FIRESIDE CHATS WITH THE LEGAL GAL
In my previous article in the series, ‘Fireside Chats with the Legal Gal’, I wrote on our presence in Mombasa County, and specifically, Mombasa Town & Nyali Centre https://mmsadvocates.co.ke/mombasa-county-mms-coastal-hub/.
Have a read, let us know what you think and what more you’d like to know about our work at MMS Advocates LLP and how we could be of service. Thank you.
Nairobi, abbreviated as NBO, is the capital and largest city of Kenya, located in the south-central part of the country. It is the major financial and economic hub of East Africa, hosting numerous multinational companies and regional organizations, including the United Nations Office at Nairobi. Nicknamed the “Green City in the Sun,” Nairobi is uniquely notable for being the only capital city in the world that hosts a national park within its boundaries, and its name originates from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, meaning “place of cool waters.”
Nairobi City County is one of the 47 counties of Kenya. With an estimated population of 5,454,000 in 2024, it is the third-smallest in area of the counties, yet the most populous. It also serves as the capital of Kenya. The county entity was effected in 2013, replacing Nairobi City Council, which had been the long-standing unit of local administration since before Kenya’s independence. The city county consists of eleven gazetted sub-counties and eighty-five electoral wards. Nairobi City County shares the same boundaries as the former Nairobi Province. Kenya’s eight provinces were sub-divided into forty-seven counties as stated in the constitution, based on the forty-seven districts that were established prior to 1992.
A visit to Nairobi provides an opportunity for visitors & citizens alike to enjoy its rich culture and heritage, amazing wildlife, buzzling nightlife, delectable and tantalizing cuisines, unforgettable adventure and participate in meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions. Being a melting point of not only the country, but the region and the continent at large, Nairobi is always alive, whether day or night. One could say it is the city that never sleeps. Literally.
A tour of Nairobi will normally include visits to the following places: Nairobi National Park, Nairobi Safari Walk, Giraffe Centre, David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, Karura forest, Mamba Village, Bomas of Kenya, Nairobi National Museum, Nairobi Snake Park and Botanic garden, Karen Blixen Museum, Railway Museum, Nairobi Gallery, Kenya National Archives, Nairobi Arboretum, Oloolua Nature trail, Uhuru Park, Central Park, Uhuru Gardens, Michuki Park, City Park, Kazuri Beads, Godown Arts Centre, historical monuments and buildings among others.
It goes without saying that being the capital of Kenya, Nairobi cannot go without its fair share of people from all walks of life coming to make their mark in the world. As it were, this is the exact place that Allan Mwamuye Mzungu teamed up with Felicia Solomon to build MMS Advocates LLP. Founded in 2014, they brought their prior experience at Bowman’s Law to establish a firm focused on providing tailored legal and advisory services to a diverse range of local and international clients. Allan and Felicia have, for over a decade now, cultivated, grown and mentored tens of young advocates, associates, lawyers and researchers – including myself. The law firm itself has a wide array and selection of legal experts; led by Allan and Felicia; whose extensive experience has led us to be a client-centric office, aiming to provide support and partnership by deeply understanding our potential, existing and future clients’ businesses.
Nairobi is known as a place for cutting your teeth, and so economic opportunities such as service sectors (business and personal services), the digital economy (ICT, creative industries, and e-services), and construction, would definitely require sharp legal minds to help clients navigate such frontiers. MMS Advocates LLP Headquarters was seen to work best in the Upperhill area of the city. Upperhill is a central business district, located approximately 4 km (2.5 mi) from the Central Business District. It being the preferred location for office space in Nairobi, MMS having a spot within it was more than ideal.
My legal curiosity was shaped by my upbringing – both at the Coast and in Nairobi – and was almost completely molded before being paused (and almost extinguished) by Nairobi City. Many would assume that for someone having lived in the city that is always alive (or its outskirts), transitioning to campus and School of Law would be a breeze. Nothing could be further from the truth. As mentioned above, the city is a melting pot of not only physical beings, but of minds. The brightest, sharpest and most ruthless of cognitive excellence and mental acuity settle in this great capital of ours, mine being no exception. However, there is always a more cunning or cleverer person besides you, and that is what Nairobi was happy to show me. Her underbelly – from the classrooms and lecture halls, to the corridors of law firms and companies and creative halls – was both inviting and terrifying. Any misstep would mean someone would leap ahead of me; regardless of how smart and quick I was to answer questions; or how social and respectful I would be (again, being born and raised at the Coast had both advantages and disadvantages). My sometimes calm or shy demeanour was no match for those whose hunger was more insatiable than mine; whose quest to be the best the city could offer being far much quicker; or whose cunning nature could never be found within me. So when Nairobi asked, not so kindly, for me to re-evaluate my foray into the juridical sphere, I did.
I soon realised that maybe the city in the sun had other opportunities for me to tap into. So after my admission to the Bar in 2016, and a job offer at MMS Advocates LLP already on the table, I walked away from the legal realm. Little did I know, that despite my insistence on not allowing the legal fraternity on my doorstep, they sat on the veranda and steps of my mind; watching my comings and goings. Each job or gig I undertook always had a tie to my legal background. Every conversation I had with friends, family and acquaintances alike would gravitate back to my law degree and Advocates’ diploma. My love for the environment and law came together (almost, but not quite) when I became an ESG Manager in a reputable agribusiness a few years back.
But: when I decided to resign and get back to the legal field officially? Oh, it was scary, but exciting. After 8 years post admission to the Bar, the beautiful Enkare Nyirobi smiled for the first time in a long time at me, as if saying, “Welcome back, my child. You have finally cut your teeth and are ready.” So I walked back to my training grounds in 2024; where the city had shown me all the moves she could; headed to the office in Upperhill, and sat down with Allan. I was ready to come back.
Since then, the journey to being Legal Gal felt like it had reached its first milestone. Almost a decade later, it was like walking through a maze, but with the path already in my mind. All I had to do was close my eyes, breathe deep and years upon years of lessons, lectures, sleepless nights and the clamour and din of Nairobi would become a sort of humming background sound. MMS Advocates provided not only a space to show what I had become, but allowed me to re-learn what I might have forgotten, practice what I already knew, and bring fresh ideas from the far lands across the world I had travelled to.
Now, the journey heads off in a new direction – as from my previous articles, Mombasa and Kwale have become my new legal frontiers. MMS Advocates LLP is growing, expanding, spreading its wings even further afield within this sovereign land I call home. And I’m so glad that I got back in time to hop onto the train.
Kasichana Riziki Mumba is an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, and an associate at MMS Advocates LLP. She is passionate about the rule of law, justice and creatively combining the world of artivism (art and activism), nature and ESG into her work.
