CJ, AG and others in a group photo with the new lawyers
The Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, has admonished newly enrolled lawyers to inculcate the habit of thinking outside the box to get reasonable solutions for unique situations.
According to him, the mark of a good lawyer is not one who is always winning his cases in court, but the profession primarily entails solving problems and providing solutions to clients and organisations without necessarily resorting to litigation.
Speaking at a mini call to the Bar of some 32 new lawyers at the auditorium of the Law Court Complex in Accra yesterday, the Chief Justice said “remember that there’s hardly any experienced, accomplished, successful senior lawyer who did not work long and hard to get to their current position. If you are going to be learning from them then be willing to exhibit such meritorious quality.”
“Demonstrate a strong work ethic and be ready to make that extra effort. The life of a lawyer may look glamorous but it requires a lot of hard work and sacrifice,” he added.
Justice Anin Yeboah further urged the new lawyers to be mindful of their reputation in their approach to work as the Disciplinary Committee of the General Legal Council (GLC) will not overlook any infractions against them.
“Your reputation for meticulous honesty is vital and you must resolve to be honest at all times. Just know that the Disciplinary Committee of the General Legal Council (GLC) will not close its eyes to any infractions on your part in the pursuit of your careers.
“Note that you have today become members of a client-centered public profession and must ensure that at all times you work in the interest of your clients, the public good and the country at large,” he added.
The Chief Justice assured the public that the GLC is committed to the process of ensuring a long and lasting solution to the current challenges plaguing legal education in Ghana, stressing that “we intend to ensure that Ghana School of Law, in the delivery of its mandate produces graduates who comfortably straddle the world of study, practice and industry.”
“To this end, in resolving the infrastructural challenges facing the school, plans are underway to build a modern campus dubbed the Law Village on a five-acre parcel of land at the academic enclave of the University of Ghana,” he said.
In attendance at the enrollment were the Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame; President of the Ghana Bar Association, Anthony Forson Jnr.; some Supreme Court judges and members of the GLC.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak