Chief Justice Martha Koome presided over the admission of 96 lawyers to the Roll of Advocates at a ceremony attended by the Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu, Deputy Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Paul Maina, Jacinta Nyamosi from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), Lawrence Muiruri from the Attorney General’s office and Mercy Wambua of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).
She told the advocates to be part of the solution to the problem of case backlog and delayed delivery of justice by ensuring they abandon the age-old practices of unnecessary adjournments that delay the hearing of cases.
The CJ asked them to embrace the constitutionally envisaged shift to focusing on the merit of cases rather than unnecessary interlocutory and technical applications that have contributed to the delay in resolution of cases.
Justice Koome advised the Advocates to embrace the multi-door approach to delivery of justice that recognizes the utility of Small Claims Courts, alternative systems of justice and Alternative Dispute Resolution in redressing societal grievances.
“A successful advocate ought to contribute socially beneficial services to the society. They are expected to play a role in furthering the Constitution’s goals of social inclusion and access to justice.” CJ Koome said.
She urged them to be ready to go the extra mile to ensure that the vulnerable in the society such as victims of gender-based violence, children, persons living with disabilities, and persons from minority and marginalized communities are enabled to access justice.