A look at legal teams in the Presidential petition

The August 8, 2017 presidential election petition filed by the National Super Alliance (NASA) candidate, Raila Odinga, has seen the interested parties assemble teams of Kenya’s top legal minds.

Here is a look at the legal teams for the parties in the petition:

Petitioners (Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka) Legal team

James Orengo

The 2002 Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential candidate and well known fighter of the ‘second liberation’ is the current Siaya Senator.

Having represented the constituents of Ugenya four times in parliament, the University of Nairobi law student is considered among the best Lawyers the country has ever seen.

Amos Wako

The Attorney General of Kenya for a massive 20 years from May 1991 to August 2011 is the current senator of Busia County.

During his reign as AG, the 71 year-old, Master of Law student from the University of London, was an advocate of the High Court and a member of the International Commission of Jurists.

Paul Otiende Amollo

A first Chairperson of the Commission on Administrative Justice and International Commission of Jurists (Kenya Chapter), Dr. Amollo successfully represented the Isaac Hassan-led electoral commission back in the 2013 presidential petition filed by his current client, Mr. Odinga. A human rights defender, Amollo was among six Kenyans who wrote the Constitution of Kenya 2010 and he is a Masters of Law (LL.M) student from University of Nairobi.

Pheroze Nowrojee

The A Kenyan Journey author has been ranked among the top lawyers in Kenya. He is an almer mater of Yale University, where he got Bachelors degree in Law in 1974. He has specialized in constitutional law.

Okongo Omogeni

He is a former Law Society of Kenya president from 2007 to 2010 and represented the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) politicians in the famous ‘Pangani Six’ after they allegedly engaged in hate speech.

The senior counsel got his Barchelors in law degree from the University of Nairobi in 1993. He also holds a masters degree in governance and leadership from JKUAT.

Norman Magaya

The head of NASA’s secretariat, who made headlines in August 10 after he allegedly collapsed at the Bomas of Kenya, National Tallying Center, was once regarded as President Kenyatta’s mole in NASA.

The Catholic University of Eastern Africa law lecture is an advocate of the High Court.

Paul Mwangi

In 2011, he was Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s Legal Affairs Adviser. He pursued a Bachelors degree in Law at the University of Nairobi.

Mwangi is an advocate in private practice and was the national legal adviser of the Yes Team that won comprehensively in the 2005 referendum.

Antony Oluoch

The city lawyer is the MP-elect of Mathare constituency after trouncing incumbent Jubilee’s Steven Kariuki in the just concluded August 8 General Elections.

Jackson Awele

Awele holds an LLB Second Class (Upper Division) degree from Moi University. In 2014, he was an associate in the litigation and Intellectual Property Departments of the law firm of Oraro & Company Advocates.

First respondent (IEBC) legal team

Paul Muite

The 72-year-old lawyer-cum-politician and a multi-party democracy fighter in the 1990s graduated with a Bachelor of Law (LL.B) from the University of London.

The founding chairperson of the Safina Party was a Member of Parliament for Kabete Constituency from 1992 to 2007.

Eric Ngumbo

He was among the legal team of the then Isaac Hassan-led electoral commission during the 2013 presidential petition filed by Mr. Raila Odinga.

Second respondent (IEBC Chairperson) legal team

PLO Lumumba

He once served as the Chairperson of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission (KACC) now Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) from September 2010 to August 2011.

Currently he is the Director of the School of Law. The eloquent lawyer holds a PhD in Law from the University of Ghent in Belgium.

Kamau Karori

A partner at the Iseme Kamau & Maema Advocates and admitted at the bar in 1996, his areas of specialization include arbitration, commercial and banking litigation and human rights.

He has been involved in various massive commercial disputes and he is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Third respondent (Uhuru Kenyatta) legal team

Fred Ngatia

He successfully represented Jubilee Alliance in the 2013 presidential petition at the Supreme Court. Named among the world’s top legal professionals of the year 2011, Ngatia also represented the Late George Saitoti at the Goldenberg Commission of Inquiry.

 Ahmednassir Abdullahi

The former Dean, law school University of Nairobi successfully represented the Isaac Hassan-led electoral commission in the 2012 presidential petition. He holds a Masters in Law from Cornell University, US.

He has appeared for the World Bank, UNHCR, and numerous NGOs in different capacities.