Former Attorney General and retired Court of Appeal President Paul Kihara Kariuki has died aged 72. According to Kenyans.co.ke and The Eastleigh Voice, his family and Chief Justice Martha Koome confirmed his death in a statement on Tuesday, November 3. The sources did not give a cause of death. Nairobi Wire reported that no funeral arrangements had been announced.
Kihara became a High Court judge in 2003 and later moved to the Court of Appeal. He was the first President of that court elected by fellow judges under the 2010 Constitution. He led it from 2013 to 2018. Capital FM, via AllAfrica, reported that he pushed reforms to make the court more efficient and accessible, including decentralising its operations. Nairobi Wire said this moved parts of the court's work beyond Nairobi. He was also the founding Director of the Judiciary Training Institute, the forerunner of the Kenya Judiciary Academy.
In her condolence message, Koome called him an accomplished jurist, an exemplary judicial leader and a dedicated public servant. She said his legacy would live on through the institutions he helped build and the legal professionals who benefited from his leadership. President William Ruto said Kenyans would remember Kihara as a jurist who made an "invaluable contribution" to the country's legal and judicial institutions. Former President Uhuru Kenyatta called him a renowned judge whose career left a lasting mark on Kenya's public institutions. Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen also sent condolences.
According to Kenyans.co.ke, Kenyatta nominated Kihara as Attorney General in February 2018, after Professor Githu Muigai resigned. He took office on April 2, 2018. His tenure coincided with tension between the Executive and the Judiciary. Kenyatta had declined to appoint 41 judges recommended by the Judicial Service Commission. Then-Chief Justice David Maraga criticised that decision.
Kihara also argued the government's side in the BBI court cases. In March 2022, the Supreme Court declared the proposed constitutional changes unconstitutional. Pulse Live Kenya reported that some social media users criticised his record as Attorney General, while official tributes praised his service. He handed over to Justin Muturi on October 27, 2022, after Ruto formed his government.
Before joining the bench, Kihara studied law at the University of Nairobi and was admitted to the Bar in 1978. Kenyans.co.ke reported that he worked at Hamilton Harrison and Mathews Advocates. He later co-founded Ndungu Njoroge and Kwach Advocates. He then served as Principal and CEO of the Kenya School of Law. He was also an honorary legal adviser to the Anglican Church of Kenya.