ABSTRACT
In 2007, Justice Georgina Wood was appointed the first female chief justice of Ghana. Her rise to the top-most position of the Ghanaian judiciary was not an easy achievement, considering the enduring challenges women face in the legal and judicial professions in Ghana. Justice Wood’s achievement is preceded by women ‘firsts’ such as Justice Annie Jiagge, the first female to be appointed as a judge (at the magistrate level) in 1954 (Dawuni, 2011). Justice Wood’s ascent to the position of chief justice signaled some major changes that have been taking place within the judiciary in Ghana. Within the last couple of decades, the number of women who have joined the judiciary in Ghana has been growing; data available as of 2014 indicate women represent 23% of judges, compared to 5% in 1970. While these numbers may be taken as evidence of some positive developments in the feminization of the judiciary, there is still a long way to go to achieve gender parity for women in the judiciary in Ghana.
