Jonathan Baya Mketta & 2 others v Witu Nyongoro Ranch (DA) Co. Ltd & 3 others [2019] KEELC 4070 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A Kenyan court struck out a repeat land injunction application, confirming that you cannot re-argue issues a judge has already decided, even mid-case.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the notice of motion dated 14th June 2017 is res judicata
The application is res judicata and was struck out
The application was word for word similar to the earlier application dated 24th March 2016, which was dismissed on 12th May 2017. The issue of regularization of titles, on which the new application was based, had already been considered by Justice Angote in the 12th May 2017 Ruling. The matters therefore belonged to the subject matter of the dismissed application and could not be litigated afresh.
Whether Section 7 of the Civil Procedure Act applies to interlocutory applications
Yes, the wider principles of res judicata apply to applications within the same suit
Relying on Uhuru Highway Development Ltd v Central Bank of Kenya, the court held that there must be an end to applications of a similar nature within a suit; otherwise courts would be inundated by new applications filed after the original one was dismissed. Section 7 and Explanation No. 4 of the Civil Procedure Act capture this principle.
Legal principles established
#- The wider principles of res judicata apply to interlocutory applications within a suit; there must be an end to interlocutory applications as much as there ought to be an end to litigation
- Res judicata applies not only to points actually decided but to every point which properly belonged to the subject of litigation and which parties exercising reasonable diligence might have brought forward
Court orders
#- 1.The Plaintiffs' application dated 14th June 2017 is struck out
- 2.Costs of the application to the Defendants
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Original jurisdiction of the Environment and Land Court over the suit concerning LR No. 29274, Lamu
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Later judgments citing this (1)
#Judgments in the corpus that rely on this one. Where the Court said how it treated the authority, that is shown.
Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Jonathan Baya Mketta & 2 others v Witu Nyongoro Ranch (DA) Co. Ltd & 3 others [2019] KEELC 4070 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2019). Not stated in the judgment. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2019/4070/eng@2019-03-28
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.