Jimnah Mwangi Gichanga v Hon. Attorney General
The bottom line
#Kenya's Court of Appeal confirmed it can rarely review its own judgments, and dismissed this retired teacher's attempt to reopen a lost pension case.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the Court of Appeal can review its own final judgments
The Court has residual jurisdiction to review its own decisions, but only where there is no appeal to the Supreme Court and only to correct errors of law occasioning real injustice.
Neither the Appellate Jurisdiction Act nor the Court of Appeal Rules provides for review of the Court's final judgments. The Court adopted its earlier statement in Benjo Amalgamated Ltd v Kenya Commercial Bank that residual review jurisdiction exists but must be exercised with circumspection, only in decisions not appealable to the Supreme Court, and only to correct errors occasioning real injustice or miscarriage of justice.
Whether the applicant's grounds justified review
The grounds raised were already determined in the judgment sought to be reviewed, and no new and important matter or evidence was adduced; exceptional circumstances were absent.
The Court found that in the judgment sought to be reviewed it had considered all the grounds raised by the applicant and re-evaluated the evidence adduced in the High Court. The applicant's complaints about evaluation of evidence and limitation went to matters already determined. Review jurisdiction is exceptional and the applicant failed to bring himself within it.
Legal principles established
#- The Court of Appeal is not the final court but has residual jurisdiction to review its own decisions in limited circumstances to correct errors occasioning real injustice.
- Review jurisdiction must be exercised cautiously, only in exceptional circumstances serving public interest and confidence in the rule of law.
- A court's jurisdiction flows from the Constitution or legislation and cannot be enlarged beyond what is conferred by law.
Court orders
#- 1.Application for review of the judgment dated 22nd June 2012 dismissed
- 2.No order as to costs
- On appeal from
- Court of Appeal
- Civil Appeal No. 8 of 2011
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 164(1) and 164(3) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and the Appellate Jurisdiction Act; residual jurisdiction to review own decisions
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Jimnah Mwangi Gichanga v Hon. Attorney General", Case Analysis (2015). Civil Application No. NAI 206 of 2013. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2015/971/eng@2015-01-23
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.