Justice Gatembu Kairu Elected Court of Appeal President

Court of Appeal judge Justice Gatembu Kairu elected President of the court

Justice Steven Gatembu Kairu has been elected as the new President of the Court of Appeal after winning the just concluded judicial elections that attracted four senior judges competing for the top appellate court leadership position.

The Judiciary of Kenya announced that Justice Gatembu secured 26 votes out of the 41 ballots cast, beating fellow candidates Lady Justice Lydia Achode, Justice Patrick Kiage and Lady Justice Agnes Murgor in a secret ballot election.

The election marked the succession process following the expiry of the non-renewable five-year term of former Court of Appeal President Justice Daniel Musinga, whose tenure came to an end in May 2026.

The process was overseen by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to ensure transparency.

“Justice Gatembu Kairu has won the just concluded elections as the new President of the Court of Appeal. He clinched 26 votes out of the 41 ballots cast. The other candidates were Lady Justice Lydia Achode, Justice Patrick Kiage and Lady Justice Agnes Murgor,” the Judiciary announced.

Early Life and Education of Justice Gatembu Kairu

Gatembu Kairu was born in July 1960.

In 1990, he acquired his Master of Laws degree (LLM) at Boston University.

Before earning an LLB from the University of Nairobi in 1984, he had already completed a Diploma in Law from the Kenya School of Law in 1985.

Justice Kairu is also a trained trainer in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) through the Center for Africa Peace and Conflict Resolution at California State University, USA.

He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and has trained and facilitated ADR workshops in Kenya, Ethiopia and Tanzania.

Before joining the Judiciary, Justice Kairu built a successful career in legal practice.

He worked as a Legal Assistant with Hamilton Harrison & Mathews Advocates and later served as an Associate at Kimani Kairu & Company Advocates.

He eventually founded Kairu & McCourt Advocates in 1993 and was still a partner until 2009.

He has since retired from legal practice and works only in arbitration and mediation.

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Judicial Career and Major Contributions

Justice Gatembu joined the Judiciary in 2012 after being appointed by the President of the Republic of Kenya as a Judge of the Court of Appeal following a competitive recruitment process conducted by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).

Before his judicial appointment, Justice Kairu had served as a lecturer at the University of Nairobi School of Law from 1990.

During his academic career, he taught Alternative Dispute Resolution, Banking Law, Civil Procedure and Practice, HIV/AIDS and the Law, Law of Torts and Law of International Institutions.

His judicial career has also been marked by involvement in key constitutional and legal matters.

Justice Gatembu was among the seven Court of Appeal judges who in 2021 delivered a unanimous decision declaring the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) constitutional amendment process null and void.

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It was ruled that citizens have not been adequately informed on the BBI process and that the President as the Head of State is not allowed to introduce constitutional amendments under Article 257 by popular initiative.

In 2025, he also delivered a judgment on the Matrimonial Properties Act together with Justice Aggrey Muchelule.

They ruled that Section 7 of the Matrimonial Properties Act is empowering to women in that it recognizes their monetary and non-monetary contribution to determine ownership shares of matrimonial property.

In the process of his work, besides being a judge, Justice Kairu has been involved in different committees in the Judiciary, one of them being the Chairperson of the Integrated Court Management System Committee.

As a result of his activities, he managed to modernize the appellate court management system through its digitization.

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