The ECOWAS Court of Justice has adjourned its ruling on an application filed by Ghana’s suspended Chief Justice, Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo, seeking to halt ongoing proceedings for her removal from office, the regional court said.

In a statement issued on Friday, the court said it would communicate a date for the ruling “in due course” after hearing arguments from both Torkornoo and the Republic of Ghana in the case registered as ECW/CCJ/APP/32/25.

Torkornoo is asking the regional court to suspend domestic proceedings aimed at removing her from office and to reinstate her with full entitlements pending determination of the substantive case before the court.

During proceedings, Ghana challenged the jurisdiction of the ECOWAS Court, arguing that the matter concerns constitutional processes currently before competent domestic courts, including Ghana’s Supreme Court, and therefore falls outside the authority of the regional tribunal.

The state argued that allowing the ECOWAS Court to intervene while related proceedings are ongoing in Ghana could amount to forum shopping and create the risk of conflicting judicial decisions.

Ghana further maintained that Torkornoo had been duly notified of the petition seeking her removal and granted access to all relevant documents in accordance with constitutional procedures.

Lawyers for Torkornoo, however, argued that the case was fundamentally a human rights matter rather than a constitutional dispute. They cited alleged violations of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, including rights to dignity, fair hearing and work.

Her legal team told the court that the ongoing removal proceedings had already caused reputational damage and threatened judicial independence, adding that continuation of the process could undermine the effectiveness of the substantive case before the ECOWAS Court.

The application before the regional court seeks provisional measures to temporarily halt the removal proceedings and restore Torkornoo’s entitlements until a final determination is made.

The case has drawn attention across Ghana’s legal and political circles, with observers closely watching the potential implications for judicial independence and the relationship between domestic constitutional processes and regional human rights mechanisms.