Law Reform Commission
The Lesotho Law Reform Commission (“LLRC” or the “Commission”) is a statutory body established under Section 3 of the Lesotho Law Reform Commission Act,No.5 of 1993. It comprises of seven part-time Commissioners including: The Attorney General who is an ex- officio member. All members of the Commission serve on a part-time basis and are appointed for a period of two years.
The Secretariat of the Commission consists of staff appointed in terms of the laws governing the Public Service.
Services
According to section 7(a) (e) of the LLRC Act, the functions of the Commission include:
(a)To review the laws of Lesotho with a view to the systematic development and reform of laws, including-
i) The modernization of the law by bringing it into accord with current conditions;
ii) The elimination of defects in the law;
iii) The simplification of the law;
iv) the adoption of new or more effective methods for the administration of the law;
(b) To consider such proposals for the making of laws as are referred to the Commission by the Minister;
(c)To carry out such other law reform projects as are referred to the Commission by the Minister;
(d)To consider proposals relating to the consolidation of laws or repeal of laws that are obsolete or unnecessary; and
(e)To make reports to the Minister arising out of any such review, consideration or project and, in such reports, to make such recommendation as the Commission thinks fit.
In addition the Commission undertakes public education on matters relating to law reform and continuously updates the national Index of laws of Lesotho.
Management
The Lesotho Law Reform Commission Secretariat is headed by the LLRC Counsel who is and deputized by two Directors, the Director of Research and the Director of Law Revision. The Secretariat is divided into three departments:
- Department of research;
- Law Revision; and
- Administration.
Clientele
In terms of Section 7 of the LLRC Act, 1993 the work of the Commission is founded on proposals from various stakeholders. This can be, but not limited to the line Ministries, Non-Governmental Organizations, parastatals and the general public.
In carrying out its mandate the Commission works through extensive consultations with various stakeholders: Government Ministries, NGO’s and general public to ensure inclusivity and legitimacy of its processes.
Affiliations
The Commission is affiliated to the Commonwealth Association of Law
Reform Agencies (CALRA’s), The Association of Law Reform Agencies of Eastern
and Southern Africa (ALRAESA) and The Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA).