Aisha Abdallah

Aisha is a Partner at Anjarwalla & Khanna LLP - ALN Kenya, where she heads the regional Dispute Resolution department based out of the
Nairobi Head Office. She is dual qualified as an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya and Solicitor of England
and Wales. Aisha has over 25 years of experience in handling complex, high-value cross-border disputes.
Aisha is recognised as one of the leading arbitration practitioners and has recently been appointed to the
AFSA Court in 2026. She was the first Kenyan appointed as arbitrator on the Court of Arbitration for Sport
General Panel and was also appointed to the governing body of the International Council for Commercial
Arbitration (ICCA) in April 2025. In July 2025 Aisha was appointed as the chair of the international arbitration
committee of the International Association for Defense Counsel (IADC).
Aisha is also active in multiple regional and international arbitration bodies. She represented the Kenya
National Chamber of Commerce to the board of the Nairobi Centre for International Arbitration from 2021
2025 and also served on the Delos Board of Advisors. In December 2022, Aisha was appointed to join the
governing council of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre. She is also a member of the LCIA Africa
Users Council. Aisha has been appointed as arbitrator by the HKIAC and LCIA. She was the lead author of
the Kenyan chapter of the 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th editions of the International Arbitration Review.
Another specialist area is Aisha’s work in economic and financial crime. She is the officer for Africa at the IBA
Asset Recovery Committee and was part of an expert team that drafted Anti-Money Laundering, Remittances
and Mobile Money Bills for Somaliland. Aisha was the lead author of the Kenya chapter of the 2018
Chambers Anti-Corruption Global Practice Guide and the ALN Anti-Corruption Guide 2019.
Aisha is passionate about promoting the rule of law and raising professional standards in Africa. In September
2023, she was appointed as the Law Society of Kenya representative to the Council of Legal Education, a
regulator that accredits universities that provide law programmes and it also administers the bar exams. She
is a director of the ALN Academy, a rule of law charity that provides legal training and capacity building to
public and private sector lawyers in Africa. Aisha is also the patron of ALN Kenya’s Pro Bono Committee and
a member of the governing council of the Pro Bono Institute of Kenya.
Aisha is recognised by both Chambers Global and Legal 500 for disputes. She is also recognised by Lexology
as a thought leader in asset recovery in Africa and recommended for international arbitration.
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Aisha Abdallah
Professional Membership
Law Society of Kenya
Law Society of England and Wales
International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA), member governing council
Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Fellow
Hong Kong International Arbitration Society, member governing council
LCIA Africa Users Council, member
IBA Asset Recovery Committee, Officer for Africa region
Honorary Overseas Member of the Commercial Bar Association, London
International Association for Defence Counsel, Chair of International Arbitration Committee
ICC Kenya
African Arbitration Association
African Women in Arbitration
Women in ADR
Professional Qualifications
2004 Admission as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales
2002: Legal Practice Course, University of Nottingham Trent (Distinction)
2000 Admission as an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya
1998: Master of Laws (LLM Distinction), King’s College London, University of London: Comparative
Competition Law, Comparative Law of Trusts, Islamic Law of Succession and International Law of the Sea
1997: Bachelor of Laws (LLB Hons Upper Second), University of Bristol. Best Overseas Law Student, Faculty
Award, University of Bristol in 1994-1995.
Career Summary
Jan 2016 – To Date: Head of Dispute Resolution, Anjarwalla & Khanna, Nairobi
Jan 2013 – Dec 2015: Partner in Litigation, Anjarwalla & Khanna, Nairobi
Aug 2012 – Dec 2012: Senior Principal Associate, Anjarwalla & Khanna, Nairobi
Jan 2008 – Mar 2012: Associate, Real Estate Litigation, Shoosmiths, Milton Keynes, England
Sep 2002 – Dec 2007: Solicitor Dispute Resolution, Hewitsons, Northampton, England
Sep 1999 – Jul 2000: Advocate, Mohamed Madhani & Co., Advocates, Nairobi, Kenya
Jan 1999 – Aug 1999: Trainee Advocate, Kilonzo & Co., Advocates, Nairobi Kenya
Sep 1998 – Dec 1998: Trainee Advocate, Veljee & Devshi & Bakrania Advocates, Nairobi, Kenya
Awards and Accolades
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Aisha Abdallah
Lexology Thought Leader for Asset Recovery for Africa and recommended for arbitration 2025
Shortlisted for Lawyer of the Year and ADR Practitioner of the Year 2025 by Nairobi Legal Awards
African Arbitration Award Leading Arbitration Team/Law Firm of the Year Winner 2025
African Arbitration Award Leading Case Counsel Team Winner 2024
African Arbitration Award Leading Case Counsel Team Winner Finalist 2023
Trust Law Awards Finalist Collaboration 2023
“Aisha does a fantastic job and is very quick on her feet. – Chambers Global 2025
“As head of the regional practice based in Nairobi, Aisha Abdallah demonstrates her impressive acumen in
sensitive bribery and corruption-related defence…” –Legal 500 2024
“Aisha Abdallah is fully conversant with commercial litigation issues in the country, including disputes
concerning fraud, employment, land and natural resources.” – Chambers Global 2024 and 2025