The Public Service Commission (PSC) has issued a directive requiring all public bodies under its jurisdiction to begin paying non-practice and prosecutorial/special legal allowances to eligible Advocates of the High Court serving in the public sector, effective July 1, 2025.
The move follows recent judgments by both the Employment and Labour Relations Court and the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the PSC’s constitutional authority to determine terms and conditions of service for public officers.
The courts further directed that the implementation of legal allowances be standardized across all relevant public institutions.
According to the PSC circular released Tuesday, the allowances will apply to legal officers who hold a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree, a post-graduate diploma from the Kenya School of Law, and are Advocates of the High Court in good standing.
The eligible officers must be actively performing core legal functions such as court representation, legal advisory, contract review, compliance oversight, and legislative drafting.
Allowance rates will vary by job group, ranging from Sh15,000 to Sh55,000 per month, with higher-ranking officers earning more.
For instance, officers in CSG 5 and above will be entitled to a Sh40,000 non-practice allowance and a Sh55,000 prosecutorial/special legal allowance each month.
In its statement, the PSC emphasized that public institutions should make better use of in-house legal teams, a move aimed at reducing overreliance on expensive external legal counsel and promoting cost-effective governance.
However, the directive excludes officers under constitutional commissions such as the Judicial, Parliamentary, Teachers, and Police Service Commissions, as well as county government employees and State officers.
This latest directive supersedes previous circulars issued in 2010 and 2012 that sought to address the same matter but had not been uniformly implemented.
Legal professionals within the public sector have welcomed the move as a long-overdue recognition of their contributions and qualifications, while observers note that it could also improve retention of legal talent within government agencies.
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