Ghana Law Society is not competing with GBA—Dafeamekpor

Majority Chief Whip and President of the Ghana Law Society (GLS), Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, has rejected suggestions that the newly inaugurated society was established to compete with the Ghana Bar Association (GBA).

Mr Dafeamekpor said the GLS has a distinct mandate, with particular emphasis on the welfare of lawyers and the interests of its members.

Speaking to Bernard Avle on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Wednesday, October 7, he said the two organisations should not be viewed as rivals.

“We’re not in competition with the Ghana Bar Association. I’m saying that as a law society, our focus has been on the welfare of our members, which the GBA doesn’t do,” he said.

He explained that the GLS intends to allocate 20 per cent of members’ dues towards a life insurance policy as part of its welfare programme.

According to him, the GBA had traditionally directed members’ dues towards conferences without a comprehensive welfare arrangement, although he acknowledged that the association has recently introduced a welfare policy.

Mr Dafeamekpor attributed the development partly to his criticism of the GBA’s approach to the welfare of its members.

His comments come amid a legal challenge he has filed at the Supreme Court over the basis of the GBA’s role under the 1992 Constitution and the Legal Profession Act.

He stressed, however, that the case should not be interpreted as an attempt to undermine the GBA or question its relevance to the legal profession.

“I am not challenging their existence. The GBA is relevant,” he said.

He explained that his challenge centres on the GBA’s assertion that it has exclusive authority to represent lawyers on statutory bodies because the association is specifically mentioned in certain constitutional provisions.

“What I am challenging about the GBA is their claim to singularity of representation on statutory bodies by virtue of the fact that the Constitution mentions them specifically in these provisions.

“I am saying that the mentioning of GBA in the Constitution is too generic. It means that any professional association of lawyers could come under that umbrella,” he said.

Mr Dafeamekpor maintained that any interpretation of the constitutional provisions must also take into account the constitutional guarantee of freedom of association.

He further called for tolerance within the legal profession, particularly when lawyers hold different political views.

“We are lawyers. We should be tolerant of opposing views. That’s our training,” he said.

He argued that the GLS would not adopt an anti-NPP position simply because some of its members are affiliated with the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

The Ghana Law Society was formally inaugurated on September 30, 2026, during its maiden bar conference.