Documentary on Kenya’s “Fake Lawyer” Brian Mwenda In the Works

A feature documentary about Kenya’s “fake lawyer” Brian Mwenda is currently in development. The project, titled The Lawyer, is being helmed by Polish director Maciej Bochniak, known for both non-fiction and fiction projects such as the HBO documentary One Billion Happy People, the Netflix crime thriller Freestyle, and the Polish adaptation of The Office for Canal+. The film is produced by Polish production company Madants, and co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.

The Lawyer was first presented at this year’s Locarno Film Festival, through its Locarno Pro international networking initiative Match Me!. In October, the project was selected for the Doc Co-production Market & Pitching Forum, one of the key sections of Rome’s Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo (MIA) that serves as an international platform connecting producers, directors, broadcasters and decision-makers.

In his director’s notes, as shared with Business Doc Europe, Bochniak said he was fascinated by Mwenda’s story from the first moment he read about it, adding that it reminded him of the popular legal drama Suits, where a brilliant college dropout poses as a real lawyer and rises through the ranks to become junior partner at the prestigious Pearson Specter Litt.

“That series (Suits) ignited the imagination of audiences worldwide, with many people wondering if this could actually happen in real life. Enter Brian…”

Bochniak added, “Here was a young man who had the courage to risk his future by taking on the world and going against the grain. Not having been born into the elite, who can afford any university education they desire, Brian took matters into his own hands. I don’t know if he used the methods of secret agents or if he was inspired by an actor’s process of getting into character –  I just know that the result was genius.”

Across the world, truth is becoming stranger than fiction, in a time when the next headline is often more puzzling than the last. For producer Kinga Tasarek of Madants, the combination of real-life tension, global relevance, and psychological depth makes The Lawyer stand out as a true-story drama with the intensity of a scripted film.

“The Lawyer tells a story so unbelievable it could be fiction, yet it’s entirely true,” she told Business Doc Europe. “The film combines elements of crime thriller, courtroom drama, and moral investigation, following a self-taught Kenyan ‘lawyer’ who exposed deep flaws in the justice system. Through Brian Mwenda’s extraordinary case, the documentary explores universal themes: ambition, deception, and the blurred line between truth and performance.”

According to Tasarek, the goal is to make The Lawyer a story that resonates far beyond Kenya.

Mwenda made headlines in 2023 when it was reported that he had been practising law for over a year without qualifications, allegedly using forged certificates to gain admission to practice. It was further reported that he had won all 26 cases he represented at the High Court of Kenya, a claim that has been refuted by legal professionals, including former Law Society of Kenya (LSK) president Eric Theuri, who stated there was no factual evidence to support it.

“Allegations that the masquerader Brian Mwenda won 26 cases is false and misleading,” Theuri said on X in 2023, adding “There is no factual basis to support the misleading claims. Efforts to apprehend him are in high gear and we are optimistic that he will be brought to book.”

Mwenda has since been charged in court with multiple criminal offences, including identity theft and forgery, but no verdict has been reached as of November 2025.

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