The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Ghana has petitioned the Judicial Service of Ghana, calling for urgent retraining of judges following what it describes as a \u201cdangerous\u201d and deeply troubling divorce ruling.<\/p>\n
In a letter dated April 13 and addressed to Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, FIDA Ghana raised concerns over the judgment delivered on January 20, 2026, in the case of Mrs Joana Quaye v. Richard Nii Armah Quaye.<\/p>\n
The group stressed that its concerns are not about judicial independence but about \u201caspects of the reasoning and language employed in the judgment which diminish the dignity of women before the courts and weaken public confidence in the fairness, neutrality and sensitivity of judicial reasoning in family law matters, in addition to being a complete departure from recognised principles governing distribution of marital property.\u201d<\/p>\n
FIDA emphasised the critical role of family courts, stating, \u201cFor many women, the family court is not merely a forum of litigation. It is the place they come to when a marriage has broken down\u2026 and when the law becomes their last refuge.\u201d<\/p>\n
It added, \u201cIt is not enough that justice be done. The reasoning by which justice is expressed must affirm the dignity, equality, and humanity of those who stand before the court.\u201d<\/p>\n
The group expressed \u201ccomplete disapproval\u201d of portions of the judgment, particularly references to the petitioner as \u201cphysically\u2026 attractive\u201d and \u201ccapable of remarrying anytime she felt like,\u201d describing such remarks as \u201coffensive and deeply troubling.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSuch commentary has no place in the legal analysis,\u201d the petition stated, warning that it suggests \u201ca woman\u2019s entitlement to justice may be weighed against stereotypes about her appearance, desirability, or remarriage prospects.\u201d<\/p>\n
FIDA also criticised the judge\u2019s assertion that \u201cmarriage is not an investment\u201d and the characterisation of the petitioner\u2019s financial claim as \u201cridiculous,\u201d cautioning that such language undermines the recognition of women\u2019s non-financial contributions.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo dismiss or diminish this reality risks sending a message that the invisible labour of women has little legal value,\u201d the group said.<\/p>\n
The petition further challenged the reasoning that financial relief should operate \u201cas a way of dissuading these frequent divorces,\u201d stressing that \u201ccourts do not exist to deter people from seeking lawful relief when a marriage has broken down beyond reconciliation.\u201d<\/p>\n
FIDA warned that such reasoning could have broader consequences. \u201cIt creates the impression that family law remedies are being shaped by the moral standards of the judge rather than established legal principles.\u201d<\/p>\n
The group also pointed to what it described as a troubling inconsistency in the judgment, noting references to the respondent\u2019s \u201cearning capacity and \u2018numerous companies,\u2019\u201d alongside an order of GH\u00a25,000 monthly maintenance for three minor children.<\/p>\n
It argued that the judgment departs from constitutional standards, citing Article 22, which guarantees equitable distribution of marital property and recognises both direct and indirect contributions.<\/p>\n
FIDA expressed concern that the ruling ignored recent Supreme Court guidance affirming these principles, describing it as \u201ca worrying ignorance of principles and process for adjudication of matrimonial and gender-sensitive causes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The organisation warned of wider societal impact, noting that judicial language shapes public perception. \u201cWhat is said in courtrooms does not remain in courtrooms. Women and children read these judgments.\u201d<\/p>\n
It added that the ruling has already triggered widespread public reaction and anxiety about fairness in the justice system.<\/p>\n
FIDA concluded by urging immediate action. It called for \u201csuch administrative, educational, or other appropriate measures as may reinforce gender-sensitive adjudication in matrimonial matters,\u201d stressing the need for judicial reasoning to remain grounded in \u201cdignity, fairness, equality, and restraint.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Ghana has petitioned the Judicial Service of Ghana, calling for urgent retraining of judges following what it describes as a \u201cdangerous\u201d and deeply troubling divorce ruling. In a letter dated April 13 and addressed to Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, FIDA Ghana raised concerns over the judgment delivered on January […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":123457,"featured_media":16574,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,3718],"tags":[5231,5232,4469,4320],"class_list":["post-16570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general-news","category-legal","tag-fida","tag-mrs-joana-quaye-v","tag-paul-baffoe-bonnie","tag-richard-nii-armah-quaye"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16570","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/123457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16570"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16570\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16575,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16570\/revisions\/16575"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fishfmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}