Supreme Court Judge nominee, Justice Janapare Adzua Bartels-Kodwo, has expressed misgivings about the widely held belief that building more courtrooms will solve the persistent backlog of cases in Ghana’s judicial system.
Appearing before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Tuesday, June 17, Justice Bartels-Kodwo argued that the core challenges affecting timely justice delivery are rooted in systemic inefficiencies, not inadequate courtroom infrastructure.
According to her, the current judicial setup already has sufficient space to handle small claims and similar cases.
“If we are just talking about more claims court, I believe that the court as we have it now, we have the space for those small claims, and setting up more courts in my view respectfully will not solve the problem of cases not moving fast,” she said.
Her stance differs from that of fellow Supreme Court nominee, Justice Senyo Dzamefe, who appeared before the committee a day earlier and advocated for an expansion of court infrastructure alongside technological upgrades to fast-track case resolution.
