Section 48 of Advocates Act CAP 16: Action for recovery of costs
(1) Subject to this Act, no suit shall be brought for the recovery of any costs due to an advocate or his firm until the expiry of one month after a bill for such costs, which may be in summarized form, signed by the advocate or a partner in his firm, has been delivered or sent by registered post to the client, unless there is reasonable cause to be verified by affidavit filed with the plaint, for believing that the party chargeable therewith is about to quit Kenya or abscond from the local limits of the Court’s jurisdiction, in which event action may be commenced before expiry of the period of one month.
(2) Subject to subsection (1), a suit may be brought for the recovery of costs due to an advocate in any court of competent jurisdiction.
(3) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Act, a bill of costs between an advocate and a client may be taxed notwithstanding that no suit for recovery of costs has been filed.
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- Section 49 - Procedure in action where quantum of costs is challenged by defence
Where, in the absence of an agreement for remuneration made by virtue of section 45, a suit has been brought by an advocate for the recovery of any costs and a defence is filed disputing the...
- Section 50 - Taxation on application of third parties, beneficiaries under trust, etc.
(1) Where a person other than the person who is the party chargeable with a bill of costs is liable to pay the bill either to the advocate or to the party chargeable with the bill, or where a person...
- Section 51 - General provisions as to taxation
(1) Every application for an order for the taxation of an advocate’s bill or for the delivery of such a bill and the delivering up of any deeds, documents and papers by an advocate shall be made in...
- Section 52 - Charging orders
Any court in which an advocate has been employed to prosecute or defend any suit or matter may at any time declare the advocate entitled to a charge on the property recovered or preserved through his...
- Section 53 - Establishment of Complaints Commission
(1) There is hereby established a Complaints Commission (in this Part referred to as “the Commission”) which shall consist of such commissioner or commissioners as shall be appointed by the President...
- Section 53A - Remuneration of Commissioner
(1) There shall be paid to the Commissioner such remuneration by way of salary, allowance, pension or gratuity as shall be determined by the President.
(2) The remuneration referred to in subsection...
- Section 54 - Secretary and staff of Commission and rules relating thereto
(1) There shall be a secretary to the Commission who shall be appointed by the Attorney-General.
(2) The Attorney-General shall provide such public officers as are necessary for the proper and...
- Section 55 - Advocates to be officers of Court
Every advocate and every person otherwise entitled to act as an advocate shall be an officer of the Court and shall be subject to the jurisdiction thereof and, subject to this Act, to the jurisdiction...
- Section 56 - Savings of disciplinary powers of Court
Nothing in this Act shall supersede, lessen or interfere with the powers vested in the Chief Justice or any of the judges of the Court to deal with misconduct or offences by an advocate, or any person...
- Section 57 - Establishment of Disciplinary Tribunal
(1) There is established a tribunal to be known as the Disciplinary Tribunal (in this Part referred to as “the Tribunal”) which shall consist of—
(a) the Attorney-General;
(aa) the Director of...
- Section 58 - Proceedings of Tribunal
(1) The Tribunal may, subject to subsection (2), act as a tribunal of either three or five members, and may require the chairman or vice-chairman of the Society or both or any other member of the...
- Section 58A - Establishment of Regional Disciplinary Committees
(1) There are hereby established Disciplinary Committees (in this Part referred to as “Regional Committees”) in five representative regions, other than Nairobi, identified by the society.
(2) Each...
- Section 59 - Application for removal of name from the Roll
(1) An advocate may make an application to the Tribunal to procure his name to be removed from the Roll.
(2) On the hearing of an application under subsection (1), the Tribunal may make an order...
- Section 60 - Complaints against advocates
(1) A complaint against an advocate of professional misconduct, which expression includes disgraceful or dishonourable conduct incompatible with the status of an advocate, may be made to the Tribunal...
- Section 60A - Hearing of complaints
(1) The powers conferred on the Committee by this section may be exercised on the hearing of—
(a) any application or complaint made to the Committee under this Act by or on behalf of the Council;...
- Section 61 - Reports by Tribunal and action thereon
(1) On the termination of the hearing of a complaint, if the Tribunal does not dismiss the same, the Tribunal shall embody its findings and the order or orders made by it in the form of a report to...
- Section 62 - Appeal against order of Tribunal
(1) Any advocate aggrieved by order of the Tribunal made under section 60 may, within fourteen days after the receipt by him of the notice to be given to him pursuant to section 61(2), appeal against...
- Section 63 - Registrar to furnish copy of the report and record
When notifying the Council of the Society and the advocate to whom a complaint relates of the date fixed for the hearing of the appeal, the Registrar shall also forward to the Council and the advocate...
