Chief Justice Torkornoo case dismissed: Abuse of court process

High Court tosses judicial review in sharp rebuke

The Human Rights Court in Accra has rejected suspended Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo’s legal challenge. The judge ruled that her judicial review application abused court processes and fell outside the court’s jurisdiction.

Justice Kwame Amoako, who delivered the ruling, made it clear. The court has no authority over matters covered by Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution. That article shields disciplinary inquiries from external interference.

This decision now ends Justice Torkornoo’s second attempt to stop her impeachment proceedings.

In June 2025, the suspended Chief Justice filed this new case while a related one was already before the Supreme Court. That case still awaits a ruling.

The application mirrors an earlier Supreme Court case

Despite the overlap, she pursued a fresh review. Her request included nine reliefs, asking the court to invalidate the impeachment committee’s work. She also wanted the court to stop the committee from acting unless official petitions and responses were shared with her.

But the High Court strongly disagreed.

Court rejects double litigation and outside interference

Justice Amoako divided the application into two sets of claims. He dismissed the first group as duplicative litigation. These included allegations that the committee was acting unlawfully and unfairly.

He said these complaints already form part of the Supreme Court’s review. Therefore, bringing them again at the High Court was improper.

The second group of claims challenged how the committee had conducted its hearings. She claimed that her lawyers were sidelined. She also argued that the proceedings breached both the Constitution and civil procedure rules.

However, the judge ruled that the court had no authority to review the work of the Article 146 committee. The Constitution demands that these hearings be held in-camera and away from public review.

A legal strategy is now unraveling

This ruling marks another major blow for Chief Justice Torkornoo. Earlier, her injunction request to halt the impeachment process also failed.

Now, with both the Human Rights Court and an injunction effort ruled out, her defense strategy appears to be unraveling.

The Supreme Court case remains her final legal hope—for now. Yet this outcome signals how seriously the courts treat judicial accountability and constitutional boundaries.

If the Supreme Court rules similarly, this could set a new precedent for how top public officers face legal scrutiny under Ghana’s Constitution.