A total of 824 newly qualified lawyers were called to the Ghana Bar on Friday, October 10, in a landmark ceremony held at the Accra International Conference Centre. Acting Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie administered the professional oath and presented the qualifying certificates to the new legal minds. The event, marked by a spirit of celebration and diversity, immediately preceded a powerful address from the Acting Chief Justice calling for urgent and meaningful reform in the country’s legal education system.
The newly called lawyers represented a diverse professional and personal background, including six persons with disabilities who defied odds to join the profession. Also among them were several prominent journalists, including Emmanuel Ebo Hawkson of Graphic Online, Serwaa Amihere of the EIB Network, and Joseph Ackah-Blay of Media General, underscoring a growing intersection between law and public service. Another significant figure was Paul Chen, a Chinese-born entrepreneur based in Kumasi, who expressed his motivation, stating that “Legal education—knowledge—is a powerful tool” that would help his business in Ghana.
Addressing the assembly, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie acknowledged that his appointment comes “at a defining moment” for the legal profession. He cited major challenges currently facing the sector, including a mounting backlog of aspiring law students, concerns about educational quality, inadequate infrastructure, and the critical need to modernize in an era of rapid technological change.
The Acting Chief Justice stressed that these challenges must be seen not as “signs of decay but banks of renewal.” He urged the Ghana School of Law and the General Legal Council to embrace decisive action, insisting that the necessary reforms must “go beyond merely increasing student numbers” to “refine the very purpose of legal education to meet the demands of the 21st century.” The four-hour ceremony was attended by dignitaries, including Supreme Court Justice Avril Lovelace-Johnson, Attorney-General Dr Dominic Ayine, and Ghana Bar Association President Efua Ghartey.
Ruth Abla ADJORLOLO
