Two lawyers from the Lawyers’ Society of Sierra Leone have gone to the Supreme Court over the way Parliament handled the Constitutional Amendment Bill of 2025.
Thomas Moore Conteh and Tamba Kellie filed the case in their own names. They took this step after the government refused to give the Society official corporate registration.
They are asking the Court to clear up two key points under the 1991 Constitution. First, what exact number of votes is needed for a proper constitutional change. Second, what voting method Parliament must use.
The lawyers stress they are not trying to stop Parliament from making laws or challenge its authority. Their goal is simply to make sure any change to the Constitution follows the rules set out in the supreme law itself.
They say protecting the rule of law and good governance is central to what they stand for. If the Court finds that Parliament did not follow the correct steps, the lawyers want a clear declaration that the Bill’s passage is invalid and has no effect.
This comes against a backdrop of wider questions about the Bill. Parliament voted on it on 10 August 2026 after opposition MPs walked out. Debate has centred on whether the required support was two-thirds of all Members of Parliament or only those present and voting at the time. The Speaker later referred the threshold question to the Supreme Court, and other cases on the same issue have also been filed.
The Society says it will keep its members and the public updated as the case moves forward.
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