Kenya > Legal market overview
High inflation, rising interest rates and a prevailing air of pessimism were the results of the shilling’s 30% fall against the dollar last summer. The mood was shared by Kenyan lawyers, not least due to fears that higher lending rates would see a decline in the fruitful project finance market in the years ahead. The effects were not immediate, though, with strong international investor interest in East Africa, a multitude of high-value cross-border deals, and the continued presence of the ‘Magic Circle’.
The progress of new legislation which accompanied the August 2010 constitution was widely criticised. Most notable was The Competition Act 2010 – widely seen as badly drafted and an obstacle to investment in its current catch-all form. The market is hopeful that subsidiary statutes and the establishment of the Competition Authority can remedy its faults.
A new Chief Justice, appointed by public vote for the first time, was accompanied by publicly vetted appointments at the Court of Appeal and the High Court, increasing confidence in the judiciary and the use of alternative dispute resolution. Kenya’s middle class appears to be taking advantage, with firms reporting a rise in caseload. New civil procedure rules on discovery and witness statements should also speed up a litigation process. One of the highest-growth areas is medical negligence – Kenyans no longer seeing their doctor as the infallible figure they might have done previously.
With government focused on implementing the constitution, the work of the Kenyan Privatisation Commission ground to a halt – a fact reflected in the almost complete lack of new privatisation deals in 2011. The independence of South Sudan meanwhile opened another market for Kenyan firms looking to capitalise on large investment in energy and exploration projects by international players such as Apache Corporation and British Gas.
The year was a standout one for Anjarwalla & Khanna, the breadth of its work in all three categories and its strength in depth marking it out from the other top-tier firms.