JSC should set up a threshold for incompetence of judges

An illustration of an angry judge cartoon character shouting and pointing at the viewer

Sometimes courts in Kenya produce decisions so startling that the law itself seems to recoil. Litigants leave courtrooms bewildered, clutching decisions that read like accidents rather than judgments. The standard response is ritualistic, appeal if dissatisfied.

The doctrine invoked in quiet defence is judicial independence. It protects the judge who reasons boldly, and equally the judge who reasons badly. Recently, however, a rising number of complaints against judges have met a familiar fate before the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).