Thongori: Seasoned lawyer eulogised as rights advocate

Though the name Judy Thongori is synonymous with family law, a few know that her fighting spirit saw her do a bit of constitutional law, at one point leading a court battle against Mwai Kibaki’s appointment of retired judge Alnashir Visram as the first chief justice under the 2010 constitution.

President Kibaki had in 2011 nominated Visram for appointment but besides ODM boss Raila Odinga rejecting it for not being consulted, Thongori led a team of lawyers in petition no.16 of 2011 to fight it.

Her argument was that the action violated the independence of the institutions if it was left to stand.

The petition demanded that the appointment of the chief justice that would succeed then CJ Evan Gicheru must be subjected to transparent public participation. They carried the day.

The renowned women rights activist and family lawyer died on January 14 while receiving treatment in India.

She was wife to John Thongori and a mother of two.

“At the core of independence of the Judiciary post 2010 is Petition 16 of 2011. Judy Thongori led the legal team that blocked Kibaki’s effort to subvert Katiba by unilaterally appointing Chief Justice. Her contribution to constitutionalism, equality and dignity is inerasable,” Waikwa Wanyoike said, remembering the long drawn legal battle that ushered in the era of the 2010 constitution.

After finishing law school and becoming a lawyer, Thongori started out at the Attorney General’s chamber where she worked as a prosecution counsel.

But there was not much challenge there, she said in an interview. “It was just about hanging your coat on the chair. I felt I had much fire to spend fighting elsewhere,” she said.

Eventually, she started to practise but in commercial law. With time, she said, her sister-inlaw Martha Koome and Nancy Baraza, then icons of women’s rights movement in private law practice, nudged her to first join Fida.

She was resistant to the idea of joining the firebrand women’s lobby because she felt she was just a commercial lawyer.

“I told them no, what would I do in Fida, I’m a commercial lawyer. But they told me just come, you will like it there. They told me that you should and you will be happy there as the head of litigation,” she said.

From there she cut her teeth as to-go-to family lawyer, doing countless matrimonial cases.

“The first time I went to court on a matrimonial case, someone would object during proceedings citing this law and that, and I would be asking my colleagues ‘what’s that?’”

A judge would tell her to go buy the acts touching on family law and read them.

“It was at that point that I knew that I carried some knowledge that could change somebody’s life. If I could use it to enable a woman access maintenance, then her life and that of her children would change. That is when I realised why I went to law school; to change people’s lives at a personal level,” she said.

And the perception is not all rosy about her. Some quarters associate Thongori with radical feminism that only thrives in destabilising men and not being amiable.

She acknowledged the negative perceptions and made the best out of it.

“I know as a family lawyer I’m only popular to my side. I hear people say that Judy Thongori is a tough and unrelatable but I tell them that I’m the simplest person you will meet. Its true some friend of my mine long told me that I’m hard-faced, but I have reconciled with. Some things go with your public image and there is nothing you can do about it,” she said.

In 2013, she became the first woman lawyer to be inducted into the Law Society’s Roll of Honour. In 2020, she was elevated to the rank of senior counsel.

At the news of her passing, lawyers and leading politicians mourned her as leading light in social justice and human rights.

President William Ruto said her work remains indelible for posterity. ODM’s boss Raila Odinga said Thongori was the ultimate inspiration to young advocates and activists yarning for change.

“She combined the skills of a lawyer, writer and activism to pursue impactful change and curve her place in Kenya and beyond. She had the courage to fight in courts and the streets for those targeted for fighting for a better country,” he said.

Senior Counsel bar chair Fred Ojiambo, who broke the news of her death, said Thongori was a favourite speaker at annual judges’ colloquium.

“Her willingness and selflessness to be of service to the Senior Counsel Bar, the Law Society of Kenya as a mentor to younger advocates, will be greatly missed. She was also a favourite speaker at the Annual Judge’s’ colloquia,” he said.

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula said Thongori dedicated her career to not only advancing the jurisprudence of this specialised field but also nurturing the next generation of legal practitioners.

Senior Counsel Ahmednasir Abdullahi described her as a “legal eagle” who had competence, affability and class.