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ELCDismissed· [2017] KEELC 1374 (KLR)

Jeremiah Kirema v Margaret Kanugu [2017] KEELC 1374 (KLR)

High Court of Kenya
24 October 2017
PNP. M. Njoroge
718 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Kenya's High Court dismissed a land appeal because the appeals committee never made a decision, confirming courts cannot hear appeals without jurisdiction.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This was a matter brought to the High Court at Chuka ostensibly as an appeal under the defunct Land Disputes Tribunals Act. On perusing the pleadings, the court found that the Embu Provincial Appeals Committee never finalized the case, meaning no decision existed from which an appeal could be filed. Under section 8(9) of the Act, an appeal lies to the High Court on a point of law from a decision of the Appeals Committee; accordingly, in the absence of any decision, the court lacked jurisdiction. Relying on The MV SS Lilian S, the court reiterated that jurisdiction must be resolved the moment it becomes apparent, that jurisdiction is everything, and that a court downs tools once it finds it has none. The court also relied on the Supreme Court's decisions in Samuel Kamau v Kenya Commercial Bank and Republic v Karisa Chengo, the latter quoting Lord Denning in Macfoy v United African Company, to the effect that proceedings founded on a void act are nullities - you cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stay there. The court declared that no appeal was properly before it, directed that the file be removed from the list of pending appeals, and declared the matter disposed of. No costs order was made. The parties were absent at delivery of the judgment on 24th October 2017.

Key legal issues

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01

Whether an appeal could be entertained where the Provincial Appeals Committee made no decision

Holding

No - appeals to the High Court lie only against decisions of Appeals Committees; in the absence of a decision the court lacks jurisdiction.

Reasoning

Section 8(9) of the Land Disputes Tribunals Act permits appeal to the High Court on a point of law from a decision of the Appeals Committee. Since the Embu Provincial Appeals Committee never finalized the case, there was no decision capable of being appealed. Entertaining the matter would be putting something on nothing, producing nothing, so the file had to be removed from the list of pending appeals.

p. 1

Legal principles established

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  • Jurisdiction must be addressed the moment the court becomes aware of its absence; without jurisdiction a court cannot take any further step.
  • A court's jurisdiction flows only from the Constitution or written law and cannot be self-conferred.
  • Proceedings founded on a void act are nullities.

Court orders

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  1. 1.A declaration that there is no appeal properly before the court
  2. 2.That the file be removed from the list of appeals pending in the court
  3. 3.A declaration that the matter has been disposed of by the court

Authorities

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Legislation

  • Land Disputes Tribunals ActSection 8(8), 8(9), 8(10)

Cases cited (3)

  • Samuel Kamau & Another versus Kenya Commercial Bank and Two Others
    Sup. Ct. Civil Application No. 2 of 2011
  • Republic versus Karisa Chengo and two others
    Petition No. 5 of 2015
  • Benjamin Leonard Mcfoy versus United African Company Limited (UK)
    [1962] AC 152
On appeal from
Embu Provincial Appeals Committee
Jurisdiction invoked
Section 8(9) of the Land Disputes Tribunals Act (appeal to the High Court on a point of law from a decision of the Appeals Committee)

Key timeline

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Practical implications

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Frequently asked questions

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Cite this brief

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Cite this brief

Caselaw, "Jeremiah Kirema v Margaret Kanugu [2017] KEELC 1374 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2017). . Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2017/1374/eng@2017-10-24

Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.