The Law Society of Kenya has threatened to suspend admission of advocates from the Uganda Law Society in protest of the decision by the Uganda Law Council to deny Senior Counsel Martha Karua a temporary practising licence.
Karua had applied for the licence to enable her represent opposition leader Kizza Bisigye and another opposition figure, Obeid Lutale, who are facing a number of charges before the general court martial in Kampala.
In a protest letter to the council dated December 10, LSK president Faith Odhiambo took issue not only with the refusal to grant Karua the temporary licence, but the language used in conveying the decision.
"We express our unqualified disenchantment with the derogatory, contemptuous, and high-handed decision taken by the Law Council of Uganda. This decision not only offends the mutual cooperation that exists between the Kenyan and Ugandan bar, but the manner in which it was communicated and the reasons given thereof are ludicrous and distasteful," Odhiambo said.
In a letter dated December 6, the Law Council of Uganda wrote to Karua informing her of their decision to decline her request for a temporary practicing licence.
According to Karua, reasons given included questioning whether she possesses any special skill to warrant issuance of the temporary licence and lack of supporting identification and academic documents.
The council further claimed Karua was confrontational, breached professional etiquette, and presented herself in court falsely as one holding a valid practicing certificate in Uganda.
"It is inconceivable that the Law Council of Uganda would hold such little regard for Kenyan practitioners, no less a reputable and long-standing member of the Senior Counsel Bar," Odhiambo said.
She said Kenya has been a leader in encouraging and fostering regional cooperation in legal practice and has increasingly allowed the integration of counsel from neighbouring countries into Kenyan practice.
Odhiambo added that Kenya has been on the frontlines in easing cross-border practice restrictions and has served all non-Kenyan advocates of the High Court of Kenya with equity and due respect, the majority of them being from Uganda.
The LSK boss said despite this show of goodwill, Kenyan advocates continue to face unreasonable constraints in their efforts to practice in neighbouring countries, with the response by the Law Council of Uganda being testament.
"Cognizant of our mandate under the Law Society of Kenya Act to protect legal practice in Kenya, it can no longer be acceptable or commonplace that we take outright disrespect lying down," Odhiambo said.
She said LSK will be engaging the Attorney General with the aim of finding symbiotic engagement that promotes the interests of all parties and preserves the dignity of the Kenyan legal practice.
"To further protect the integrity of legal practice in Kenya, the Law Society of Kenya is actively considering, after necessary consultations, the suspension of admission of advocates from the Uganda Law Society until such a time as reciprocal arrangements are appreciated and implemented. This measure, though regrettable, is necessary to uphold the dignity and equity of Kenyan legal practice," Odhiambo said.
Bisigye and Lutale are charged with alleged illegal possession of guns in Kenya, Greece, and Switzerland, offences the prosecution alleges occurred in Nairobi, Athens (Greece), and Geneva (Switzerland) between October 2023 and November 2024.
The prosecution told the military court that the duo was on November 16, 2024, while at Riverside Apartments in Nairobi, found in unlawful possession of eight rounds of pistol ammunition, which are ordinarily the monopoly of the Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces (UPDF).
The prosecution further claimed that together with others still at large, Bisigye and Lutale held meetings in Nairobi, Athens and Geneva for purposes of soliciting support and identifying military targets in Uganda with the intent to compromise the security of Uganda's army.
The military court remanded the duo until December 2 for the mention of their case, a day Karua showed up in court with itent to represent them but was denied the opportunity on grounds that she lacked a licence to practice in Uganda.
The Senior Counsel applied for a temporary practicing certificate, prompting the court to adjourn court appearance for the accused persons to December 10 as she waited for issuance of the licence, which the Law Council of Uganda eventually declined to grant.
The communication was relayed to Karua on December 6 by the council's commissioner, Navakooza Margaret.
On December 9, Karua wrote a protest letter to the council, taking issue with the manner in which the council cast aspersions on her character and professional qualifications.
She termed the accusations the council levelled against her unmerited and the kind that "constitute an attack on my character and integrity and undermine the appearance of impartiality of the law council."
Karua said in the spirit of the East African Community, she did not require a practising licence to appear in a Uganda court to make an administrative request to represent a client.
"Your disperaging and personalised aspersions on my person and character, as well as importation of extraneous matters, is regrettable and undermines the spirit of Jumuiya," Karua said.
In a sperate letter dated December 10, Karua wrote to the Uganda Law Society about the council's decision to deny her right of audience before Ugandan courts.
She asked the society president, Senior Counsel Isaac Ssemakadde, to invoke Article 19 of the IBA Standards for the Independence of Legal Profession and allow her to reapply for a special practising certificate.
The Article requires the appropriate association of lawyers to cooperate in assisting a foreign lawyer to obtain the necessary right of audience, which Karua said should be granted to support her right to practice in Uganda without discrimination on the basis of her origin or political opinion.
"I believe the Uganda Law Society has a critical role to play in promoting and protecting the independence of the legal profession in Uganda and the fundamental principles and objectives of the East African Community (Jumuiya). I look forward to your cooperation and support in this matter," Karua said.
