23rd East Africa Law Society Annual Conference, Nairobi Kenya.

23rd East Africa Law Society Annual Conference, Nairobi Kenya.

The East Africa Law Association in partnership with the Law Society of Kenya cohosted the 23rd EALS annual conference in Mombasa, Kenya from the 26th Nov-1st DEC. The conference was themed “African Continental Free Trade Area: Challenges and Opportunities for the Legal Profession.”

The conference brought together over 500 delegates from East Africa and beyond. The week long conference hosted many activities revolving around the continental and regional Trade, rule of law, justice administration, gender and youth mainstreaming, business and human rights, law and technology especially on the emerging areas like Artificial Intelligence, data protection.

CWAG speakers, Alice Lustre– Deputy Attorney General, California Department of Justice presented a training session on Trial Advocacy and Sharon Wooden facilitated a session on Transnational crime and its effect on cross border Trade.

Mr. Allen Gichuhi– President Law Society of Kenya, officially opened the conference. He said that rule of law is a very wide subject and it’s not only about human rights, but also about the ease of doing business across the region.
“I bet that going forward such meetings shouldn’t be just about networking but also the rule of law goals to achieve now and in the future, within East Africa.” He said.

Donald Kaberuka – Former AFDB President, in his keynote address said that continental free trade requires African countries to adjust to the trade market of tomorrow when there will be more people below the age of 25 who are digitally connected.
“It will be the era of artificial intelligence. “ He noted.

Richard Mugisha – EALS outgoing President, in his opening remarks, thanked the delegates for turning up in large numbers. He called on everyone to be committed and determined in order to succeed in the legal profession and rule of law in general. He recognized all the EALS partners and sponsors and honored them for their time and support during his tenure.

Mr. Markus Green ESQ – CWAG Board Member, in his opening remarks thanked EALS for an opportunity to partner and engage in capacity building on sensitive cross border transnational crimes.
“We are delighted as this is part of our ongoing collaboration with the East Africa Law Society in the efforts to promote the legal profession and build their capacity in the East Africa region.” He noted.

Hanningtone Amol – EALS CEO introduced the EALS institute and said that the e-campus which is an online platform that will give value to the legal fraternity is underway.
“We identified a gap in capacity building to our members and the EALS Institute is our answer to this.” He said.

Alice Lustre – Deputy Attorney General, California Department of Justice shared on Trial Advocacy and it’s importance in the legal profession. She said that this was the only chance to combine the law and the facts to show that the defendant is guilty.

“Preparation is key to everything. No one should know the case better than you. You should have confidence in your case making and always make sure that you follow the rules. It is equally important to establish and maintain your own credibility with the court and whenever you can, take time to observe others.” She noted.

Sharon Wooden – Office of the Attorney General, California Department of Justice facilitated a training session on Transnational Crime and its effect on cross border trade.
“Stopping the flow of dirty money prevents criminals from profiting, and it combats the perpetuation of crime.
Law enforcement agencies must place a much greater emphasis on following and seizing the money in order to understand, identify, and disrupt trafficking networks.” She said.