“Given the hallmark of your legal career, summed up by the words integrity, excellence and service which testify to your character, your competence and dedication, I have no doubt you will witness to Him (God) in the discharge of your mandate. The Lord is with you. Stay true to God, your country and Africa is waiting”.
Those were the words of Justice Emeritus David Maraga, the 14th Chief Justice of Kenya, contained in a letter dated 25th October, 2024, addressed to Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur on her appointment as a High Court judge.
Her Ladyship Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur will go into history books of the judicial service as having expeditiously adjudicated one of the controversial but landmark spousal cases involving legendary highlife musician, Charles Kwadwo Fosuh, known in showbiz circles as Daddy Lumba with speed and alacrity.
Justice Smith Arthur has already endeared herself to patrons of her court, having earned the praise of counsels for applicants and defendants, legal practitioners, journalists covering the case at the High Court 5 in Kumasi.
She has in a record one month, adjudicated over a case which under normal circumstance, should have lasted for minimum thress years in a country where such cases suffer many adjournments.
Her judgement, which she says was to resolve the dispute was also to educate Ghanaians on marriages and their possible dissolution.
Akosua Serwaa Fosuh sought an order of the court to make her the only surviving wife of the late Charles Kwadwo Fosuh, sole candidate to perform the widowhood rite and also an order to restrain the 2nd defendant in the case, Priscila Ofori, also known as Odo Broni, from identifying herself as wife of the late musician.
The suit comes after the death of the celebrated musician, born Charles Kwadwo Fosuh, on July 26, 2025 in Accra.
Myjoyonline.com has been looking at the background of presiding judge who received wild applause in open court for how she has expeditiously and fairly heard the case, despite all the tensions and acrimony arising between litigants, arguments and counter-arguments and the banters of counsels of both applicant and defendants.
Her Ladyship is jovial, whose face always beams with smiles, but very firm, ensuring that the rules are applied to the letter.
She was called to the Bench in July 2013, first as a District Court Magistrate, then as a Circuit Court Judge on January 10, 2019, by then Chief Justice, Her Ladyship Justice Sophia Abena Boafowaa Akuffo.
Justice Smith Arthur was in charge of specialized gender-based cases, narcotics, and mining cases, among others, while adjudicating over civil and other criminal cases, having worked in Central, Greater Accra and Ashanti regions.
She was sworn-in as Justice of the High Court on September 30, 2024 by then President, Nana Akuffo-Addo.
The mother of four has cooking, reading, music, teaching and mentoring her children as her hobbies.
The certified marriage counselor and life coach had her basic education at the South Suntreso Adventist Preparatory School. In fact, she is a Suntreso girl.
She had her legal training in Ghana, US and Zambia having obtained her Bachelor of Arts (Law and English), Bachelor of Law from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and Practicing Law Certificate from the Ghana School of Law, University of Ghana.
She has Masters of Laws from the University of Ghana Law School, focusing on Alternative Dispute Resolution, Masters of Laws from Reading School of Law, focusing on Global Crisis, Conflict and Disaster Management as well as Masters of Laws degree from the Northeastern University School of Law, Boston, USA.
Her Ladyship Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur recently added a PHD in Criminology and Human Rights from the African Research University, Lusaka, Zambia at the 13th graduation ceremony of the school.
She featured prominently on social media handles of the university, especially on Facebook, having received special mentioning.
As the first female High Court Judge of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, she is also a member of several professional bodies and associations. These include the Association of Magistrates and Judges, Ghana; Commonwealth Association of Magistrates and Judges; International Association of Women Judges; and American Society of International Law.
Affectionately called ‘DD’, Justice Smith Arthur is often regarded as a woman with impeccable character and hard to be influenced.
Former Municipal Chief Executive for Komenda Edina Eguafo Abrem sums it up about the Her Ladyship, Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur.
“She is too much devoted for her work at the expense of her own self. Sometimes I will say DD go and rest because when you are not there, Ghana will still move on and she will say I have to do what I have to do for the betterment of Ghana.”
“She is a woman with impeccable character,” he added.
Recounting an encounter, Mr. Appiah, a lawyer by profession, said he received the “shock of his life” when he appeared before Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur.
“One day I have to appear before her. When I appeared before her, I have my nice suit thinking that I was going to get a bail. That time I had a shock in my life. The bail was refused. She said you have to come back next week well prepared and we will see what will happen,” he recalled.
