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ELCPartially AllowedMeru High Court Misc. Application No. 214 of 2005· [2016] KEELC 79 (KLR)
Republic v Meru Central Land District Tribunal & 4 others [2016] KEELC 79 (KLR)
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#What this practically means
#Executive summary
#This was an ex parte application under Sections 1A, 1B and 3A of the Civil Procedure Act and Order 51 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules, supported by the affidavit of Gladys Gitiria Robert, brought in respect of a judicial review matter filed in the High Court in 2005 (Meru High Court Misc. Application No. 214 of 2005). Leave had been granted and the substantive notice of motion filed on 10th January 2006. The 2nd to 5th Respondents filed a preliminary objection which William Ouko J sustained, dismissing the ex-parte applicants' motion with costs taxed at Kshs 55,000/-. The ex-parte applicants failed to pay those costs, and the court file went missing in 2015, with the respondents' visits and letters to the Meru High Court Deputy Registrar yielding no results. Counsel for the respondents urged the court to allow the application to facilitate obedience to the course of justice. Njoroge J found the application meritorious, certified it urgent, and granted prayers 1 and 2: certification of urgency and authorization of the opening of a skeleton file for the missing file. Costs of the application were ordered to be in the cause. The judgment contains an internal date discrepancy, referring to the hearing as on 07/12/2016 while the ruling is dated 7th November 2016.
Key legal issues
#01
Opening of a skeleton file in place of a missing court file
Holding
The application to authorize a skeleton file was meritorious and was granted
Reasoning
The judicial review matter was filed in 2005; the file had been missing since 2015, and despite various visits and letters by the 2nd to 5th Respondents to the Meru High Court Deputy Registrar, their efforts bore no fruit. Opening a skeleton file would facilitate obedience to the course of justice and was in the interest of justice and fairness.
p. 2
Legal principles established
#- Where a court file goes missing, the court may order the opening of a skeleton file to enable the matter to proceed, in the interest of justice and fairness
Court orders
#- 1.The application is certified as urgent
- 2.The court authorized and ordered that a skeleton file be opened in respect of Meru High Court Misc. Application No. 214 of 2005
- 3.Costs shall be in the cause
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Sections 1A, 1B and 3A of the Civil Procedure Act and Order 51 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Republic v Meru Central Land District Tribunal & 4 others [2016] KEELC 79 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2016). Meru High Court Misc. Application No. 214 of 2005. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2016/79/eng@2016-11-07
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.