The event combined brief opening remarks from judicial leadership and local dignitaries, student performances by Edinaman Senior High School and Wesley Girls’ High School, and exhibitions by regional Justice Clubs to open the anniversary calendar.

His Lordship Justice Richard Adjei-Frimpong, JSC, Chairman of the Supreme Court@150 Anniversary Planning Committee

Omanhene of Oguaa, Osabarima Dr. Kwesi Atta II delivering his remarks

Delivering his lecture on “Cape Coast in the Making of Ghana’s Legal Architecture,” Prof. Bondzi-Simpson traced Ghana’s judicial journey from the historic 1876 Supreme Court Ordinance, a milestone shared with Sierra Leone and Lagos  through the appointment of the first Ghanaian judge in 1925, to the post-independence abolition of Privy Council appeals. He detailed how the nation transitioned from colonial courts and the two-tier structure of the 1960 Constitution into the modern three-tier hierarchy of the High Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court consolidated under the 1979 and 1992 Constitutions.

                                 

Prof. Philip Ebow Bondzi-Simpson delivering the keynote lecture

Beyond historical reflections, Prof. Bondzi-Simpson focused heavily on defining the future of the administration of justice through four major structural proposals.

He advocated transforming the current Judicial Council into an independent Judicial Commission responsible for all judge recruitment, promotions, and discipline. Pointing to models in Canada and Kenya, he warned that unaddressed promotion grievances among magistrates and judges pose a serious threat to judicial morale and the administration of justice.

He strongly criticized the practice of issuing court orders or decrees without providing simultaneous written reasons, arguing that it breeds public mistrust and creates opportunities for post-facto rationalization.

Prof. Bondzi-Simpson also urged the immediate installation of electronic transcription technology across all courtrooms from top to bottom, emphasizing that delayed records severely impede appeals and restrict citizens' access to justice.

He called on courts to ensure fair and equal hearing priority for all litigants regardless of the professional seniority of their representation.

Student performers from Edinaman SHS and Wesley Girls SHS

The Cape Coast lecture forms part of the Judicial Service's month-long nationwide celebration, with subsequent anniversary lectures and public engagement activities scheduled for Kumasi and Accra through July 2026.