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ELCDismissed· [2019] KEELC 1160 (KLR)

Nancy Wangui Mungai v Zacharia Kigerah Njoroge & 8 others; Joseph Munyue Gichamba & another (Intended Interested Parties) [2019] KEELC 1160 (KLR)

Environment and Land Court
24 October 2019
COChristine Ochieng
1,110 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Kenya's Environment and Land Court refused to join tenants as parties to an older land ownership case, because their lease started after the suit was filed.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This ruling of the Environment and Land Court at Kajiado, delivered by Christine Ochieng J on 24th October 2019, determined an application dated 9th October 2018 by intended interested parties seeking to be enjoined in a land dispute over parcel NGONG/NGONG/1/106 (also referred to as Ngong Township Block 1/106). The applicants, through the supporting affidavit of Joseph Munyue Gichamba, averred that they were tenants of the 1st and 3rd Defendants under a six-year leasehold commencing 1st August 2018, that they entered the lease without knowledge of the pending dispute and had made developmental investments on the land. They invoked section 3A of the Civil Procedure Act and Order 1 Rule 8(2) and (22) of the Civil Procedure Rules, relying on authorities including Trusted Society of Human Rights Alliance v Mumo Matemu. The 1st to 4th Defendants opposed, filing grounds of opposition that the application was incompetent, mischievous and an abuse of court, since the suit over ownership was filed on 8th July 2014, long before the lease, and the applicants were not subject of any relief sought. Framing the sole issue as whether the intended interested parties should be enjoined, the court applied the definition of an interested party as one with a stake in the proceedings who will be affected by the decision. Because the applicants were merely tenants whose lease commenced after the suit was filed, the court held their joinder unnecessary for complete adjudication, noting any prejudice they suffer is compensable by the 1st and 3rd Defendants who leased to them without disclosing the pending suit. The application was dismissed with costs in the cause.

Key legal issues

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01

Whether the Intended Interested Parties should be enjoined in the suit as Interested Parties

Holding

The application was dismissed; the applicants, as tenants under a lease commencing in August 2018 (after the suit was filed on 8th July 2014), have no interest rendering their joinder necessary.

Reasoning

The court adopted the definition of an interested party from Trusted Society of Human Rights Alliance v Mumo Matemu, requiring a stake in the proceedings and an interest that will be affected by the decision. The fulcrum of the suit is ownership of the land, a dispute between the plaintiffs and defendants. The applicants are merely tenants whose lease post-dates the filing of the suit, and their claimed prejudice can be compensated by the 1st and 3rd Defendants who leased to them without disclosing the pending suit.

p. 2

Legal principles established

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  • An interested party is one who has a stake in the proceedings, though not a party to the cause ab initio, and who will be affected by the decision of the Court either way
  • A tenant whose lease commenced after the filing of the suit, in a dispute over ownership between the plaintiffs and defendants, is not a necessary party for the court's effective adjudication

Court orders

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  1. 1.The application dated 9th October, 2018 is dismissed
  2. 2.Costs will be in the cause

Authorities

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Legislation

  • Civil Procedure ActSection 3A
  • Civil Procedure RulesOrder 1 Rule 8(2) and (22)
  • Civil Procedure RulesOrder 1 Rule 10(2)

Cases cited (6)

  • Raila Amolo Odinga & Another V Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission & 2 Others & Michael Wainaina Mwaura
    (2017) eKLR
  • Kenya Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists Board & 6 others V Attorney General & 4 others
    (2017) eKLR
  • Judicial Service Commission V Speaker of the National Assembly & Anor
  • Trusted Society of Human Rights Alliance V Mumo Matemu & 5 Others
    (2015) eKLR
  • Shirvling Supermarket Limited V Jimmy Ondicho Nyabuti & 2 Others
    (2018) eKLR
  • Francis Karoki Muruatetu & Another V Republic & 4 Others
    (2016) eKLR
Jurisdiction invoked
Section 3A of the Civil Procedure Act and Order 1 Rule 8(2) and (22) of the Civil Procedure Rules; Order 1 Rule 10(2) of the Civil Procedure Rules

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, "Nancy Wangui Mungai v Zacharia Kigerah Njoroge & 8 others; Joseph Munyue Gichamba & another (Intended Interested Parties) [2019] KEELC 1160 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2019). . Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2019/1160/eng@2019-10-24

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