Bunge La Mwananchi petitions LSK to discipline advocate over misconduct

Speaking outside the LSK offices where the petition was delivered, the movement's president Maurice Masaga said the advocate, who practises as Munga Kibanga & Co. Advocates, had failed to observe the professional standards expected of members of the Bar in his dealings with his aggrieved client, Peter Gathungu Gikonyo.

"Advocate Charles Munga Kaguoya does not observe the strict code of professional conduct and etiquette in his dealings with his aggrieved client," Masaga said.

He said the group had turned to the LSK as the professional body representing all advocates to demonstrate that one of its own was breaching the law.

"We are asking the Law Society of Kenya to investigate and take action. Institute a thorough inquiry and take appropriate disciplinary action against Advocate Charles Munga Kaguoya for breaching professional codes of conduct and etiquette in his handling of Mr. Gikonyo's legal affairs," he said.

Masaga said Gikonyo, who was present at the demonstration, had told the group that the advocate had cheated him, placed him at risk of jail and withheld his title deeds.

"He said that this person has cheated him. He is putting him in jail. He has rejected his title deeds. That is why we came to the Law Society of Kenya," he said.

The president issued a seven-day ultimatum for the professional body to act on the complaint.

"We are saying, in seven days, action should be taken," Masaga said.

The complaint, addressed to the Advocates Disciplinary Tribunal and copied to the Advocates Complaints Commission, cites the Advocates Act, the Law Society of Kenya Code of Standards of Professional Practice and Ethical Conduct, and the Constitution.

According to the lobby, the advocate engaged in a conflict of interest by allegedly representing opposing sides in the same dispute, breached client confidentiality, and withheld his client's documents, including original title deeds and court records, after formal instructions had been submitted.

The group further accused him of sharp practice aimed at dispossessing Gikonyo of his properties, breaching professional undertakings, and treating his client with rudeness and defiance.

Masaga alleged that the advocate had persistently interfered with Gikonyo's constitutional right to privacy through intimidation and harassment using proxy and anonymous telephone numbers, contrary to Articles 29 and 31 of the Constitution.

The movement claimed the alleged misconduct had subjected Gikonyo to severe physical, psychological and economic harm, saying he had suffered depression, chronic headaches, isolation and substantial financial damage as a result of what it termed compromised legal representation.

Bunge La Mwananchi said the advocate had, in breach of his fiduciary duty, induced his client to execute a document without informed consent and later relied on the same document against him in court.

The group said it was ready to present Gikonyo in person to give oral testimony and physical evidence, and urged the Tribunal to institute a thorough inquiry and take appropriate disciplinary action.