This archive report was first published on 19 December 2019.
On December 19, 2019, the High Court made a landmark ruling in favor of judges appointed from outside the Judiciary, ordering that they be paid the same salaries as their colleagues promoted from within.
Justice George Odunga ruled that it was discriminatory for lawyers appointed to the bench from private practice to receive lower pay than those promoted from within the Judiciary, and directed the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) to harmonize their pay.
According to Justice Odunga, creating a disparity between those serving in the Judiciary and those not serving gives an added advantage to those already in the judicial system without any legal basis.
He stated that paying a salary lower than those promoted from magistrates is unconstitutional, and that the remuneration of judges is one of the tenets of the independence of the Judiciary.
Justice Odunga also emphasized that the SRC must take into account principles of non-discrimination when setting salaries for State officers.
The ruling came as a huge relief for several judges who were appointed from legal practice after the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution, with their harmonized pay to be backdated to the time they were appointed.
