Publication date: Tuesday, 22nd November, 2005
Justice James Ogoola is the Principal Judge of the High Court of Uganda and a judge of the COMESA Court of Justice in Lusaka, Zambia.
He is also the chairman of the commission of inquiry into the mismanagement of the Global Fund on AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
Justice Ogoola was born an only child on August 15, 1945 at Lumino, Samia-Bugwe county in Busia district.
Qualifications
University of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, 1966-1969 — LL.B (Hons) E.A.
Columbia University, New York, USA, 1973-1974 LL.M.
Work
-Worked at the Ministry of Justice/Attorney-General’s Chambers in the Department of First Parliamentary Counsel from 1969 to 1974 as a State Attorney (Legislative Drafting), Senior parliamentary Draftsman, Principal State Attorney (Drafting).
-Federal Department of Justice, Ottawa, Canada (Privy Council Office).
-First African to be appointed legal adviser at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1974. In charge of Latin America country operations between 1974 – 1978 at IMF headquarters, Washington DC, USA.
-At the IMF office in Paris, France 1978-1980.
-In charge of African & Middle East country operations (1981-1988; 1991-1997) at the IMF headquarters, Washington.
-Took early retirement from IMF after 23 years of service.
-African Development Bank, (ADB) Abidjan, Ivory Coast as Deputy Director, Legal Department in 1988-1991
-Concurrently designated as Deputy General Counsel and Deputy Secretary-General of the bank.
-Chairman ADB Staff Disciplinary Committee from 1989 to 1990.
-Adjunct Professor at the American University School of Law, Washington DC, USA 1996/1997, taught an LL.M course on International Commercial Transactions and Banking Law.
-Courts of Judicature, Uganda 1997-to date.
-Appointed Principal Judge, High Court of Uganda July 30, 2004, replacing Justice, Herbert Ntabgoba.
-Head of Commercial Court of Uganda from 1999-2004
-Chairman, Judicial Commission of Inquiry on Banking, Jan-Oct 2000.
-Member, tribunal investigating abuse of office by Iganga district chairman in 1999.
-Member, tribunal investigating abuse of office by Sembabule district chairman 2000.
-Member, judicial panel on National Referendum 2000.
-Member, judges administrative advisory committee, which advises the Chief Justice on the administration of the Judiciary.
-Member, Chief Justice’s technical committee on the establishment of the Commercial Court of Uganda from 1996 to 1997.
-Represented the Judiciary at the Tripartite Conference of the Judiciaries of East African countries.
-Represented the East African judiciaries at the ministerial negotiations and drafting sessions of the proposed East African Treaty, with particular emphasis on the establishment of the East African Court of Justice.
-Ogoola’s leisure time is taken up almost entirely by matters of personal faith. He has just completed a draft translation of the New Testament Bible into his mother tongue, Lusamia.
Compiled by
Maurice Okore
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