A former Director of the Ghana School of Law, Kwaku Ansa-Asare, has expressed strong support for proposals to extend the retirement age of judges from 70 to 75, and even suggested that Ghana could consider raising it further to 80.

He said this on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem on June 17, 2025, amid ongoing national debates about reforms to the judiciary, including the number of Supreme Court justices and the appropriate retirement age.

According to Ansa-Asare, retaining judges for longer periods would help the country preserve valuable judicial expertise and reduce the frequency of new appointments to the Supreme Court.

“I support calls to extend the retirement age to 75, and I wish we could even make it 80 because the minds of judges do not deteriorate, contrary to public perception,” he indicated.

His comments come shortly after two Supreme Court nominees, Justices Senyo Dzamefe and Justice Dennis Adjei, publicly opposed the proposed extension during their vetting in Parliament on June 16,2025.

Justice Adjei argued that unlike in the United States, where federal judges can serve for life or take on reduced duties as ‘senior judges’ from the age of 65, Ghana’s judicial system lacks such provisions and structures.

Despite the objections, Ansa-Asare maintains that Ghana stands to gain by allowing experienced judges to serve longer, citing their continued mental sharpness and depth of legal knowledge.

MRA/AE

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