Chief Justice Martha Koome has announced the recruitment of judges.
In a statement dated August 23, Lady Justice Koome announced that fifty magistrates will be recruited into the Judiciary in September 2021.
The head of the Judiciary disclosed that effort will be made to bridge the gap created in the High Court, following the appointment of 10 judges to the Court of Appeal.
Speaking during a meeting with the principal and presiding Judges from the High Court to address case backlog, she recommended the adoption of an alternative approach to reduce the backlog of cases in court.
"We need a multi-door approach like the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution and Court Annexed Mediation to offload cases from the courts,” Koome stated.
She added that 5,000 cases had been solved through mediation with a success rate of 60 percent. This saw Ksh14 billion injected back into the Kenyan economy.
Koome advocated for all cases in the courts to remain active and be consistently managed before a judge or the deputy registrar.
She has been rooting for the adoption of a no-adjournment policy as part of her strategy to clear the perennial backlog of cases.
The President of the Supreme Court has previously stated that she wants all cases resolved within three years of filing and within one year at the appellate stage.
In a bid to support the conclusion of criminal cases, the CJ indicated that she would engage other stakeholders at the National Council on Administration of Justice (NCAJ) to encourage use of plea bargains.
During the meeting, High Court Principal Judge Justice Lydia Achode, told the Chief Justice that various divisions of the High Court have been clearing case backlog through comprehensive case audits.
Apart from the audits, the courts have adopted the use of IT, updating the case tracking system, using service weeks, Rapid Result Initiatives and Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms to finalize pending cases.
The courts, however, have a shortage of judges, staff, and lack of adequate courtrooms to effectively handle cases.
