By: Windor D. Tarplah, Esq.
The sterling heights of the Office of Chief Justice of the Republic of Liberia is an acclaimed position coveted by many of Liberia’s finest and not-so-fine jurists. For the finest of the bunch, they are ostensibly drawn to the leverage the high office has in giving positive direction and meaning to the law. These include reforming court administration, recalling obsolete opinions in favor of public policy, ensuring equity, and intelligently negotiating likely executive and legislative intrusions onto the canvas of the judiciary. Finely tailored pursuits indeed but as the few fortunate would soonest discover, these grandiose visons can be quite idealistic. The Court as we know it, faces its own political economy. Ones etched in deeply rooted foundational factors, skewed rules of the game, and opaque practices with little or no positive deviant cases to learn from.
So, Chief Justice Korkpor uncovered!
In this retrospective, the author microscopes Chief Justice Korkpor’s 9-year tenure (2013-2022) in respect of how he navigated his “pages.” These “pages” consist of how His Honor administered the courts, how he navigated alleged influence of other branches of government on judicial decisions and how he handled relationships with national and international partners. The authorlends support to His Honor’s successes on the Bench, his not-so-successful initiatives, and areas where Chief Justice Korkpor could have, and should have done more. It is hoped that there are lessons in the former Chief Justice’s tenure that the new Chief Justice can consider as she navigates her own path as head of the Liberian court.
