President John Dramani Mahama has nominated three persons for appointment to Ghana’s Supreme Court, including Court of Appeal Justices Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah and Edward Amoako Asante, as well as legal practitioner and former President of the Ghana Bar Association, Anthony Forson.
The nominations, made in consultation with the Judicial Council in accordance with constitutional requirements, are expected to begin the approval process required before the nominees can be appointed to the apex court.
While all three nominees bring significant judicial and legal experience to the Supreme Court, the nomination of Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah stands out for a unique reason: this is her second nomination to Ghana’s highest court in less than two years.
Justice Bernasko Essah was first nominated for appointment to the Supreme Court in 2024 by then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Following her nomination, she appeared before Parliament’s Appointments Committee as part of the approval process for Supreme Court nominees.
During her vetting, Justice Bernasko Essah reaffirmed her commitment to the judicial oath, describing it as sacred and emphasising that fairness would remain central to her work as a judge. Although she went through the parliamentary vetting process, her appointment was not completed before the end of the previous administration. President Mahama’s latest nomination therefore presents Justice Bernasko Essah with another opportunity to join the Supreme Court.
The other nominees include Justice Edward Amoako Asante, a Justice of the Court of Appeal who previously served as President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice before returning to the Ghanaian bench, and Tony Forson, a private legal practitioner and former President of the Ghana Bar Association. If approved, the appointments will increase the number of Supreme Court Justices from the current 18 to 21.
Under Article 144 of the 1992 Constitution, Justices of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President acting in consultation with the Judicial Council and with the approval of Parliament. By constitutional convention and parliamentary practice, the parliamentary approval process involves the nominees appearing before Parliament’s Appointments Committee for vetting before their approval is considered by the House.
Profile: Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah
Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah brings more than three decades of legal and judicial experience to her latest nomination to the Supreme Court.
She became a Justice of the Court of Appeal on 17 December 2019, after serving as a Justice of the High Court from July 2011, where she worked in both the Commercial and General Jurisdiction Divisions.
Her legal career began in 1992 at the Civil Division of the Office of the Attorney-General, where she served as an Assistant State Attorney before rising to the position of State Attorney. She later moved into the corporate legal sector, working as Senior Legal Counsel at the Volta River Authority, Legal Services Manager at the Tema Oil Refinery, and subsequently as Company Solicitor and Secretary to the Board of Directors of the refinery.
Justice Bernasko Essah obtained her Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree from the University of Ghana in 1988 and her Professional Law Certificate (BL) from the Ghana School of Law in 1990. In 1997, she was awarded the prestigious Chevening Scholarship to pursue a Master of Laws (LLM) degree at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom, where she studied areas including international economic law, international banking and securities regulation, and international corporate finance.
In 2016, she pursued an Executive Master of Arts degree in Conflict, Peace and Security at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, where she studied issues including international law, human rights, governance, security and conflict resolution.
Since joining the Bench, Justice Bernasko Essah has contributed to Ghanaian jurisprudence through decisions involving complex legal issues in areas such as banking and finance, insurance, company law, commercial arbitration and maritime law.
Beyond her judicial work, she has demonstrated a strong interest in gender justice and equality. She is a member of the International Association of Women Judges and has held leadership roles within its Ghana chapter. She currently chairs the Gender Equity Committee of the Judicial Service of Ghana and the User Committee on Gender-Based Violence and Juvenile Justice for the Northern and Southern sectors of the Judicial Service.
Her latest nomination returns her name to Parliament for consideration. If approved and formally appointed, Justice Sophia Rosetta Bernasko Essah will join the Supreme Court after an earlier nomination that did not culminate in her appointment.
