeiture action and requires the Ethiopian Customs Commission to provide adequate notice of the action, limiting forfeiture to residual portions of the property after innocent third parties have exhausted their rights, separate procedures for each type of forfeiture, a clear distinction between civil (administrative) and criminal forfeiture, adopting remission and mitigation, as well as proportionality assessments. The writer argues that with such reforms, Ethiopia can achieve a more equitable balance between strong customs law enforcement and third-party rights protection, thereby fostering a fair and more predictable legal environment for commercial activities.