AG proposes Bar Welfare Fund to provide social protection for lawyers

Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, has proposed the establishment of a Bar Welfare Fund to provide social protection for lawyers.

The proposal was contained in a speech read on his behalf by Deputy Attorney-General Dr Justice Srem-Sai at the Ghana Bar Association Conference 2026/27 on September 14, held under the theme “150 Years of Ghana’s Legal Evolution: Transforming the Profession and Driving its Future with Industry.”

According to Dr Ayine, welfare concerns within the legal profession are particularly significant for young lawyers and sole practitioners, who often lack the institutional support available to larger law firms.

He said some young lawyers were being pushed towards bending professional rules in an attempt to make quick money, a situation he said ultimately affected both their chambers and clients.

“This is not something that we should be proud of. After several decades of existence, we need to do something to change the fortunes of the young lawyer,” he said.

He contrasted their circumstances with those of well-established law firms, which have greater institutional capacity to support their lawyers and operations.

He said the absence of a strong welfare system becomes particularly concerning when a sole practitioner falls ill, is no longer able to practise or reaches old age after spending decades in the profession.

“The sad part of the story is that when things go wrong, when a colleague falls ill or when practice fails or age catches up with the sole practitioner who has given 20, 30, 40 and more years of his life to this profession, no remedy arrives,” he said.

Dr Ayine said the Ghana Bar Association still lacked a welfare structure that adequately reflected the needs of its members.

“Even at this advanced stage the Ghana association is still without a welfare architecture worth of a profession for its members. This is where I propose the establishment of the Bar Welfare Fund,” he said.

According to him, the proposed fund would receive government support to provide the necessary social protection for legal practitioners.

The proposal forms part of the Attorney-General’s broader concerns about strengthening the legal profession and improving the conditions under which lawyers practise in Ghana.

Dr Ayine said addressing the welfare needs of lawyers was necessary to ensure that members of the profession could build sustainable careers while maintaining the standards expected of the legal profession.

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