A Nairobi lawyer is facing 10 criminal charges over a disputed Sh150 million legal fees agreement after investigators accused him of forging union officials’ signatures, presenting the document in court, and violently resisting arrest.
Advocate Benard Odero Okello was due to take a plea at the Kibera Law Courts on Friday, September 11, 2026, but the High Court suspended the proceedings after his lawyers obtained orders blocking his prosecution.
The case stems from a bitter legal fees dispute with the Kenya County Government Workers Union. It now includes allegations of forgery, uttering a false document, resisting arrest, and assaulting police officers.
The 10 Criminal Charges Facing Lawyer Benard Odero ¶
The criminal case against Odero grew out of a disputed Change of Signatory and Fee Note Agreement connected to Nairobi Employment and Labour Relations Court Cause No. E068 of 2022.
The prosecution alleges the document authorized Odero to collect Sh150 million in legal fees after the case concluded.
Three officials of the Kenya County Government Workers Union’s Nairobi Branch denied signing or authorizing the agreement.
Investigators subsequently submitted the disputed document, together with known specimen signatures, to the DCI National Forensic Laboratory.
According to the prosecution, forensic examination established that the signatures on the Sh150 million agreement did not belong to the union officials.
That finding became the foundation of the criminal case.
1. Forgery of the Sh150 Million Fee Agreement ¶
Odero is accused of forging the Change of Signatory and Fee Note Agreement relating to the union’s case.
The prosecution alleges that the document was created or altered to make it appear that union officials had authorized the Sh150 million legal fees arrangement.
The officials deny signing it.
2. Uttering a False Document ¶
The lawyer is also accused of knowingly presenting the disputed document as genuine when it was allegedly forged.
The prosecution says Odero used the document during proceedings before the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi.
This charge concerns the alleged use of the document, rather than simply its creation.
3. Presenting the Forged Agreement During Court Proceedings ¶
According to the charge sheet, Odero allegedly presented the disputed Change of Signatory and Fee Note Agreement on November 19, 2024, at Milimani in Nairobi.
The document was reportedly produced during party-to-party taxation proceedings in ELRC Cause No. E068 of 2022.
The prosecution considers the alleged presentation of the document a serious part of the case because it was used in formal court proceedings.
4. Resisting Arrest ¶
Odero faces a charge arising from his arrest at his Westlands office on September 10, 2026.
Detectives say he resisted being handcuffed after officers moved to arrest him following an ODPP directive.
Investigators allege that he struggled with the officers and attempted to evade arrest.
His lawyers have disputed the account and told court that Odero and members of his staff were also assaulted during the incident.
5. Assaulting a Police Officer ¶
The prosecution further accuses Odero of assaulting one of the officers who attempted to arrest him.
Detectives allege that he physically fought the officers while they tried to restrain him.
6. Assaulting a Second Police Officer ¶
A separate count relates to a second police officer involved in the arrest.
Investigators allege that Odero bit two officers during the struggle as they attempted to handcuff him.
The alleged assaults form part of the additional criminal charges arising from the Westlands arrest.
7. Attempting to Evade Arrest ¶
The prosecution alleges that Odero tried to escape arrest after detectives entered his office at The Westery Building off Muthithi Road.
Investigators say the lawyer moved towards an eighth-floor window and threatened to jump as officers closed in.
The incident transformed the arrest into a dramatic confrontation inside the Westlands office building.
8. Using a Disputed Fee Agreement in a Legal Fees Dispute ¶
At the heart of the case is the alleged use of the Sh150 million agreement in a wider battle over legal fees.
Court records show that Odero had for years pursued legal fees from the Kenya County Government Workers Union through Advocate-Client Bills of Costs filed in different courts.
The disputed agreement therefore became central to the question of how much Odero was entitled to recover from the union.
9. Fraudulent Representation of Union Officials’ Authority ¶
The prosecution’s case also turns on the allegation that the disputed agreement falsely represented that the union officials had authorized the Sh150 million payment.
The officials’ signatures were crucial because the agreement purported to establish their consent to the fee arrangement.
The forensic examination, according to investigators, found that the signatures did not match those of the officials.
10. Criminal Conduct Arising From the Arrest ¶
The final group of allegations concerns Odero’s conduct when police moved to arrest him.
The prosecution says the confrontation involved resistance, an attempted escape, and physical attacks on officers.
His defence disputes that version and maintains that Odero and his staff were themselves assaulted.
