KAMPALA, UGANDA: The Supreme Court on Saturday announced the demise of Lady Justice, Ms Stella Arach-Amoko in a heartbreaking statement by Deputy Chief Justice, Richard Buteera.
She died at Nakasero Hospital in Kampala at around 4 am on Saturday, according to family sources.
“Our sincere condolences go out to the family of the late Hon. Justice Stella Arch-Amoko, the Judiciary, the legal fraternity, the country and the East African region as a whole,” Justice Buteera said before adding: “The Judiciary has lost an extraordinary jurist who has been a champion of justice.”
Simon Peter Kinobe, the former president of the Uganda Law Society and member of the Law Development Centre (LDC) management committee also confirmed the news in a Saturday tweet saying;
“Lady Justice Stella Arach-Amoko. So sad. It’s a sad day, indeed. She was a mother in court. She was well-reasoned and grounded in the law. She was kind to me in my start years of practice. May she sing with the heavenly hosts and enjoy heaven. May her soul rest in peace.”
At the time of her death, Justice Arach-Amoko was in charge of the Supreme Court since she was one of the most senior judges on the bench.
Profile & Career Background
Born 1954, Stella Arach-Amoko studied at Makerere University where she graduated with a Bachelor of Laws and at Law Development Centre for the Diploma in Legal Practice.
Ms Arach-Amoko served in the Attorney General’s chambers from 1979 until 1997, rising from a state attorney to commissioner for civil litigation. In 1997, she was appointed a High Court judge, serving in that capacity until 2010.
She also served at the East African Court of Justice, from 2006 until 2008, as a judge and from 2008 until 2013, as a “Deputy Principal Judge of the First Instance Division”. In 2010, she was one of the candidates considered by the Judicial Services Commission, for appointment as the Chief Justice of Uganda.
Between April 15, 2018, and April 14, 2020, Justice Arach-Amoko served as the Chairperson of the nine-member, Management Committee of Uganda’s Law Development Centre. In 2010 she was appointed to the Court of Appeal of Uganda.
In 2019, Justice Stella Arach-Amoko was awarded the Sudreau Global Justice Programme Award for her invaluable contribution to promoting Plea Bargaining in Uganda’s Criminal Justice System.
In her career on the bench, Justice Arach-Amoko has handled many election-related cases, including the 2021 presidential petition in which she was part of the majority of justices who ruled in favour of upholding President Museveni’s victory against his main challenger Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine.
Family Life
Justice Arach-Amoko is married to Ambassador Idule Amoko who, as of 2017, was serving as the Deputy Head of Mission at the Uganda Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Stella Arach-Amoko is also the mother of chess player Ivy Claire Amoko, the first woman to become a Woman Fide Master in East Africa.
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