He added, “That is the kind of woman that she is. She doesn’t mix social life with professional life.”
Mr. Appiah was speaking at a thanksgiving service organized in honour of Her Ladyship Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur by the Seventh-Day Adventist Church at Cape Coast, following her appointment as High Court judge.
So how does Justice Smith Arthur whose life hinges on the virtues of integrity, fairness and equality before the law sees herself?
“As a judge, I owe a duty to the state to do justice to all manner of persons who appear before me regardless of their age, of their religion, their social standing and their political affiliation.
“Consequently, my life as a judge is more reserved because I am ethically encouraged not to socialize much due to conflict of interest issues and also due to the demand to be seen to be independent.
“So you see, even the way I walk, I walk reservedly. My judicial duty takes precedence over all other activities,” she said when she spoke on the topic, “The Mindset of Integrity” at Uplift 2022 in Accra.
According to her, she does not allow people, not even pastors, to see her let alone to be influenced.
This has been the status quo, a principle she has also thought her court staff.
“Personally, I do not allow anybody to see me. When I say anybody, I mean exactly so – including pastors and all.
“I refuse gifts of all forms, tokens or thanksgiving; I do refuse. In fact it doesn’t even get to me,” she emphasized.
Testifying of Justice Arthur’s uprightness, President of the Ananse Center for Leadership and Development, Samuel Koranteng-Pipim described her as a woman of character.
“She is a woman of character. What she says, she does and she’s well known,” he stated.
Ananse Center for Leadership and Development is an organization committed to raising new generation of Africans who will make a difference in the world.
Her Ladyship Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur is the Vice President of the organisation.
Alberta Kpeleku, a Peace and Conflict expert and Executive Director for 360 Human Rights, a non-governmental organization, describes Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur as a good mother who makes complex situations look normal.
“She makes complex things very simple. I admire her work; she is disciplined. She is a good mother as well,” he said.
Justice Dorinda Arthur is an author who has written extensively on integrity. Among her books are “The Pursuit of Integrity and Excellence:: A Little Word to Law Students & Practitioners, the “Kiss of Integrity-my God and my Judicial Philosophy”, a book inspired by her inaugural address to a group of Adventist Youth & Young Professionals on October 12, 2024.
She has also written and contributed in international journals such as JBDL Journal for Business, Development, and Leadership, SSRN, on topics such as Juvenile justice in Ghana, illegal small scale mining and its devastating effects on the rights of indigenous people to clean unpolluted water.
‘The law does not wait for perfect conditions’
Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur beliefs in hard work, perseverance and knowledge in the laws of Ghana.
On February 20, 2025, while delivering a keynote address at the 4th LLB Induction ceremony for 260 new first-year LLB students, Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur told students how she juggled with her work as a judge, wife and student.
“While studying here as a law student I had to juggle cases and statutes while also being a wife and mother at the same time,” she shared.
She recounted how she had no time to grief over the loss of her twin because she had to sit for law examinations within the period of her grieving.
“I recall staying up countless nights preparing for exams, only to enter the exam hall with a heavy heart, grief-stricken by the loss of my twin in my final year. But I sat for those exams because I understood one thing: the law does not wait for perfect conditions—and neither should you.”
Her Ladyship Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur’s 74-page judgement she wrote on the Lumba spousal case between Wednesday 26th and Friday 28th November was perhaps a testament of her zeal and hard work. It followed 10 days of daily hearings between 9am and 4pm.
The ruling, according to her, is to educate Ghanaians on marital issues and also help resolve disputes surrounding Daddy Lumba, Akosua Serwaa Fosuh and Priscilla Ofori, also known as Odo Broni’s marital status.
“We need to discipline our ways. We need to know the laws of our land”, she said. “ Don’t place sentiments on things you don’t know.”
She shared chocolates in the open court on Tuesday after plaintiff and defendants closed their cases, something she says she does all the time.
“We want to express sincere gratitude for the stewardship that has been expressed by this honorable court. It’s been unprecedented for us. I also want to take this opportunity to thank your staff. This is history in the making,” said Dominic Kwadwo Osei, counsel for Abusuapanin Kofi Owusu, the first defendant in the Daddy Lumba spousal case.
“It is an experience we will take to Accra to preach the good news,” he added.
“We can commend you for the work done. We will abide by the judgement and also commend your staff for a good work done,” noted Alex Osei Owusu, counsel for Priscilla Ofori, also known Odo Broni.