President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of Ghana has nominated Justice Gertrude Araba Esabaa Torkornoo as the next Chief Justice of Ghana. Justice Torkornoo is a Justice of the Supreme Court and has been on the bench for the last four years. Her nomination is subject to approval by Parliament. If approved, she will replace Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, who retires as Chief Justice on May 24, this year, when he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 70 for justices of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.
In a letter to the Council of State, President Akufo-Addo expressed his confidence in Justice Torkornoo’s ability to discharge the functions of Chief Justice. Justice Torkornoo has been an active member of the Judiciary and Judicial Service of Ghana since 2005. She was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2019 and is one of the first Justices of the Commercial Division of the High Court.
If approved by Parliament, Justice Torkornoo will become the third female Chief Justice in the history of Ghana. She will follow in the footsteps of Justices Georgina Theodora Wood and Sophia Akuffo. President Akufo-Addo’s nomination of Justice Torkornoo as Chief Justice is his third appointment to the office since assuming office in January 2017.
Justice Torkornoo’s early life and education began in Winneba, Central Region of Ghana. She attended Wesley Girls’ High School and Achimota School before graduating from the Ghana School of Law in 1986. She also obtained a Postgraduate Diploma in International Law and Organization from the International Institute of Social Studies in the Netherlands in 2001, and an LLM in Intellectual Property Law from Golden Gate University in the USA in 2011. Prior to joining Fugar & Co. law firm in Accra, she worked as a volunteer at the FIDA Legal Aid Service and did an internship with Nabarro Nathanson in London.
