{"id":146026,"date":"2026-07-08T07:03:03","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T07:03:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/uganda-law-society-bans-my-lord-titles-courtroom-bowing-in-decolonisation-push\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T07:03:03","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T07:03:03","slug":"uganda-law-society-bans-my-lord-titles-courtroom-bowing-in-decolonisation-push","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/uganda-law-society-bans-my-lord-titles-courtroom-bowing-in-decolonisation-push\/","title":{"rendered":"Uganda Law Society bans \u2018My Lord\u2019 titles, courtroom bowing in decolonisation push"},"content":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 8 \u2013 The Uganda Law Society (ULS) has ordered its members to immediately abandon colonial-era courtroom traditions, including addressing judicial officers as \u201cMy Lord,\u201d \u201cYour Lordship,\u201d \u201cMy Lady,\u201d and \u201cYour Worship,\u201d as part of a sweeping drive to decolonise the country\u2019s legal profession.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In an Executive Order issued Tuesday, ULS President and Head of the Bar Isaac Ssemakadde directed advocates to adopt plain, modern forms of address for judicial officers while also prohibiting the long-standing practice of bowing before judges.<\/p>\n

The directive, titled \u201cAbolition of Colonial Court Culture,\u201d takes immediate effect, he told members.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe practice of bowing or any other form of physical subservience before judicial officers is henceforth prohibited for all members of the Uganda Law Society,\u201d the order states.<\/p>\n

It directs advocates to instead to address judicial officers as \u201cMr. Justice,\u201d \u201cMadam Justice,\u201d \u201cMr. Judge,\u201d \u201cMadam Judge,\u201d \u201cMr. Magistrate,\u201d or simply by their surnames where appropriate.<\/p>\n

The Law Society said the reforms are intended to dismantle what it described as colonial practices that elevate judicial officers above the citizens they serve.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll advocates and litigants appearing before any court or tribunal shall stand upright and speak as free citizens,\u201d the order states.<\/p>\n

According to the ULS, the changes seek to eliminate rituals that \u201cforce Ugandans into postures of humiliation as the powerful enjoy comfort and deference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Broader judicial reforms<\/h3>\n

Beyond courtroom etiquette, the Law Society announced a 90-day national consultation on court culture and the Judiciary\u2019s Client Charter.<\/p>\n

The consultations will bring together representatives of the Bench, the Bar and citizens\u2019 associations to review the continued use of colonial wigs, gowns and foreign legal language, while proposing court procedures that better reflect Uganda\u2019s history, culture and service standards.<\/p>\n

The order says the Judiciary Client Charter will also be reviewed and rewritten in plain language to improve accessibility and strengthen citizens\u2019 rights to timely and respectful service.<\/p>\n

While the Executive Order takes immediate effect, its application is limited to members of the Uganda Law Society and does not automatically amend courtroom procedures or judicial practice across Uganda\u2019s courts.<\/p>\n

The document states that it \u201ctakes immediate effect across all members of the Uganda Law Society\u201d and will be published on the society\u2019s website and circulated to members.<\/p>\n

The initiative nevertheless signals one of the most ambitious attempts yet by Uganda\u2019s legal profession to challenge colonial traditions that have long defined courtroom decorum in many Commonwealth jurisdictions including Kenya.<\/p>\n

The reforms are expected to reignite debate across East Africa on whether inherited colonial legal customs remain compatible with modern constitutional values and equal access to justice.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 8 \u2013 The Uganda Law Society (ULS) has ordered its members to immediately abandon colonial-era courtroom traditions, including addressing judicial officers as \u201cMy Lord,\u201d \u201cYour Lordship,\u201d \u201cMy Lady,\u201d and \u201cYour Worship,\u201d as part of a sweeping drive to decolonise the country\u2019s legal profession. In an Executive Order issued Tuesday, ULS President and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-146026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146026\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}