• Justice Srem-Sai says Vacation Judges have the authority to conduct trials and hear substantive proceedings during the legal vacation.

• The Deputy Attorney-General says lawyers cannot unilaterally decide not to appear in court because a case has been scheduled during the vacation.

• His comments deepen the disagreement with the GBA, which has argued that lawyers who are unavailable during the vacation should not be compelled to attend proceedings.

Deputy Attorney-General Dr Justice Srem-Sai has challenged the Ghana Bar Association’s position that courts should not conduct trials during the legal vacation, insisting that selected Vacation Judges have the authority to hear substantive cases during the period.

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According to him, the courts do not completely shut down during the legal vacation. While the workload is reduced, some judges are assigned to sit as Vacation Judges and can handle both interlocutory matters and substantive proceedings in cases from their own courts.

His comments come amid a growing disagreement between the Judiciary and the Ghana Bar Association over the continuation of cases during the current legal vacation, which runs from August 1 to September 30.

READ ALSO: GBA protests continuation of some criminal trials during legal vacation

The GBA had written to Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie after some lawyers were directed to appear in court for part-heard criminal cases during the vacation.

The Association argued that lawyers who had already indicated that they were unavailable during the period should not be compelled to attend.

But Dr Srem-Sai said lawyers cannot decide on their own that they will not appear simply because a case has been scheduled during the vacation.

Dr Srem-Sai explained that there is a difference between a Vacation Judge handling a case from their own court and one handling a case belonging to another judge who is away.

He said a Vacation Judge handling matters from another judge may deal with interlocutory issues, but substantive proceedings in that case should ultimately be handled by the judge responsible for it.

However, where a judge has been assigned as a Vacation Judge for cases from their own court, Dr Srem-Sai said that judge can proceed with the substance of the case, including conducting trials.

Interlocutory proceedings are temporary court hearings and decisions that happen during an ongoing lawsuit before the final trial. They deal with short-term issues like temporary orders, injunctions, or rule steps but they do not end the main case.

Dr Srem-Sai’s position is consistent with comments recently made by Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie. Speaking in Sunyani on August 10, the Chief Justice said lawyers cannot simply refuse to appear in court because a case has been scheduled during the legal vacation.

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He said a lawyer who wants to take a break must first have the agreement of their client.

The Chief Justice also stressed that decisions to adjourn cases belong to the judge hearing them.

The GBA said vacation courts have traditionally dealt with urgent and interlocutory matters and argued that lawyers are not normally compelled to attend if they have indicated that they are unavailable.

It also warned that forcing lawyers to attend could affect the rights of accused persons who depend on legal representation.