President John Dramani Mahama has nominated three new persons for appointment to Ghana’s apex court, the Supreme Court.
According to reports, the nominees are Court of Appeal Justices Sophia Bernasko-Essah and Amoako Asante, as well as legal practitioner and former Ghana Bar Association President, Tony Forson.
Justice Amoako Asante previously served as President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice before returning to the Ghana bench.
President Mahama’s nominations were made in consultation with the Judicial Council, in accordance with constitutional requirements.
If approved, the appointments will increase the number of Supreme Court justices from the current 18 to 21, which will expand the structure of Ghana’s apex court.
The nominees will now undergo parliamentary vetting and approval processes before being sworn in as Justices of the Supreme Court.
In other legal news, Parliament has passed the Tribunals Bill, 2026, after the legislation went through its third reading and received approval from parliamentarians.
The passage of the Tribunals Bill, 2026 will pave the way for the reintroduction of tribunals under a revised legal framework, which will create regional and district courts to tackle specialised tax, mining, and fraud cases.
The bill will now be transmitted to President John Dramani Mahama for his assent before it becomes law.
On Thursday, July 16, the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, moved for the Bill to be read for the third time,
He sought approval from the Speaker to waive the requirement for a one-day interval between the consideration stage and the third reading.
Dr Dominic Ayine stated, “May I move that, notwithstanding the provision in Order 172, sub-order 1 of the Standing Orders which requires that when a Bill has passed through the consideration stage, the third reading thereof shall not be taken until at least one sitting day has elapsed, the motion for the third reading of the Tribunals Bill, 2026 may be moved today. I so move, Mr Speaker”.
After the third reading, the House approved the Bill, completing the parliamentary process required before it is sent to the President.
The Tribunals Bill, 2026 was earlier introduced by Dr Ayine earlier this year.
He explained that the proposed law was aimed at enhancing access to justice, addressing delays in the court system and restoring tribunals with appropriate constitutional safeguards.
The Tribunals Bill was subsequently referred to Parliament’s Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee and the Judiciary Committee for detailed review before being brought back to the House for consideration.
Meanwhile, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, before the passage of the bill, called for the deletion of a key provision in the proposed Tribunals Bill, 2026.
According to him, the creation of district and regional tribunals would establish a parallel justice system and undermine Ghana’s existing judicial architecture.
Afenyo-Markin stated, “Mr Speaker, I move that the entire Clause 4 be deleted,” he said.
“My reason is very simple.”
He argued that while Articles 125 and 126 of the Constitution recognise the possibility of establishing tribunals, they do not compel Parliament to create them, adding that the House should instead strengthen the existing court system rather than establish new institutions that could create uncertainty in the administration of justice.
“What kind of chaos are we introducing?” he asked.
“You have a district court, you have a circuit court, you have a high court, you have a court of appeal, you have a judiciary architecture that is not broken.”
“The disagreement we may have with certain pronouncements of certain judges… does not mean that we create some parallel structures that we call a justice system,” he said.
“How on earth do we create a new system to compete with a known system just because somewhere in the Constitution certain pronouncements are made?” he asked.
“The Constitution says Parliament may determine,” he said. “I am saying that this Parliament must know that the justice architecture we have is not a broken architecture.”
“I contend that creating this new tribunal system by this proposal will bring chaos to the justice delivery system we have in our country,” he said.
@ghnow_ You are the first gentleman at the bar, but I am your senior here – Afenyo-Markin clashes with Attorney General Ayine in parliament over the tribunal bill. #GHNow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
@ghnow_ Tiktoker Camila Alhassan sentenced 1 year imprisonment for spreading false information against the President #GHNow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
