The Ghana Judicial Service, on Monday launched its 2020 Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Week in Ho, on the theme, “Making our courts user friendly through the use of ADR”.
The week-long programme will see to the mass mediation of cases at all the ADR connected courts across the nation and sensitisation of judges, lawyers, court officials and citizens on the use of ADR.
The judge in charge of ADR, Justice Irene Charity Larbi, speaking at the launch disclosed that, from January to December 2019, a total of 6,209 cases were mediated out of which 3,041 cases were settled, representing 49 per cent.
The ADR programme, she said, has been extended to 131 courts across the nation with at least five mediators assigned to each court, adding that the concept had served as a complement to the traditional court system in making access to justice easier and faster for the citizenry.
Justice Larbi observed that the ADR mechanism had been a reliable partner to the traditional justice delivery system, “so it must be embraced and nurtured for a quality justice delivery system. “
“This has also helped in clearing backlog of cases in the courts substantially, due to the mass mediation exercise,” she said.
The ADR had helped decongest the court, and allowed judges to have more time in handling cases which were not amenable to ADR, she said.
Justice Irene Charity Larbi said, “the ADR has cut down cost of litigation, making justice accessible to a greater number of people.
The Supervising High Court Judge for Volta and Oti, Justice Eric Baah, encouraged the public to use ADR in solving civil cases.
He said there was no charge for ADR, unlike litigation where the lawyer charges the client and the court finds the offender.
“With the use of ADR, there will be a mutual beneficial agreement for both parties,” he added.
FROM GRACE SENAM KLAY, HO