The Supreme Court has dismissed an injunction application filed by Ofoase-Ayirebi Member of Parliament Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, seeking to halt proceedings under administrative warrants issued by the Chief Justice for selected High Court judges to hear criminal cases during the legal vacation.
Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang, sitting as a single judge of the Supreme Court, dismissed the application on Friday, August 21, 2026, after finding that the applicant had not established a sufficiently strong case to justify the grant of an interlocutory injunction.
The decision allows the affected High Courts to continue sitting under warrants issued by Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie while the substantive constitutional case brought by Mr. Oppong Nkrumah remains pending.
The MP is challenging the constitutionality of the Chief Justice’s decision to issue warrants, assigning some High Court judges to hear criminal cases during the legal vacation.
In dismissing the injunction application, Justice Pwamang noted that the applicant had acknowledged that the Chief Justice had the discretion to issue warrants assigning judges to hear cases.
The Court also rejected the argument that the warrants were discriminatory.
“I am unable to see how the directive assigning cases to be heard during the legal vacation can be said to be discriminatory,” the Court held.
According to the Court, the warrants were clear that the judges were being assigned to hear cases pending before their respective courts.
Justice Pwamang further noted that the applicant had not alleged that the Chief Justice’s decision was influenced by the colour, gender, religion, or any other constitutionally prohibited characteristic of the accused persons or witnesses appearing before the courts.
The dismissal of the injunction application does not, however, resolve the substantive constitutional challenge filed by Mr. Oppong Nkrumah.
That case will proceed separately, with the Supreme Court yet to determine whether the warrants issued by the Chief Justice are constitutionally valid.
