A private citizen, Elorm Kwami Gorni, has sued Attorney-General Dominic Ayine and Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie at the Supreme Court, challenging the constitutionality of Ghana’s legal vacation arrangements.
The suit, filed on July 28, 2026, challenges the annual suspension of sittings at the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal from August 1 to September 30.
Mr Gorni is invoking the Supreme Court’s original jurisdiction under Articles 2(1) and 130(1) of the 1992 Constitution. He argues that the two-month suspension could undermine citizens’ constitutional right to access justice within a reasonable time.
While the High Court continues to operate during the legal vacation through designated vacation courts, the plaintiff argues that the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal do not sit throughout the period. He says this can leave litigants with pending matters before the appellate courts waiting until the vacation ends.
According to Mr Gorni, the arrangement could delay appeals, constitutional cases, applications for stays of execution, interlocutory applications and judicial review proceedings.
He is asking the Supreme Court to declare Rule 61(b) of the Court of Appeal Rules, 1997 (C.I. 19), and Rule 82 of the Supreme Court Rules, 1996 (C.I. 16), unconstitutional to the extent that they permit the suspension of sittings during the legal vacation.
The plaintiff argues that the rules and their implementation are inconsistent with Articles 19(1), 23, 33, 125 and 296 of the Constitution.
He further contends that decisions on when courts sit constitute an administrative function and must comply with constitutional requirements of fairness and reasonableness.
Mr Gorni stressed that his challenge is not intended to prevent judges from taking annual leave or having periods of rest. Rather, he wants the Supreme Court to determine whether judicial leave can be organised without completely suspending the constitutional functions of the two appellate courts.
Among the reliefs being sought is an order directing the Chief Justice to consider alternative arrangements, including rotational sittings, vacation panels and staggered judicial leave.
He argues that such measures could allow the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal to continue hearing cases throughout the legal year while preserving judges’ entitlement to annual leave.
The case brings Ghana’s longstanding legal vacation system before the Supreme Court and raises broader questions about access to justice and the timely determination of cases.