The allegations will ultimately have to be tested through the criminal justice process.
How the Sh150 Million Dispute Turned Into a Criminal Case ¶
The dispute can be traced to ELRC Cause No. E068 of 2022, a case involving the Kenya County Government Workers Union’s Nairobi Branch and Nairobi City County.
The union was seeking orders over hundreds of millions of shillings in third-party deductions from workers, including Sacco loans, pensions, NHIF, NSSF, and union dues.
Odero appeared in the proceedings as the union’s advocate.
The relationship later deteriorated into a major dispute over legal fees.
From 2023, Odero, trading as Benard Odero & Company Advocates, filed several Advocate-Client Bills of Costs against the union in Nairobi, Kisumu, and Nakuru.
The amounts varied significantly.
One bill was listed at about Sh9.18 million, while another stood at approximately Sh6.86 million. Other claims involved smaller amounts.
Several proceedings centred on whether a written retainer dated November 17, 2022, existed and what work it covered.
One court ruling referred to a lump-sum arrangement of about Sh7 million covering nearly 100 matters.
The courts subsequently dealt with several disputes surrounding the retainer and taxation of the advocate’s fees.
A Nakuru court ruling in January 2026 also addressed the validity of the retainer and its effect under Section 45 of the Advocates Act.
The latest dispute is different in scale.
The document at the centre of the criminal investigation purportedly created a Sh150 million fee arrangement for a single Nairobi case.
That is the document the union officials say they never signed.
DCI Investigation Leads to Odero’s Westlands Arrest ¶
The criminal investigation intensified after three Nairobi Branch officials complained to authorities about the disputed document.
Detectives from Parklands Police Station began pursuing Odero after an ODPP directive dated September 2, 2026.
Investigators say Odero ignored police summonses issued in connection with the complaint.
Detectives eventually traced him to his office at The Westery Building in Westlands.
What followed is now another major part of the criminal case.
According to police, Odero threatened to jump from the eighth-floor window when detectives moved to arrest him.
Officers eventually subdued him.
Police further allege that Odero bit two officers as they tried to handcuff him.
His lawyers have rejected the prosecution's version of events, saying Odero and members of his staff were also assaulted during the confrontation.
The competing accounts will now form part of the legal battle.
High Court Stops Odero’s Plea Taking ¶
Odero was taken to the Kibera Law Courts on Friday, September 11, where he was expected to plead to the 10 criminal charges.
But the prosecution did not proceed after his legal team, led by Law Society of Kenya President Charles Kanjama, presented orders issued by High Court Judge Bahati Mwamuye.
Justice Mwamuye issued a conservatory order restraining the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and the Inspector General of Police from summoning, arresting, detaining, charging, or prosecuting Odero over matters connected to the Kenya County Government Workers Union transactions.
The order also covers Odero & Partners Advocates, together with its advocates, employees, and agents, in relation to the same transactions and the disputed fee agreement dated September 17, 2023.
The High Court further ordered the immediate and unconditional release of Odero and any advocate, employee, or agent of his firm who had been detained in connection with the matter.
At Kibera, Kanjama asked the court to respect the High Court order and suspend plea-taking.
He argued that the High Court intervention was intended to protect the dignity of the judicial process and prevent criminal proceedings from being used to resolve what the defense considers a civil dispute.
Chief Magistrate Stella Atambo agreed to suspend the plea.
The magistrate said the Kibera matter would remain active but that the court would not take any action contrary to the High Court's orders.
Plea taking was therefore stayed pending further directions from the High Court.
Odero was released unconditionally.
What Happens Next to the Criminal Case ¶
The immediate question is whether and when Odero will take a plea on the 10 charges.
That decision now depends on the High Court petition filed by the lawyer.
The underlying allegations remain serious.
The prosecution says forensic examination found that signatures on a Sh150 million fee agreement were not genuine. It also accuses Odero of presenting the disputed document in court.
Police separately accuse him of resisting arrest and assaulting two officers.
Odero has not been convicted of any of the offenses.
His lawyers have challenged the prosecution's actions and obtained orders stopping the plea-taking process.
The High Court will now determine the next stage of the dispute.
What began as a fight over advocate-client fees has therefore escalated into a criminal prosecution involving alleged forged signatures, a Sh150 million legal fees agreement, contested court documents, a dramatic Westlands arrest, and a High Court intervention.
The case places the conduct of both the advocate and investigators under intense scrutiny as the courts determine whether the criminal charges should proceed.
