When is ‘Your Honour’ not ‘My Lord’?

By Evelyn Kwamboka

Taking the witness stand can sometimes be quite tricky, even for seasoned law enforcers.

An officer attached to the Criminal Investigations Department found himself in trouble after it became apparent he had not learnt the difference between addressing a judge as ‘My Lord’ or ‘Your Honour’.

Superior Court Judge Justice Onesmus Mutungi was not amused when he was forced to remind Mr Nicholas Sore on several occasions to address him as ‘My Lord’ and not ‘Your Honour’.

"As an officer who has served for many years, you should know how to address the court. You must do better when you return for cross-examination on March 30," the judge said.

In court, one has to address an American judge as ‘Your Honour’ and a British judge as ‘My Lord’ if it is a man, and ‘My Lady’ if the judge is a woman.

Kenya inherited its laws from the British, so it is only appropriate to address a judge as ‘My Lord’, or ‘My Lady’ if it is a woman.

One only uses the term ‘Your Honour’ when speaking directly to the magistrates’ court. In tribunals, appropriate forms of address include: ‘Chairman’, ‘Madam Chair’, ‘Sir’, or ‘Madam’.