Mpenzwe Ngoba Mtana & another v Zuhura Shaban [2014] KEELC 280 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Environment and Land Court refused to review its judgment, ruling that a possible wrong date on a tribunal decision is not an obvious enough error to reopen a case.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether there was a mistake or error apparent on the face of the record justifying review of the judgment of 28th March 2014
No. The certified proceedings forming part of the Record of Appeal show the Committee's decision was dated and made on 21st September, 2009; the discrepancy is not a self-evident error warranting review
The court applied the Muyodi and National Bank tests: an error apparent on the face of the record must stare one in the face and require no elaborate argument. The handwritten certified proceedings in the Record of Appeal indicate the decision was made on 21st September, 2009. It found improbable that the Committee would reserve judgment for over a year or that three members would sign a decision with a wrong date without noticing it. The hearing notice relied on by the Appellants was uncorroborated by affidavit and was not part of the Record of Appeal, so it could not found a finding that the decision was delivered in 2010.
Legal principles established
#- An error apparent on the face of the record must be self-evident and not require elaborate argument; a mere erroneous decision or a point on which two opinions are possible is not a ground for review
- The court cannot rely on a hearing notice in the absence of an affidavit of the person who allegedly prepared and signed it, and where it does not form part of the Record of Appeal
Court orders
#- 1.The Appellants' Application dated 3rd April, 2014 is dismissed with costs
- On appeal from
- Provincial Land Appeals Tribunal at Mombasa
- Land Appeal No. 373 of 2005
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Original appellate jurisdiction of the Environment and Land Court over an appeal from the Provincial Land Dispute Appeals Committee; review jurisdiction over its own judgment
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Mpenzwe Ngoba Mtana & another v Zuhura Shaban [2014] KEELC 280 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2014). Civil Appeal No. 48 of 2010. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2014/280/eng@2014-07-31
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.