Legal vacation does not mean courts must shut down — Dr. Srem Sai
Deputy Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr Justice Srem-Sai, has rejected suggestions that courts are required to stop sitting during the legal vacation.
He said the law gives the Chief Justice the power to authorise judges to hear cases during the period, including trials involving corruption.
The issue has generated public discussion following plans for some judges to sit on selected cases during the current legal vacation, which began on August 1, and ends on September 30.
Lawyers for some of the affected cases, including former Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame and former Works and Housing Minister Samuel Atta Akyea, have petitioned the Chief Justice to rescind the decision.
However, in a social media post on Tuesday, August 11, Dr Srem-Sai said the legal provisions governing court vacations do not require the courts to shut down.
“Below is the law on legal vacations. It does not say that courts are to shut down,” he said.
He cited Order 79 of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 (C.I. 47), which provides that the Chief Justice may appoint any day, including vacation periods, for the hearing of causes or matters as circumstances require.
According to him, the provision means the legal vacation schedule is subject to the Chief Justice's decision to authorise a judge to work during the period.
Dr Srem-Sai also rejected arguments based on an alleged convention that courts should not conduct substantive proceedings during legal vacation.
He said any such convention would have to be established by evidence of consistent practice and a uniform belief that the practice is legally binding.
He further argued that an alleged convention could not override an express provision of law.
“An alleged convention cannot operate to override an express provision of law. The express provision of law on the matter is Order 79 of C.I. 47,” he said.
The Deputy Attorney General added that the law does not give lawyers or their associations the authority to determine whether court proceedings should continue during the legal vacation.