- Section 64 - Powers of Court
The Court, after considering the evidence taken by the Tribunal, the report of the Tribunal and the memorandum of appeal, and having heard the parties, and after taking any further evidence, if it...
- Section 65 - Powers of Court under section 64 to be exercised by two judges
(1) The powers conferred upon the Court by section 64 shall be exercised by not less than two of the judges of the Court.
(2) If such powers are exercised by two judges and the opinion of the Court...
- Section 66 - Registrar to draw up orders
Where an order has been made by the Court under section 64, the Registrar shall, within one week from the date of the making thereof, cause the order to be drawn up.
- Section 67 - Right of appeal to Court of Appeal
(1) Any advocate aggrieved by a decision or order of the Court made under section 64 may appeal therefrom to the Court of Appeal in the manner and within the time prescribed by the rules made from...
- Section 68 - Orders to be noted on the Roll
(1) The Registrar shall cause a note of the effect of a final order to be entered in the Roll against the name of the advocate concerned, and where the order so directs shall remove or strike off his...
- Section 69 - Law Society to be informed of result of disciplinary proceedings and publicity of striking-off or suspension
(1) The Registrar shall inform the secretary to the Society of the making of an entry in respect of any advocate on the Roll and of the removal from, or the striking off, the Roll of the name of any...
- Section 70 - Limitation of time for certain applications to strike names off the Roll
Subject as hereinafter provided, no advocate shall be liable to have his name struck off the Roll on account of any defect in his admission and enrolment, unless the application to strike his name off...
- Section 71 - Restoration to Roll
The Chief Justice shall, upon the recommendation of the Tribunal and with the written approval of the Chairman of the Society, order the Registrar to restore on the Roll the name of any advocate whose...
- Section 72 - Disciplinary powers as to clerks
(1) An application may be made by or on behalf of the Council of the Society to the Tribunal for an order directing that, as from a date to be specified in such order, no advocate shall, in connection...
- Section 73 - Clerk’s right of appeal
(1) Any person against whom an order has been made by the Tribunal under section 72 may, within fourteen days of the date of such order, appeal against such order to the Court, by giving notice of...
- Section 74 - Offences and penalties with respect to employment of clerks against whom an order is in force
(1) Any person against whom an order made under section 72 is in force who seeks or accepts employment by, or remuneration from, an advocate in connection with his practice as an advocate without...
- Section 75 - Order of Tribunal to be received in evidence
Every report and every order made by the Tribunal under this Part shall be signed by the chairman of the Tribunal, and any document, purporting to be a report or an order so signed shall be received...
- Section 76 - Authentication of rules and other documents
Subject to section 75, all rules, certificates, notices and other documents made or issued by the Tribunal for any purpose whatsoever may be signed on behalf of the Tribunal by the secretary to the...
- Section 77 - Penalties for failure to comply with order of Tribunal
Any person who, without good and lawful excuse, contravenes or fails to comply with any order, notice or direction of the Tribunal or the Complaints Commission shall be guilty of an offence and, in...
- Section 78 - Immunity for members of Tribunal
No member of the Tribunal, nor any person who is or was at any material time a member, or the secretary, thereof, shall be liable to be sued in any civil court for or in respect of any act or thing...
- Section 79 - Right to legal representation
Any advocate against whom a complaint is made or any complainant under Part X or this Part, may be represented by an advocate.
- Section 80 - Betrayal of trust
Any person who, being an advocate, is entrusted in his professional capacity with any money, valuable security or other property to retain it in safe custody with instructions to pay or apply it for...
- Section 81 - Power to make rules
(1) The Council of the Society, with the approval of the Chief Justice, may make rules with regard to—
(a) the professional practice, conduct and discipline of advocates;
(b) the keeping of...
- Section 82 - Relief to banks
(1) Subject to this section, no bank shall, in connection with any transaction on any amount of any advocate kept with it or with any other bank (other than an account kept by an advocate as trustee...
- Section 83 - Saving of other laws
Nothing in this Act or any rules made thereunder shall affect the provisions of any other written law empowering any unqualified person to conduct, defend or otherwise act in relation to any legal...
- Section 84 - Application of certain fees, etc.
All admission fees received by the Registrar under section 11(2) or 15(4), and all fees received by the Registrar in respect of replacing an advocate’s name on the Roll under section 71, shall be paid...
- Section 85 - General penalty
(1) Any person who is guilty of an offence under this Act for which no penalty is otherwise provided shall be liable to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a...
- Section 86 - Repeal of Cap. 16 and savings
(1) The Advocates Act is repealed.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the application of subsection (3) of section 23 of the Interpretation and General Provisions Act (Cap. 2), the...