Chief Justice swears-in 13 High Court Judges

The Chief Justice, Mrs Georgina Theodora Wood on Friday sworn into office 13 High Court Judges at a ceremony in Accra.

They were made up of eight men and five women.

Eight of them were elevated from the Circuit Courts, while five were called from the Bar.

They were selected after rigorous recruitment exercise including examinations, interviews and thorough back ground checks by National Security.

The judges took three oaths including Oath of Allegiance, Judicial Oath and Oath of Secrecy.

Dr Dominic Ayine, the Deputy Attorney General and Minister of Justice, called on the new justices to be faithful to the oaths being sworn to.

“Fidelity to the judicial oath in all its dimensions is the starting point of your success as a judge,” he added.

He urged them to maintain an appreciable level of civility in their court rooms and remember that adjudication is a form of discourse involving the litigants represented.

He said in the performance of their functions, the judge must be civil in their speech and mannerism and must respect the dignity of the Bar litigants.

The Deputy Attorney General called on the new justices to do well and avoid making extra judicial and especially political statements from the bench.

“My final piece of advice is for you to learn, learn and keep learning,” he added.

Mrs Sophia Akufo, a supreme court Judge urged the justices to aim to become good judges in their chosen profession.

She said a judge is not a good one if he or she does not perform his or her functions with independence, integrity, competence efficiency and effectiveness.

She called on them to use the case management strategy in dealing with justice delivery.

She cautioned them to avoid people who would try to intimidate them to seek favours from them and rather uphold and defend the integrity of the constitution.

Mrs Elisabeth Ankumah, Vice President of the Association of Magistrates and Judges of Ghana cautioned the judges to be men and women of integrity and accept restrictions on their conduct and do not lend the prestige of their office to advance private interest.

She said their appointment must encourage them to achieve the highest level of distinction in the discharge of their duties.

“The people of Ghana will judge your performance, attitude to work and personal integrity, while the Chief Justice will also assess your performance through judgements, attendance to work, punctuality, competence and reports from the Ghana Bar Association,” she added.

She said as judges they should strive to be strategic decision makers and should effectively manage their court rooms to ensure that cases were heard expeditiously to avoid delays and expense on the part of litigants.

Source: GNA