Chief Justice urges judges to deal expeditiously with maritime cases

The Chief Justice of Ghana, Her Ladyship Gertrude Torkornoo has called on Judges to deal expeditiously with maritime cases that come before them.

Speaking at the 14th maritime law seminar for Judges of the Superior Courts of Ghana, she said any delays in adjudicating maritime cases could have negative repercussions on the economy.

“This year’s seminar as always is aimed at equipping judges to deal with the challenges of interpreting and applying maritime laws for the expeditious settlement of shipping-related disputes. There is a lot of money locked in shipping-related disputes and when they stay long in the courts, it causes a lot of issues. I pray you to bear this in mind today,” she appealed.

She said to efficiently address the challenges of Ghana’s Blue Economy and thereby profit fully from it, the country must watchfully enforce the legal, regulatory, and institutional framework that governs the several sectors it spans.

“The worldwide ocean economy is valued at 5 trillion dollars per year. 90 percent of global trade is via the sea. Three hundred and fifty million jobs worldwide are linked to fisheries. By 2025, it is estimated that thirty-four percent of crude oil production will come from offshore fields. Aquaculture is the fastest growing sector and it provides fifty percent of fish for human consumption. We as a country must watchfully enforce the legal, regulatory, and institutional framework that governs the various sectors that it spans. The exciting concept of well defining the blue economy provides the impetuous for moving towards a better, integrated, legal and institutional framework that supports it,” he said.

The 14th Maritime Seminar for Judges which is organised by the Ghana Shippers’ Authority in collaboration with the Judicial Training Institute is aimed at equipping judges to deal with the challenges of interpreting and applying maritime laws for the expeditious and equitable settlement of shipping-related disputes.

A Deputy Minister of Transport, Obeng Adom, indicated that government has over the years embarked on an aggressive programme to expand the country's two (2) main seaports of Tema and Takoradi to consciously take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area.

“His Excellency, the President’s vision for the maritime sector is to position the country’s seaport as the leading container hub and the beacon of international trade in West Africa. To achieve this vision, we have over the years embarked on aggressive programmes to expand the country’s two main ports which are the Tema and Takoradi ports.

This agenda is being continuously pursued to also take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which aims to boost intra - African trade and promote industrialization,” he asserted.

The Chief Executive of the Ghana Shippers’ Authority, Benonita Bismarck touched on the importance of the seminar.

“Shipping is dynamic. Maritime law is dynamic. We talked about our issues with our transit corridor. We talked about piracy and the chief justice talked about the blue economy. These things together with green shipping are things we need to talk about. We cannot just sit and think that things will remain static, no, they are dynamic. At the end of the day, it is business and if there are disputes, the conflicts have to be resolved. If it goes to the court, the judge has to be seized with information to be able to give the needed judgment because justice delayed is justice denied,” she said.

The topics for this year’s seminar include Security in the Maritime Domain and Ghana’s Criminal Law Regime, the Legal Regime for the Arrest of Ships in Ghana, and the International Carriage of Goods by Sea Law in Ghana.