Establishment of the Commercial Court in Ghana
This lesson is part of the Doing Business series, written by "star reformers." An often-repeated remark about George Kingsley Acquah, Ghana’s Chief Justice from 2003 until 2007 and driver of his country's major judicial reforms, was that "it took a man like him for this to happen." Sandra Cofie, author of "Ghana -- Establishment of Commercial Courts," says she subscribes to this view. She observed him from her position as Director of the Judicial Reform, Project Development and Implementation Unit at the Judicial Service of Ghana. Doubtless, his most prominent reform is the establishment of the commercial division at the High Court in Accra, the first commercial court in Ghana, and possibly the most significant addition to the judicial service since independence, says Cofie. After decades of political turmoil that had left behind a disrupted court system, the reform not only brought about shorter delays to commercial dispute resolution. It also instilled new spirit in Ghana's justice sector.
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