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ELCDismissedELC Case No. 1521 of 2016· [2019] KEELC 4601 (KLR)

Veronica Wangui Achuo v Naomi Wanjiru & another [2019] KEELC 4601 (KLR)

Environment & Land Court of Kenya
14 February 2019
EOE. O. Obaga
510 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Filing a second application seeking the same eviction orders the court had already refused wasted time and got dismissed as an abuse of process.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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The plaintiff, Veronica Wangui Achuo, moved the Environment and Land Court at Milimani by notice of motion dated 9th November 2018 in ELC Case No. 1521 of 2016. She sought restraining orders preventing the defendants from any further dealings in Nairobi/Block 107/1106 plot No.1228, allocated to her by Umoja II Jua Kali Association after its repossession from the 2nd defendant for non-compliance with the Association's requirements, and further orders directing the OCS Buruburu Police Station, county security agents and the Chief to enforce compliance with a temporary injunction on trespass and encroachment until the suit was heard inter partes. She contended she was the beneficial owner, had paid land rates, survey fees and title processing fees, and that the 1st respondent, wife of the 2nd respondent, had erected structures on the plot in 2006 despite police and Association intervention. The application was served but not opposed. Justice E. O. Obaga held that the application was an abuse of the process of the court: the applicant had earlier filed a similar application dated 5th December 2016 seeking the respondents' eviction, which was fully heard and dismissed by ruling delivered on 18th October 2017. Instead of setting the suit down for hearing, she had filed another application seeking eviction through police assistance, a practice the court observed delays the conclusion of matters. Finding no merit, the court dismissed the application with no orders as to costs on 14th February 2019.

Key legal issues

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01

Abuse of process by repeat applications

Holding

The application was dismissed as an abuse of process because it duplicated a prior application dated 5th December 2016 which was fully heard and dismissed on 18th October 2017

Reasoning

The court noted the applicant had already obtained a full hearing and dismissal of a similar application seeking eviction of the respondents. Rather than fixing the suit for hearing, she filed another application seeking eviction through police assistance. The court held such applications delay the conclusion of matters and found no merit in the application, dismissing it with no orders as to costs.

p. 1

Legal principles established

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  • Bringing successive interlocutory applications seeking the same substantive relief instead of setting a suit down for hearing constitutes abuse of court process and delays conclusion of matters

Court orders

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  1. 1.The notice of motion dated 9th November 2018 is dismissed with no orders as to costs
Jurisdiction invoked
Environment and Land Court jurisdiction under the Environment and Land Court Act (interlocutory application in a land suit)

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, "Veronica Wangui Achuo v Naomi Wanjiru & another [2019] KEELC 4601 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2019). ELC Case No. 1521 of 2016. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2019/4601/eng@2019-02-14

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