The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, has implored the Supreme Court to screen cases that are brought before it for hearing.
Speaking at the opening of this year’s Bench, Bar, and Faculty Conference in Accra on Thursday, Mr. Dame indicated that “only important cases with the potential of resulting in a change of the law or with an immense public interest, should be heard by the Supreme Court.”
“The time has come for the Supreme Court to reduce its caseload by prioritising the kinds of cases it actually hears,” he said.
He added that the Supreme Court should dismiss frivolous applications and cases “in chambers without the necessity of a hearing in open court.”
In the Attorney-General’s view, such cases account for the majority of cases heard by the court each year.
According to him, the Court’s rules should be revised to allow for this proposed approach in order to make court processes more efficient and productive.
Commenting on the impact of COVID-19 on justice delivery, the Ghanaian Bar leader urged “temporary innovations put in place as a result of the pandemic should be made a permanent feature of the justice delivery system.”
As a result, he advocated for “virtual hearings of cases to become a regular feature of our court system” in order to reduce costs, save time, and increase efficiency.”