Suspension of Lesotho’s parliament ‘irrational’, ‘unlawful’ – court
It was a transparent attempt to avoid a vote of no-confidence by parliament, hiding behind a claim to be protecting MPs from Covid-19. And now the controversial Prime Minister of Lesotho has had his come-uppance from the country’s high court which ruled his...
‘Just not good enough’ – get up to speed for electronic hearings: UK court
Like it or not, the coronavirus is forcing lawyers – judges, magistrates, prosecutors, advocate and attorneys – to play catch up with technology. Many courts are now operating through the lockdown or other social distancing restrictions via electronic hearings, and...
Judge orders curfew exemption for Kenya’s lawyers
Kenya's High Court has declared as unconstitutional the 'unreasonable use of force' by police since a dusk to dawn curfew came into effect in that country on 26 March. The court has also ordered that the authorities must include lawyers and members of the police...
Kenya’s Covid19 restrictions invalid because they criminalise poverty – law society
Kenya’s law society has launched a court application challenging the validity of the country’s Covid-19 restrictions because they have not been approved by parliament. The law society also claims they are invalid because they discriminate against the poor, in that...
Malawian law students lose their challenge to Covid19 university closure
A group of four students studying law in Malawi have lost their high court case challenging the validity of the President's Covid-19-related directives. They also lost their challenge to the closure of their university in terms of those directives. But it was not all...
As ‘moral Covid19’ infects Namibia, even legal profession touched by ‘Fishrot’ bribery scandal
The ‘Fishrot’ corruption scandal engulfing Namibia seems set to choke the country’s legal profession as well: while the Law Society of Namibia tries to access the records of one of its prominent members, suspected of being involved in the scandal and to have used his...
‘Deplorable conduct’ from chambers of Malawi’s AG – judge
In Their Own Words: Read judgment in Mponda v President Judge Zione Ntaba, High Court, Malawi This case dealt with an application by four law students who challenged the validity of Malawi’s Covid-19-related restrictions and asked that these restrictions, and the...
Costs order a lesson about ‘frivolous’ Covid-19 claims – labour court
The first case testing whether sufficient protection was available for medical staff working on the front line against the coronavirus in South Africa, has resulted in an ignominious conclusion for the union that brought the legal action. Read judgment The National...
Controversial Lesotho PM prorogues parliament, gets taken to court
Lesotho’s Prime Minister, Tom Thabane, has signed papers suspending parliament for three months. He cited the coronavirus pandemic to explain his decision. Ironically, a full-on legal application contesting the validity of his COVID-19-based decision was heard in a...
Government sets up a massive national system using mobile phones to track and trace COVID-19 suspects
The South African government has introduced new, wide-reaching regulations that will allow it to track the whereabouts of anyone on a national database that is being developed, and that will list people who have come into contact with individuals confirmed to be...