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Justice Jones Dotse — He acts as Chief Justice
Justice Jones Dotse — He acts as Chief Justice

Chief Justice Anin Yeboah retires "Justice Dotse acts"

The Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, yesterday officially retired from active service after 21 years as a judge, three years of which he served as the Head of the Judiciary.

Following the retirement of Justice Anin Yeboah, Justice Jones Dotse, the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court, has assumed the position of acting Chief Justice.

This is in accordance with Article 144 (6) of the 1992 Constitution, which stipulates that when the Office of Chief Justice is vacant or the Chief Justice, for any reason, is unable to perform the functions of his office, the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court shall act as the Chief Justice until a substantive Chief Justice is appointed.

Justice Dotse will be the acting Chief Justice until Parliament approves the nomination of Justice Gertrude Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo as the substantive Chief Justice.

Justice Torkornoo is scheduled to appear before the Appointments Committee of Parliament tomorrow, Friday, May 26, for questioning and onward consideration by the full House.

Landmark cases

The immediate past Chief Justice was the second Chief Justice appointed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, after Justice Sophia Akuffo.

He has been part of landmark decisions of the apex court.

He was part of the majority when the Supreme Court in a 5-2 majority decision declared as unconstitutional the law that made some offences non-bailable.

That decision was seen as one of the most progressive decisions of the court to promote human rights and advance criminal justice reforms in the country’s history.

Justice Anin Yeboah was also part of the two Presidential election petitions in the history of the country – as a member of the Supreme Court panel in the 2012 election petition filed by Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and as the Chief Justice and President of the panel in the 2020 election petition filed by former President John Mahama. 

Profile

Justice Anin Yeboah was born at Toase in the Ashanti Region in May 1953. He attended Amaniampong Secondary School and Apam Secondary School and then moved to the University of Ghana and the Ghana School of Law where he graduated in 1981.

He served as an Assistant State Attorney at the Office of the Attorney-General in Koforidua, where he was elected the Eastern Regional President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA).

He also served as a justice of the High Court between 2002 and 2003 and the Court of Appeal from 2003 to 2008, when he was elevated to the Supreme Court by former President John Agyekum Kufuor.

Justice Anin Yeboah was also the Chairman of the Appeals Committee of the Ghana Football Association from 2004 to 2008 and rose to become a member of the Adjudicatory Chamber of FIFA.

In May 2017, he was appointed Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the 67th FIFA Congress in Bahrain and was also Chairman of the FIFA Ethics Committee.
Justice Anin Yeboah was appointed to the Supreme Court by former President Kufuor in June, 2008.

Writer’s email: email: emma.hawkson@graphic

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