KISUMU, 25th Sept 2026 -Showdown looms in the corridors of justice as the Law Society of Kenya maintains it will not lift its boycott of select judges and magistrates, insisting it will continue until orders blocking the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) from acting are vacated.
The targeted boycott began on 23rd July 2026 after a day-long general protest over stalled JSC processes.
It affects about 15 judicial officers, among them Chief Justice Martha Koome, Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu and Supreme Court Justices Isaac Lenaola, Smokin Wanjala, Njoki Ndung’u and William Ouko, Court of Appeal Judge Sankale ole Kantai, High Court Judges Lucy Waithaka, Anthony Ombwayo, Lucas Naikuni, Stellah Atambo, Josephine Mong’are and Magistrate F. Mutuku.
Speaking in Kisumu on Friday, LSK President Charles Kanjama said advocates should continue keeping off courts presided over by the listed officers until the Society issues fresh directions, and adhere to any operational guidelines that will be issued.
He said the Society wrote to the JSC on 23rd September seeking progress on resolutions reached during a joint meeting on 31st July 2026. While the JSC and Judiciary have forwarded names of their representatives to a proposed Joint Committee, key undertakings remain unmet.
LSK cites delayed publication of judicial performance reports beyond the agreed 30 days, non-operationalization of the electronic complaints filing and tracking system agreed to be done in 60 days, lack of clear status on long-pending petitions that triggered the boycott, and failure to share contacts for court-based Integrity Committees.
Other outstanding matters include failure to share the draft disciplinary regulations for input and the pending framework to define the boundary between decisional independence and institutional accountability.
Kanjama also added that the Society will work tirelessly to weed out individuals masquerading as advocates, yet they don’t appear in their Roll of Advocates.
Kanjama said the boycott will remain while engagement with the JSC and Judiciary continues, branch feedback will be consolidated and escalated, and members will be updated on further steps.
