Shielding Members of Parliament Against Court Summons

Immunities, though part of the law of the land, are to a certain extent an exemption from the general law. Certain rights and immunities such as freedom of speech belong primarily to individual members of parliament and exist because the House cannot perform its functions without unimpeded use of the services of its members. Ostensibly, the degree to which members of parliament are immune from legal inquiry may presumably accord them greater probability to abuse their mandate. In general, a court summons is the beginning of a legal case. It signals the issue that needs to be adjudicated. However, the introduction of immunity invalidates some tenets of modern democracy such as a court summons. The authors seek to examine some of the uncertainties and ambiguities that might have arisen out of the court decision in the case Republic v Mahama Ayariga with much consideration of other cases. The chapter provides a thorough picture of the systems of parliamentary immunity and recommends ways of curbing observed challenges with the practice.

Unpacking the Dilemma of Alternative Dispute Resolution and Access to Justice by Women in the Ghanaian Context

The chapter explores the dilemma of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and access to justice for women in Ghana. It argues that introduction and use of ADR has contributed to improving access to justice with regards to reducing delays in formal court procedures, cost reduction, time saving, opening spaces for less-resourced individuals and groups, particularly women, to have access to justice. Above all, ADR does bring access to justice systems close to remote areas, serving the needs of disadvantaged individuals including women and others who are most vulnerable. However, the weaknesses and challenges in the formal legal system, coupled with the historical and cultural dynamics of the Ghanaian society, which is patriarchal in nature, have prevented mostly women from reaping the maximum benefits of ADR. Revisiting the challenges of the justice system and the historical and cultural norms of Ghana would help increase and enhance women's access to justice through ADR.

Akan Deities as Agents of Conflict Resolution Mechanism in Ghana

The chapter takes an integrative look at a largely neglected field of conflict resolution mechanism in Ghana: the extent to which belief in traditional deities both enhance and undercut justice delivery systems in society. It contends that through duabɔ (imprecation) there is an enduring influence of traditional deities as part of legal regulatory frameworks in society. The chapter, thus, uncovers the hidden resources of traditional deities as useful channels of conflict resolution. The chapter draws on proceedings from the Akan customary conflict resolution mechanism to demonstrate both the usefulness and challenges of traditional justice delivery method in contemporary Ghana and encourages the need for its modification to suit the needs of legal modernity. The chapter is the product of a qualitative analysis of empirical ethnographic material gathered from the everyday facts of Ghanaian religious communities and public domain.

Holding the Police to Account

Whilst there are various mechanisms to curb incidents of police abuse of power, legal control provides one of the most effective ways of enhancing police accountability. Though enforcement of the legal instruments may be a challenge, the mere presence of the legal instruments may provide a fertile ground for other accountability measures. This chapter, which is largely based on literature and documentary survey, explores the legal instruments of accountability in the Republic of Zimbabwe. The chapter specifically focuses on the Constitution and the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act. The chapter begins by giving an overview of the international and regional legal framework before discussing the national legal framework for police accountability.

Access to Justice and Legal Representation in Nigeria

In 2009, the Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure (FREP) Rules of 1979 was revised to ease the cumbersome process encountered by applicants/lawyers in advocating for the enforcement of fundamental human rights in court. Despite this, human rights lawyers still encounter several challenges when representing applicants for the enforcement of fundamental human rights in court. This chapter examines these challenges and adopts primary research method. Data were gathered from human rights lawyers via video conferencing platforms: Skype and Zoom. Findings reveal that issues of procedural rules of court and disrespect for court orders are some of the challenges encountered by human rights lawyers. The chapter recommends that judges should avoid placing unnecessary emphasis on the procedural rules of court. In addition, human rights lawyers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) should maintain continuous advocacy for the enforcement of fundamental human rights towards holding government and its agencies more accountable for disrespect of court orders.

