Mariama Owusu is a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

. She has been on the bench since 1990 and was nominated a judge of the

Supreme Court Judge A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

in November 2019. She was sworn in on 17 December 2019 after gaining parliamentary approval.

Early life and education

Owusu was born on 18 November 1954. She was born in

Daloa Daloa is a city in western Ivory Coast. It is the seat of both the Sassandra-Marahoué District and the Haut-Sassandra Region. It is also the seat of and a sub-prefecture of Daloa Department. Daloa is also a commune. In the 2014 census, the city ...

but hails from

Beposo Beposo is a town in the Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region Of Ghana.Beposo is approximately 40 kilometers west of Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti Region. The town boasts of its great involvement in the educational sectors with a Secondary ...

in the

Ashanti Region The Ashanti Region is located in southern part of Ghana and it is the third largest of 16 administrative regions, occupying a total land surface of or 10.2 percent of the total land area of Ghana. In terms of population, however, it is the mo ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. She received her primary and middle school education at Asawase L/A Primary and Middle School, completing it in 1968. She continued her studies at T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School from 1968 to 1975, earning both her Ordinary and Advanced Level certificates. In 1976, she enrolled at the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...

to study Law, and later attended the

Ghana School of Law The Ghana School of Law (GSL) is an educational institution in Ghana for training lawyers. The school is the only one that provides training for law graduates in the Barrister at Law program. The Professional Law Course is designed for Law Gradu ...

in 1980, where she was called to the

Ghana Bar Association The Ghana Bar Association (GBA) is a professional association of lawyers in Ghana, including what used to be called solicitors and barristers but are now called legal practitioners, as well as magistrates. By convention all lawyers admitted to pr ...

in November 1981.

Career

Owusu began her legal career as a National Service person at the Attorney General's Office in

Kumasi Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...

from 1980 to 1982. She later worked in private practice with Messrs Totoe Legal Services in Kumasi from 1984 to 1990. She began serving on the bench as a District Magistrate from 1990 to 1992. She became a Circuit Court judge in 1992 and served in that capacity until 2000 when she was made a High Court judge. She served at various locations, including Kumasi,

Sunyani Sunyani is a city and the capital town of the Bono Region and the Sunyani Municipal District, Sunyani Municipal of Ghana. Sunyani had a population of 74,24at the 2010 population and housing census. The city consists mainly of the Bonos by tribe ...

, and

Tema Tema is a city on the Bight of Benin and Atlantic coast of Ghana. It is located east of the capital city; Accra, in the region of Greater Accra, and is the capital of the Tema Metropolitan District. As of 2013, Tema is the eleventh most popul ...

. In 2003, she was appointed as the supervising High Court judge for

until 2005. She remained a High Court judge until 2006 when she was appointed a Justice of the Court of Appeal. She had been a justice of the Court of Appeal until her nomination for the role of

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

Judge in November 2019. She was sworn into office on 17 December 2019. Owusu was appointed as the President of the

International Association of Women Judges The International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ) is a feminist non-profit non governmental organization founded in 1991 whose members are judges from around the world committed to equal justice for women. History The IAWJ was founded in 1991 a ...

(Ghana Chapter) in 2014, and she served in this position until 2016. She also served as a member of the Ethics Committee from 2012 to 2013 and as a member of the Performing Access Committee of the Judicial Service. She was part of a seven-member panel that did the hearing of the 2020 election petition by John Mahama against The

Electoral Commission of Ghana The Electoral Commission of Ghana(EC) is the official body in Ghana responsible for all public elections. Made up of seven members, its independence is guaranteed by the 1992 Ghana constitution. The current commission was established by the Elec ...

and

Nana Akufo-Addo Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo ( ; born 29 March 1944) is a Ghanaian politician who has served as the president of Ghana since 7 January 2017. In 2020, he was re-elected for his second term, which will end on 6 January 2025. Akufo-Addo previously ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Owusu, Mariama Date of birth missing (living people) Living people Justices of the Supreme Court of Ghana People from Ashanti Region Ghanaian women judges 20th-century judges 21st-century judges 20th-century women judges 21st-century women judges T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School (Kumasi) alumni 1954 births

Early life and education

Career

See also

References