Erastus Ndege Machuke & 3 others v John Kiura Ngare & 6 others
The bottom line
#The Court of Appeal refused to send a land dispute to the Supreme Court, ruling it was a private disagreement, not a matter of public importance.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the intended appeal raises matters of general public importance warranting certification under article 163(4)(b)
The application fails: the constitutional questions on conversion of community land were new matters never litigated in the ELC or the Court of Appeal; the dispute is a private land-ownership contest with no effect on the wider Mbeere community, and the applicants raised no legal question transcending the current litigants.
Applying the Hermanus Phillipus Steyn principles and Thika Coffee Mills, the court perused the claim before the ELC and found no constitutional issue was raised at trial or on appeal. The applicants' claim was one of customary trust over individually registered suit properties, which failed in both courts. The article 63 community land arguments were a new cause of action introduced late, contrary to the requirement that questions of law must have arisen in the courts below and been the subject of judicial determination.
Legal principles established
#- A point of law qualifies for certification to the Supreme Court only if it was raised and judicially determined in the courts below; a party cannot introduce new constitutional questions at the certification stage.
- The intending appellant must demonstrate a legal question whose subject matter transcends the present litigants and bears upon the public interest; disputes confined to private land ownership between the parties do not qualify.
Court orders
#- 1.The notice of motion dated 15th January, 2024 is dismissed
- 2.Costs to the 1st, 2nd, 5th and 7th respondents
- On appeal from
- Environment and Land Court
- Embu ELC Case No. 240 of 2014
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 163(4)(b) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and rules 42(b), 44(1)(2), 45(1)(2), 47, 49, 51, 55(1) and 56(1) of the Court of Appeal Rules, 2022
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Erastus Ndege Machuke & 3 others v John Kiura Ngare & 6 others", Case Analysis (2025). Nyeri Civil Appeal No. E011 of 2021 (Application for Certification, Notice of Motion dated 15th January 2024). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2025/27/eng@2025-01-17
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.