Secretary to Cabinet Dr Simon Miti announced the untimely passing of Chief Justice Mambilima today , 20th June 2021, at approximately 17hrs in a private hospital in Cairo, Egypt. Dr Miti said Justice Mambilima had travelled to Cairo on 10th June,2021 on official business and fell ill whilst on duty in that country.
He said further details will be availed to the nation in due course. Justice Mambilima was Zambia’s First Female Chief Justice until her untimely death today. She was appointed Chief Justice of the Republic of Zambia on 26th February, 2015.
Justice Mambilima had a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Zambia and a Master of Laws degree from the University of London.She was admitted to the bar in 1977. Prior to her appointment, Justice Mambilima served as Deputy Chief Justice from 2008 to 2015.
Justice Mambilima served in various positions in the Judiciary since she first joined as a Commissioner of the High Court in 1985. She served as a Judge of the High Court from 1989 to 2002.
Justice Mambilima was appointed Judge-in-Charge of the Lusaka High Court in 1996 and subsequently, Judge-in-Charge of the High Court Commercial List in 2000. Later in 2000, she was appointed to act as Judge of the Supreme Court and was ratified in 2002.
Justice Mambilima has served as a Judge in another jurisdiction.In 2003, she served as Sessional Judge of the Supreme Court of the Gambia.
Justice Mambilima twice served as Chairperson of the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) between 2005 and 2015. During her time as Chairperson of ECZ, she presided over the 2006 and 2011 presidential and parliamentary elections and the 2015 presidential by-election.
From 1994 to 1996, Justice Mambilima served as a member of ECZ. Justice Mambilima has participated in various election observer missions in Mozambique, Kenya, Seychelles and she led the EISA Election Observation Mission to the presidential elections in Liberia.
Before she joined the bench, Justice Mambilima served in various capacities in the government including as a State Advocate and a Senior State Advocate under the Attorney General’s Chambers from 1977 to 1984 and as the Director of the then Legal Aid department in the then Ministry of Legal Affairs now the Ministry of Justice.
Justice Mambilima was the Chairperson of the Zambian Council of Law Reporting, a statutory body established under Chapter 46 of the Laws of Zambia the position she held until her death today. She was a Board Member on the Child Fund Zambia Board and previously served on the Advisory Board for Women in Law Southern Africa (WILSA).
Justice Mambilima was a member of a number of professional associations, including the Zambia Association of Women Judges, the International Association of Women Judges and the Southern African Chief Justices Forum.
She once served as the President of the Zambia Association of Women Judges having been elected in 2011.
https://www.lusakatimes.com/2021/06/20/chief-justice-mambilima-dies/