Meet Justice Kweku Ackaah-Boafo: Jurist, educator and ethics advocate

Every profession has its pinnacle. In the judiciary, that summit is the Supreme Court. For Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo, reaching that height is not only a personal milestone but a call to national service.

His Lordship, Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo, is among the seven justices of the Supreme Court whom President John Dramani Mahama recently swore in at the Jubilee House in Accra. 

He describes himself as a jurist with global training and frontline professional experience at both the bench and the bar, as well as a solid grasp of contemporary jurisprudential best practices in public and private international law, including jurisprudence on electronic media search and surveillance.
 
He is recognised for some landmark cases, such as a significant judgment on medical negligence against the 37 Military Hospital. In this case, the hospital was found liable for the death of Helena Brema Nyamekye, a 27-year-old PhD candidate who died after being delivered of a baby. The circumstances uncovered several failures in medical care and decision-making.

Justice Ackaah-Boafo delivered a notable judgment in a copyright infringement case involving Martin Kpebu and Fred Kusim Awindaogo concerning the ownership of an unpublished law book titled "Annotated Evidence Act of Ghana." The dispute centred on authorship and copyright ownership between the two lawyers.

He ruled that the defendant could not claim sole ownership of the book. Although the defendant argued he rewrote all the Plaintiff's work and was the sole author, the court determined that both parties were joint owners of the work.

Writing of judgments
Sharing his experience on what inspires him to write such concise judgments, Justice Ackaah-Boafo, told The Mirror in an interview last Tuesday in his office in Accra, “We live in a world where people are reading these judgments. Today’s media ecosystem creates more platforms for accessing legal information, which is good because public accessibility helps dispel myths and misconceptions regarding judgments.

 For instance, in the case of the Republic v Cassiel Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa, I realised a lot of people were taking an interest in reading the judgment and that it was circulating through not just traditional but also digital media platforms in a way that did not exist when platforms were limited. Judgements must communicate to the parties, and beyond that, they must educate and inform the outside public, who are keen to know what is going on in the legal world. So, I don’t just write, I put in a lot and do extensive research and I believe if it must be done, it must be done very well.”

According to him, writing is something he learned from Yiadom Atuobi-Danso of Atuobi Danso Law Office in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. “Atuobi-Danso is very particular about what you send out.

My experience practising with lawyers like him and Justice Gordon Cudjoe, a jurist in the Ontario Superior Court in Canada, has shaped my thinking and appreciation of legal work. I believe in the promise of justice; therefore, I tell new judges, lawyers and students that you don’t have to be everyone but unique in whatever you do and achieve the desired results,” he stated.

Ethics
Touching on the ethics of the legal profession, His Lordship told The Mirror that it is vital to uphold the dignity and integrity of the profession by adhering to accepted moral values and codes of conduct. This safeguards the profession’s reputation and maintains public confidence.

“It is to uphold the ethics of the profession that I decided to be a part-time lecturer at the Ghana School of Law from 2021 to present, teaching ethics. If you are invested in the privilege of your licence, you would not do anything unethical. So I exhort lawyers and judges to uphold ethics. We may not be perfect, but we should aspire to be ethical. Besides, you should be a proud, honourable member of the legal profession,” he said.

He expressed dissatisfaction about the use of insulting language in the courtroom, emphasising that it is unacceptable for lawyers to exchange insults . “You can disagree among yourselves, but it is absolutely inappropriate to trade insults or be condescending towards a colleague. I will never stand for that.”
 
Legal journey
His Lordship obtained his Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from 1991 to 1994 at the University of Ghana. He completed his professional law programme (BL) at the Ghana School of Law from 1994 to 1996 and proceeded to the University of Helsinki, Finland (Faculty of Law) for the Master of Laws (LL.M) from 1999 to 2002.

He further pursued an Executive Master of Arts in African Integration and Development (EMRIAD) at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) and graduated as the Overall Best Student in 2021.

Justice Ackaah-Boafo practised predominantly in Canada as a Barrister and Solicitor in Toronto. His principal areas of practice included Criminal Law, Family Law, and Immigration Law. As defence counsel, he appeared before provincial and federal courts, as well as adjudication tribunals such as the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) and the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). He was one of the lawyers involved in the notable Jane Creba trial.

He joined the bench in Ghana and has served as a Justice of the High Court (General Jurisdiction Division, Accra) from April 2015 to December 2022. He was appointed to the Court of Appeal in December 2022 and is currently a Supreme Court judge.
 
Background
Justice Ackaah-Boafo was born in Accra. He hails from Aboso/Insu-Siding in the Western Region. He is a Christian and a member of the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International, East Legon Chapter, and the Fountain of Glory Assemblies of God Church. “I am a deacon, board member and the president of the men’s ministry.”
His Lordship is married to Joycelyn Kuukua Ackaah-Boafo and has two children: Nicholas and Maud.

For him, when there are no legal duties on the menu, he loves to unwind by watching his favourite club Liverpool play, reading biographies, foreign judgements, and staying at home mostly to rest. “I love to be in my little corner. If you don’t go looking for trouble, trouble won’t find you,” he smiled.

According to him, his appointment to the apex court has been humbling. “This nation deserves the best, and the opportunity to the Supreme Court is a call to serve Ghana. I ask for God’s grace to accomplish my duties and leave behind a fitting legacy.”

Writer's email address: hadiza.quansah@gmail.com