The Judicial Service and the Ghana Shippers’ Authority have taken significant steps to strengthen their long-standing partnership through the 15th Maritime Seminar for judges of the Superior Courts of Judicature. This event, held on Friday, 31st October 2025, aimed to ensure that the country’s Maritime, Shipping, and Logistics industry continues to thrive on a foundation of fairness, efficiency, and global best practices.
Distinguished members of the judiciary and the maritime sector reaffirmed their shared vision of aligning Ghana’s maritime jurisprudence with international standards. This step is seen as crucial for sustaining growth in trade and boosting investor confidence.
The two-day seminar, fully sponsored by the Ghana Shippers’ Authority (GSA) and organized in collaboration with the Judicial Training Institute (JTI), brought together judges from across the country, maritime law experts, policymakers, and industry players. The seminar provided a platform for discussion on how law and commerce must work together to drive Ghana’s socio-economic transformation.
Speakers such as acting Chief Justice, His Lordship, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, GSA’s Chief Executive Officer, Professor Ransford Gyampo, Director of JTI, Justice Imoro Osifo Amadu Tanko, and the Chairperson for the seminar, Justice Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi, emphasized the importance of the judiciary not only interpreting the law but also shaping the story of Ghana’s socio-economic development.
Delivering the keynote address, acting Chief Justice, His Lordship Justice Baffoe-Bonnie praised the GSA and the Judicial Service for their commitment to excellence in maritime law. He described the annual seminar as a vital bridge between commerce and justice, where judges and maritime professionals learn from each other.
“The judiciary must be equipped with legal knowledge and economic insight,” he said. “Justice delivered must promote rather than constrain trade.”
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie highlighted the significance of Act 1122, the amended law governing the operations of the GSA. He explained that this law enables the judiciary to act with balance, foresight, and fairness.
“The law must ensure fairness and inspire confidence that Ghana is a trusted partner in global trade,” he added. He reminded judges that fairness, proportionality, and timeliness are economic imperatives for a country striving to become a regional hub for shipping and logistics.
In a speech that mixed candour with conviction, Professor Ransford Gyampo, CEO of the GSA, reflected on his journey from academia to leadership in the corporate space. He admitted that his time in the shipping and logistics industry has been both humbling and eye-opening, where theory meets reality and law meets logistics.
“Trade is Ghana’s bloodstream, the artery that connects us to the wider world,” he said. He emphasized the duty to protect all interests with equity and transparency, stating that the judiciary remains the conscience of the law that gives legitimacy to every regulation.
Prof. Gyampo reaffirmed the GSA’s commitment to President John Mahama’s 24-hour economy policy, explaining that the Authority is investing heavily in digitalization, infrastructure, and compliance systems to make Ghana’s shipping and logistics operations more efficient, transparent, and globally competitive.
Justice I. O. Amadu Tanko, Director of the JTI, urged the judiciary to stay ahead of global shifts in shipping, trade, and technology. He highlighted that the maritime world is entering a new era marked by decarbonisation, digital documentation, and the rise of artificial intelligence, which are changing how commerce and justice intersect.
“Shipping is decarbonising, trade documents are going digital, and the Blue Economy concept is evolving,” he said. “These developments are creating new technical and jurisdictional challenges that require sharper judicial expertise.”
He cautioned that the growing use of AI-assisted systems will bring novel evidentiary and ethical challenges, from digital authentication to questions about AI-generated signatures, requiring courts to adapt without compromising fairness or accuracy.
The Chairperson for the seminar, Justice Emmanuel Yonny Kulendi, a Supreme Court Justice, described maritime law as one of the most critical pillars of Ghana’s economic growth. He reminded the audience that where trade thrives, disputes naturally follow, and it is the responsibility of the courts to resolve those disputes in ways that preserve trust and predictability.
“Where commerce thrives, disagreements will inevitably arise, and the courts remain the ultimate forum for resolution,” he said. “Our effectiveness as arbiters of justice directly influences Ghana’s competitiveness and investor confidence.”
Justice Kulendi observed that Ghana’s maritime infrastructure now ranks among the best in the world, hosting some of the largest vessels on the globe. He further said that it is imperative that the judiciary’s knowledge and reasoning evolve alongside this progress.
Although our body of maritime legislation is strong, coherence and consistency remain key,” he said. “We must keep our laws harmonized and our judges equipped to interpret them with clarity and confidence.”
Representing the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Chief State Attorney Mrs. Grace Oppong Dolphy commended the GSA and the Judicial Service for their continued collaboration in keeping the judiciary abreast of developments in maritime jurisprudence through the maritime seminar. She reaffirmed the Minister’s commitment to ensuring that the Legislative Instrument (L.I.) underpinning the implementation of Act 1122 is passed in a timely manner.
Resource persons; Justice Yaw Darko Asare and Justice Richard Adjei-Frimpong, both of the Supreme Court, together with Dr. Kofi Mbiah, Esq., a distinguished Maritime Law expert and former CEO of the Ghana Shippers’ Authority, took turns to thoroughly discuss the topics for the seminar, which included “Carriage of Goods by Sea Law in Ghana: Time for Needed Change”; “The Legal Regime for the Arrest of Ships in Ghana”; and “Security in the Maritime Domain and Ghana’s Criminal Law Regime.”
Participants heartily interrogated, contributed, and made suggestions to further enrich the biennial event.
On Saturday, 1st November 2025, the participating judges toured the Tema Port, to gain first-hand insight into the day-to-day operations of Ghana’s busiest port, an experience many of them described as eye-opening and helpful for their work.
As the curtains fell on the two-day seminar, one message stood out clearly: law and trade must move together. The forum underscored that the judiciary’s efficiency, insight, and fairness are central to Ghana’s ambition of becoming an international trade hub for West Africa. It also reflected a growing understanding that the courts are not merely arbiters of disputes but are strategic partners in nation-building.
Justice Amadu Tanko concluded thus: “Our courts must be both guardians of legal tradition and pioneers of judicial innovation.” “Through continuous learning and engagement with emerging technologies, we will ensure that justice in the maritime, shipping and logistics industry remains relevant, robust, and globally competitive.”
In the end, the 15th Maritime Law Seminar for Judges was more than an academic exercise, it was a national statement: that Ghana’s courts, ports, and commerce are steering in the same direction towards fairness, progress, and sustainable prosperity.
