The Office of the Special Prosecutor was established as an independent anti-corruption body responsible for investigating and prosecuting corruption offences involving public officials and politically exposed persons outside the ordinary criminal prosecution system.

In December 2025, lawyer Noah Ephraem Tetteh Adamtey filed a suit with Ghana’s Supreme Court challenging the constitutionality of certain provisions of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017.

According to the applicant, the law could not grant the Office of the Special Prosecutor independent prosecutorial powers, since criminal prosecution, under Article 88 of Ghana’s Constitution, falls within the powers of the Attorney-General.

In April 2026, the issue of the Office’s powers gained practical significance in one of the agency’s ongoing criminal cases. The High Court of Accra considered an application by Peter Archibald Hyde, who was accused in a case involving the alleged theft of a consignment of rice. He also challenged the Office’s right to independently conduct criminal prosecutions in light of Article 88 of the Constitution and Adamtey’s suit, which was pending before the Supreme Court. In that case, the court found that the Office of the Special Prosecutor could not independently conduct criminal proceedings without the authorization of the Attorney-General and ordered such proceedings to be transferred to the latter.

On 29 July, Ghana’s Supreme Court unanimously dismissed Adamtey’s suit and declared the law constitutional.

The Court confirmed that the Office of the Special Prosecutor may independently investigate corruption cases and prosecute them.

At the same time, the Attorney-General retains the constitutional power to terminate any criminal prosecution initiated by the Office of the Special Prosecutor. Thus, the Court upheld the legal basis for the anti-corruption body’s activities, while also indicating that its independence is not absolute.