Supreme Court dismisses consolidated cases challenging Torkornoo’s removal
The Supreme Court has unanimously dismissed consolidated cases challenging the removal of former Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, bringing finality to the domestic legal battles over her dismissal.
A seven-member panel presided over by Justice Amadu Tanko on Thursday, July 2, 2026, held that the suits lacked merit and consequently dismissed them.
The ruling effectively ends legal efforts to overturn her removal, which had been the subject of intense political and judicial debate since her suspension and subsequent dismissal in September 2025.
Four separate cases were filed in 2025 following her suspension after a prima facie case was established based on petitions seeking her removal. The suits were filed by Tafo MP Vincent Assafuah, private citizen Theodore Atta Quartey, the former Chief Justice herself, and the Centre for Citizenship, Constitutional and Electoral Systems.
The Supreme Court later consolidated the actions into two cases for hearing.
Justice Torkornoo was removed from office on September 1, 2025, following the recommendation of a five-member committee of inquiry chaired by Supreme Court Justice Gabriel Pwamang. The committee was set up under Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution to investigate allegations of stated misbehaviour.
The committee found her culpable of several breaches, including alleged misuse of public funds through travel-related expenses and payments involving family members, as well as violations of constitutional procedures relating to judicial administration.
Her removal marked the first time in the Fourth Republic that a sitting Chief Justice had been dismissed through the constitutional process.
In a related development, the ECOWAS Court of Justice on June 24, 2026, also dismissed all claims filed by the former Chief Justice against the Republic of Ghana, ruling that no violation of her rights had been established and rejecting her claim for damages.
With the Supreme Court’s latest ruling, all domestic legal avenues challenging her removal have now been exhausted.
