Law Society of Kenya (LSK) vice president Faith Odhiambo has called for cooperation between Judicial Service Commissioners (JSC) and advocates.
The remarks by Odhiambo come hot on the heels of a recent incident that saw lawyers claim a section of the commissioners spite them.
Odhiambo, who is also gunning to be the next president of the society in the February 2024 election, said the legal profession needed more of collegiality and cooperation between the sectors’ actors.
“JSC and advocates must work hand in hand if Kenyans are to get quality justice services,” she said in a statement.
The alleged incidents happened in two meetings in Eldoret and Mombasa convened by the JSC.
LSK said the JSC had notified it that it intended to conduct countrywide meetings and requested to have lawyers among other stakeholders attend.
This forced the society to cancel a pre-planned continuous professional development training it had scheduled on September 22, 2023.
The society complained that lawyers in Eldoret were kept waiting for over an hour and walked out in protest.
In Mombasa, the lawyers complained of being addressed with contempt.
Sophia Wanuna, the Deputy Head of the Directorate of Public Affairs and Corporate Communication at JSC did not respond to our calls for comment about the specific claims.
Macharia Njeru, the JSC commissioner representing LSK also did not respond to queries about the same.
But Odhiambo sought to tone down the rhetoric, saying there is a need for the bar and bench to cooperate and work in harmony.
“Respect of the people in exercising donated power is imperative to the attainment of Constitutionalism and rule of law,” she said.
“The Law Society calls out the recent conduct of JSC commissioners against advocates. Bar-bench collegiality and cooperation is not a favour asked of the Judiciary, it is a mandatory prerequisite imposed on the Judiciary for the attainment of its constitutional objectives.”
Odhiambo said lawyers remain steadfast in their duty to hold the Judiciary accountable.
Odhiambo has set stability of the law practice environment, upholding the rule of law and supporting young lawyers as the main plank of her candidacy.