Challenges Facing Mediation as a Means of Court-Connected Alternative Dispute Resolution in the Ashanti Region of Ghana

In 2012-2016, the number of cases referred to CCADR for mediation was 14,900. And out of these cases, 5,789 were successfully resolved to represent 38%. The total number of mediated cases pending were 9,111, representing 62%. Though there seems to be an improvement in terms of a decrease in pending cases, the number of pending cases leaves much to be desired. Premising on the above statistics, it has been noted that 9,111 ADR cases were pending in CCADR. Meanwhile, mediation under the CCADR program is known to be faster, affordable, and to reduce the overloaded courts' dockets. This has boosted the interest, trust, and confidence people had in mediation, and this has resulted in the increasing number of cases referred to ADR for mediation. However, the system, which was instituted to reduce overloaded courts' dockets, is bedeviled with challenges. The study seeks to explore the challenges confronting mediation as a means of ADR approach.

Administration of Civil Justice in India

Since the Vedic period, India is known for its commitment to justice, democratic values, the rule of law, and the welfare of individuals. The thrust of the chapter is an examination of tools of civil justice in ancient as well as modern texts underlining the bond of ‘social contract'. The analysis aims to identify similarities and gaps in the traditional and contemporary aspects of civil justice in India. These findings would enable legal scholars and practitioners to draw from, and to connect, the history of accumulated legal guidance and reasoning to the modern mechanism of justice. The examination of those concepts in the context of contemporary relevance accompanied with the principles of interpretation can maximise the utility of these principles. The discussion may offer important clues for policymakers, community organisations, law-making agencies, and citizens to strengthen their faith in the judicial system, being a blend of aboriginal and modern.

Judging the Subordinate Judiciary

The subordinate judiciary of a nation plays an important role in the administration and dispensation of justice. A judicial officer in the subordinate courts performs a “pious duty” in the service of justice. A majority of the members of the society come in contact with the trial court judges rather than with the appellate or higher court judges. No law, court, precedent, or custom can provide guidelines for better administration of justice, because there is no fixed formula to find the solution of the problem. In such situations, personal qualities, experience, training, and worth of a trial judge make themselves manifest. Through the image of subordinate judiciary and its functioning, the true picture of judiciary presents itself to the nation. The mind of the judiciary can be known to the millions only through the actions and working of the subordinate or trial court judges. In this chapter, researcher has pointed out some problems faced by subordinate courts and judges due to the backlog, and the daily increase, in legal cases.

The Civil Justice Reform Debate

Civil justice comprises the entire system of the administration of justice in civil matters. One significant discourse concerning the civil justice system in the last three decades is reform. This is due to various controversies around the subject resulting in crises. African approaches to civil justice jurisprudence encompass a variety of theoretical and normative elements that shape the way Africans conceive justice delivery. Over the years of the reform debate, not enough light has been shed on this to explain the existence of such perspective. It is argued that the African position to civil justice in the current reforms debate must not be pinned to just the doctrinal option imbedded in statutes but also be based on methods and procedures nurtured on the soil of Africa that align with the practical needs of the people encompassing social, political, cultural, and religious values. The chapter concludes that the African system of justice delivery is largely mirrored in the Ghanaian experience to justice system in civil jurisprudence.

Recent Trends and Repercussions in Civil and Criminal Justice Systems

The reform of civil and criminal justice systems is a contentious issue and has become the top priority for the international community in re-establishing the rule of law. The justice systems in many common law jurisdictions are perceived to be ‘in crisis' deformed by exorbitant delay, cost, and complexity in proceedings. The level of resources engulfed in the judicial system has very little or no impact on judicial performance. Comparative and comprehensive analysis of the law not only leads to a better realization of the foreign laws, but also it aids with law unification. This chapter will attempt to highlight the issues in the civil and criminal justice system and comparatively analyze the scenario in England, Singapore, and India. In furtherance, the authors explore the possible methods to curb the delay in justice systems and canvas the modern trends in civil and criminal justice policy.