The ECOWAS Court of Justice has granted an application filed by Justice Gertrude Torkornoo to amend her case challenging her suspension to include her removal from office as a Supreme Court Justice and Chief Justice.
The court granted the request in a ruling after it heard arguments from counsel for both parties during proceedings held on Friday, January 30, 2026.
The court held that the amendment would prevent a multiplicity of actions arising from the same set of facts.
Justice Torkornoo filed the suit at the ECOWAS Court of Justice on July 4, 2025, alleging human rights violations arising from her suspension on April 22, 2025, and demanding, among other reliefs, $10 million in damages.
Amendment
During the hearing, lawyers for Justice Torkornoo, led by Femi Falana, explained that at the time the initiating application was filed, Justice Torkornoo had been suspended and was facing possible removal, but that circumstance has since changed following her dismissal as Chief Justice and as a Justice of the Supreme Court.
Counsel argued that the amendment became necessary because of the change in circumstances and would enable the court to determine all issues arising from the suspension and removal in a single action, instead of compelling the applicant to file a separate case.
The application sought an order for the amended initiating process, which counsel had already filed, to be deemed as properly before the court.
Objection
Ghana, represented by the Deputy Attorney-General, Dr Justice Srem-Sai, opposed the application and submitted that the proposed amendment was unnecessary and based on a misapprehension of Ghana’s constitutional framework.
He argued that removal from the office of a Chief Justice automatically terminated the holder’s membership of all superior courts, including the Supreme Court, and therefore required no separate process or hearing.
He added that allowing the amendment would amount to a waste of the court’s time, as the issues sought to be introduced lacked merit.
Ruling
In its ruling, the ECOWAS court held that the issues raised in the amended application arose from the same set of circumstances as the original suit and that the amendment was necessary to prevent a multiplicity of actions.
The court accordingly granted the application adding that the respondent was entitled under the rules of the court to file an amended defence within the stipulated period.
Background
Justice Gertrude Torkornoo initiated the action after her suspension from office and alleged violations of her rights under regional and international human rights instruments.
Earlier, the court dismissed her application for interim measures seeking to restrain the government of Ghana from proceeding with the removal process, thereby allowing the process to continue.
In that earlier ruling, the court directed the Attorney-General to file a response to the substantive application within 30 days.
The case is expected to proceed to substantive hearing after Ghana files any amended defence.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh