Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah has stressed the sanctity of the judicial process by reminding lawyers not to take their cases to social media and other public outlets.
Speaking at the enrolment of new lawyers in Accra on Friday, October 1, the Chief Justice said lawyers should concentrate their efforts on advancing their cases in the courtroom.
He said changes in the nature of the legal profession were not an excuse for flouting these standards.
“It cannot be denied that the legal profession is, like nearly every other profession; in a state of constant change. We have been affected by technology.”
“Our cases are to be placed before judges in court and not before the public or on social media,” the Chief Justice said.
Chief Justice Anin-Yeboah further urged the new lawyers to safeguard these standards.
“Bear in mind that the future of our profession and the manner in which it is and will be regarded is the responsibility of every single person who calls himself a lawyer.”
The conduct of lawyers on social media has been a source of concern for some senior legal figures in Ghana.
At the Ghana Bar Association’s Annual General Conference, the Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame, for example, decried what he described as the attitude of some lawyers to denigrate the judiciary when court decisions go against them.
Mr. Dame stressed that technologies do not eradicate the etiquette of their profession, which is seen as holding very conservative values.
