KSL ATP 103 flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Advocacy

The art of persuading a court through reasoned argument and evidence presented on behalf of a client, combining legal knowledge with oral and written skills.

Advocates Act Cap 16

The Kenyan statute governing admission, enrolment, practice, discipline, and professional conduct of advocates, including the roll of advocates and disciplinary procedures.

Council of Legal Education

The statutory body that regulates legal education in Kenya, accredits training institutions, and administers the Advocates Training Programme and bar examinations.

Law Society of Kenya

The professional body for Kenyan advocates, which represents members' interests, issues practising certificates, and maintains professional standards and ethics.

Advocate–client privilege

A rule protecting confidential communications between client and advocate made for legal advice; it belongs to the client and survives the end of the retainer.

Conflict of interest

A situation where an advocate's personal or former-client interest materially conflicts with a current client's interest, requiring disclosure and often withdrawal from acting.

Duty to the court

The advocate's paramount obligation not to mislead the court, which overrides the duty to the client and bars citing overruled authority or concealing adverse law.

Ratio decidendi

The binding legal principle or reason for the decision in a case, which binds lower courts in the same hierarchy under the doctrine of precedent.

Obiter dicta

Remarks by a judge that are not necessary to the decision; they are persuasive only and do not bind lower courts as precedent.

Supreme Court of Kenya

The highest court in Kenya's hierarchy, with final appellate jurisdiction and power to give advisory opinions; its decisions bind all other courts.

Court of Appeal

An appellate court hearing appeals from the High Court and courts of equal status; it does not conduct trials or hear first-instance evidence.

High Court jurisdiction

Unlimited original jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters, plus supervisory jurisdiction over subordinate courts and tribunals.

Plaint

The originating pleading in a civil suit by which the plaintiff sets out the facts constituting the cause of action and the relief sought from the defendant.

Cause of action

The set of facts giving rise to a legal right to sue; a plaint that discloses no reasonable cause of action may be struck out.

Advocates Disciplinary Tribunal

The tribunal established under the Advocates Act to hear complaints against advocates and impose sanctions such as admonition, fine, suspension, or striking off.

Striking off the roll

The most severe professional sanction, removing an advocate's name from the roll of advocates and terminating the right to practise law in Kenya.

Paralegal

A trained legal support professional who assists a licensed advocate with research, drafting, and file management but cannot give independent legal advice or appear in court as an advocate.

Unauthorized practice of law

Activities reserved by statute to licensed advocates, such as court appearance and giving legal advice, which a paralegal may not perform independently.

Hierarchy of authority

The ranking of legal sources by binding force: constitution, statute, subsidiary legislation, binding case law, then persuasive materials such as textbooks and foreign decisions.

Neutral citation

A citation identifying a judgment by party names, year, and court-assigned identifier, such as [2019] eKLR, independent of the printed law report volume.

Client intake

The initial process of recording a client's full particulars, identifying the cause of action, checking limitation periods, and flagging conflicts before substantive work begins.

Limitation period

The statutory time within which a claim must be filed; expiry generally bars the remedy, so it must be checked at intake.

Contract limitation period

In Kenya, actions founded on contract are generally barred after three years from the date the cause of action accrued, subject to statutory exceptions.

Tort limitation period

In Kenya, actions founded on tort are generally barred after three years from accrual, though special rules apply to personal injury and latent damage.

Land recovery limitation

An action to recover land is generally barred after twelve years from the date the right of action accrued, subject to statutory exceptions.

Affidavit

A written statement of facts sworn or affirmed before a commissioner for oaths, used as evidence; it must state facts, not law or opinion.

Commissioner for oaths

A person authorized by law to administer oaths and witness affidavits, thereby giving sworn statements legal effect for use in proceedings.

Jurat

The concluding clause of an affidavit recording when, where, and before whom it was sworn; a defective jurat can render the affidavit inadmissible.

Affidavit of service

A sworn document filed with the court proving that pleadings or process were served on the opposite party, stating when, where, and how service occurred.

Chain of custody

The documented chronological record of who handled physical evidence, when, and how, used to establish integrity and admissibility in proceedings.

Conveyancing

The legal process of transferring interests in land, involving title investigation, drafting of instruments, execution, stamping, and registration.

Legal research brief

A structured memo identifying the issue, relevant authorities, analysis, and conclusion, prepared to inform an advocate's advice or pleadings.