Attorney General (AG) Dorcas Oduor has launched a task force to spearhead reforms at the Public Trustee Department, with the government seeking to improve the administration of estates, trusts and assets under its management.

Speaking during a media briefing on Friday, June 26, 2026, following the launch of the Task Force on the Incorporation and Institutional Transformation of the Public Trustee Department, Oduor said the reforms are intended to modernise the institution and improve service delivery.

“The era of quiet administrative inheritance of injustice at the Public Trustee is ending,” the attorney general declared.

The four-month task force has been mandated to review the department’s institutional framework, examine existing case backlogs, recommend legal and administrative reforms, and develop a roadmap for transforming the Public Trustee into an autonomous institution with a corporate governance structure.

Review of pending cases

Oduor said the task force will undertake a comprehensive review of files currently held by the department as part of efforts to improve efficiency.

“Every file currently held by the Public Trustee Department will be mapped… Where a file can be closed immediately once it is found, it will be closed immediately,” she said.

The Public Trustee Department administers estates of people who die without wills, manages trusts and safeguards assets on behalf of minors and other beneficiaries.

The attorney general said the review is expected to address pending matters while strengthening systems for future administration of estates and trusts.

Institutional reforms

The task force will examine the legal and operational framework governing the department and propose reforms aimed at improving accountability and service delivery.

Its recommendations will also cover the department’s transition into an autonomous institution capable of delivering services under a strengthened governance framework.

Oduor said the reforms are intended to restore confidence in the institution by improving how estates and trusts are administered.

“We are building an institution worthy of the trust placed in it by grieving families, by minors who cannot advocate for themselves, and by every Kenyan who has ever written a will and hoped that, on a difficult day, the State would honour their wishes,” Oduor said.

Public participation

The attorney general called on stakeholders and members of the public to take part in the reform process once the task force invites submissions.

She said the public will have an opportunity to present memoranda and participate in hearings that will inform the task force’s recommendations.

The team is expected to complete its assignment within four months before submitting its report to the government for consideration and implementation of the proposed reforms.