Disciplinary Tribunal finds lawyer Havi guilty of misconduct

The Advocates Disciplinary Tribunal found former Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President, Nelson Andayi Havi, guilty of professional misconduct over a series of social media posts and televised remarks.

In a judgment delivered by the Tribunal, Havi was convicted under Section 60(4) of the Advocates Act following a complaint filed by his predecessor, Allen Waiyaki Gichuhi.

Gichuhi accused Havi of publishing offensive statements targeting him and other former LSK leaders via Twitter and during a televised interview on KTN, alleging corruption and incompetence within the society’s leadership.

The Tribunal held that Havi, while serving as the 49th President of the LSK, used vulgar, abusive, and demeaning language that not only attacked fellow advocates but also severely undermined the dignity and decorum expected of a legal practitioner.

“The Tribunal feels compelled to prevent the emerging trend of advocates mudslinging one other on social media and other public fora without regard to the damaging consequences to the dignity of the entire profession arising from such conduct,” said the disciplinary tribunal.

One of the tweets cited in the complaint read: “FIDA Kenya is a big shame to legal profession in Kenya. In the eyes of this Organization, everything is perceived from the prism of the female genitalla and not the brain…”

In another, Havi tweeted “Theft is theft; it is no less if committed by a woman. Mercy Wambua is shielding her principals, two immediate and former presidents from liability for plunder of hundreds of millions.”

The Tribunal said that these statements not only degraded professional colleagues but also painted a negative public image of the entire legal profession.

The use of such language, it ruled, “fell far short of the standards of professional conduct expected of any advocate.”

The matter will be mentioned on November 17, 2025 for mitigation and sentencing.