This archive report was first published on 23 August 2021.
On August 23, 2021, the High Court in Kenya issued a ruling that restrained police officers from the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) premises, granting the society's president Nelson Havi and council members unrestricted access.
The ruling, made by Justice Anthony Mrima, stated that unless the police are maintaining law and order, they should not interfere with the operations of the LSK.
LSK president Nelson Havi had filed a petition accusing the State of intimidation and interference in the society's affairs, citing the presence of police officers at the LSK offices in Lavington following internal wrangles.
Two weeks prior to the ruling, goons stormed the LSK offices, broke the door, and roughed up officials in the presence of police officers.
Two factions of the society's leadership had clashed over access to the premises, with one group supporting Havi and the other sympathetic to Chief Executive Mercy Wambua.
LSK president Nelson Havi accused the police of laying an unnecessary siege at the offices, stating, 'What we have seen here is a siege by the police. The LSK premises are a private property but in the recent past we have witnessed so many cases where police officers are called here whenever we come to meet as a council.'
