Unnecessary Supreme Court appeals are delaying justice – Sophia Akuffo

Former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo has advocated for stricter controls on Supreme Court appeals, contending that frivolous interlocutory appeals are hampering judicial efficiency.

During an appearance on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, Akuffo highlighted a systemic problem: certain cases reach the Supreme Court through interlocutory appeals while their core matters remain pending in the High Court.

“Sometimes there are also some matters which come to the Supreme Court only on what is called interlocutory appeal, which is so unnecessary” and should not proceed to the highest court when underlying cases remain unresolved elsewhere, she explained.

The former Chief Justice noted that resolving such appeals typically consumes years, compounding delays in resolving substantive cases.

Akuffo recommended that the Court of Appeal should serve as the final destination for most cases, particularly those lacking novel or constitutionally significant dimensions. “A lot of other matters should end in the Court of Appeals if they don’t raise new issues or very sensitive constitutional issues,” she stated.