Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, is 45-years-old today.
Reflecting on the flurry of news encompassing his tenure, here is a comprehensive profile of the nation’s youngest Attorney General ever.
Born on 5th June, 1979, Godfred Yeboah Dame obtained his GCE Ordinary Level and Advanced Level Certificates from Adisadel College between 1989 and 1996. He graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree (LLB) in 2001.
He proceeded to the Ghana School of Law from where he obtained his professional law qualification in 2003. On being called to the Bar in October, 2003, Godfred Yeboah Dame commenced his professional law practice with the firm of Messrs. Akufo-Addo, Prempeh & Co., an elite law firm in Ghana, specializing in various aspects of civil litigation.
Godfred Yeboah Dame rapidly and firmly established himself as one of Ghana’s leading advocates, conducting with a remarkable degree of success many of the politically important trials and constitutional cases in the Superior Courts of Ghana.
In 2006, in recognition of his contribution towards the defence of media and human rights, rule of law and civil liberties generally in Ghana, Mr. Dame was one of a few lawyers from across Africa and the rest of the world awarded the Open Society Initiative Fellowship, and selected to pursue the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy (PCMLP) at the University of Oxford’s Centre for Socio-Legal Studies.
Mr Dame’s active law practice saw him take charge of a significant number of high profile and landmark cases in the Supreme Court of Ghana which contributed to the advancement of constitutional law, human rights, criminal law and good governance in the country, including serving as counsel for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the party between 2012 and 2016.
In 2016, he was a member of the NPP Manifesto Committee on Governance which drafted the Party’s proposed policies for the Legal and Governance Sector. In 2013, together with three of the Party’s former Attorneys-General, Hon. Papa Owusu-Ankomah, Hon. Ayikoi Otoo and Hon. Joe Ghartey, he was appointed to review the 2013 Election Petition Verdict and come up with proposals to avoid a defeat of the Party in the 2016 elections which would result in another election petition, after having already served as one of the counsel for the Petitioners in the Election Petition.
From 2011 to 2016, Godfred Dame was part of the teaching faculty for Company Law and Practice at the Ghana School of Law. In January, 2017, he was appointed as a teacher in Advocacy and Legal Ethics at the Ghana School of Law, a commitment he was unable to fulfill as a result of his appointment as Deputy Attorney-General and Deputy Minister for Justice in President Akufo-Addo’s first term as President. He also served on very sensitive committees of the Ghana Bar Association contributing to the formulation of policy in the training of lawyers, notable among them being the Pupilage and Juniors Committee, which is concerned with the upholding of standards among junior practitioners of the law. In 2014, he was appointed member of the Ghana Bar Association’s legal team.
Mr. Dame, between 2009 and 2017, served as the Vice-Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the Ghana Football Association. Prior to that, from 2008 to 2009, he had been Chairman of the Greater-Accra Regional Football Association’s Disciplinary Committee. From 2011 to 2017, he was also a member of the Ghana Football Association Elections Committee.
As Deputy Attorney-General and Deputy Minister for Justice of Ghana from 2017 – 2012, he distinguished himself in active defence of the Government in various high-profile law suits against the Government and international arbitration involving the Government of Ghana. He transformed the image of the Attorney-General’s Office into a formidable force in litigation. He served on the Legal Service Board, the Ministerial Advisory Board of the Ministry of Justice, the Board of the Public Procurement Authority and the Board of the University of Ghana Medical Centre.
On 21st January, 2021, Godfred Yeboah Dame was nominated by President Akufo-Addo to the position of Attorney-General and Minister for Justice of the Republic of Ghana. His nomination received the approval of the Parliament of Ghana in accordance with the Constitution of Ghana and he was sworn in to office on 5th March, 2021, making him the youngest Attorney-General and Minister for Justice in the history of the nation. He was 41 when appointed. Mr. Dame has further distinguished himself in that office with his able defence of the Government and provision of sound and efficient legal advice.
In his current role as Attorney-General of Ghana, he has ensured a departure of the practice of the State hiring foreign counsel for representation of its interests in international arbitration and other international cases. He has achieved very remarkable success in that regard with the State going record as emerging victorious and avoiding huge judgment debts.
Mr. Dame is a member of the National Security Council, the Police Council, the Judicial Council, the General Legal Council, the Board of Legal Education, Public-Private Partnership Committee and the Legal Service Board.
He is a Christian and married to Dr. Joycelyn Assimeng Dame, a medical doctor with whom he has two children.
Throughout his career, Dame has been an active member of the Ghana Bar Association, serving on various committees, including the Pupilage and Juniors Committee, aimed at upholding standards among junior practitioners.
He was also part of the Ghana Bar Association’s legal team in 2014.
Beyond the legal realm, Dame has made significant contributions to sports administration.
He served as Vice-Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the Ghana Football Association from 2009 to 2017 and chaired the Greater-Accra Regional Football Association’s Disciplinary Committee from 2008 to 2009.
Additionally, he was a member of the Ghana Football Association Elections Committee from 2011 to 2017.
Since assuming the roles of Deputy Attorney-General and Deputy Minister for Justice in 2017, Dame has distinguished himself in defending the Government in high-profile lawsuits and international arbitration cases, transforming the Attorney-General’s Office into a formidable entity in litigation.
Notably, he spearheaded the Government’s endeavours to reclaim funds from businessman Alfred Agbesi Woyome, terminated three mining leases granted to Exton Cubic Company Limited, and contested the constitutionality of Martin Amidu’s appointment as Special Prosecutor.
Dame’s commitment to public service is evident through his involvement in various boards, including the Legal Service Board, the Ministerial Advisory Board of the Ministry of Justice, the Board of the University of Ghana Medical Centre, and the Board of the Public Procurement Authority.
A devout Christian, Godfred Yeboah Dame is married to Dr. Joycelyn Assimeng Dame, with whom he shares two children.