Lake Basin Development Authority v Registered Trustees of the Agricultural Society of Kenya (ASK) [2020] KEELC 3021 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A Bungoma court ordered the Agricultural Society of Kenya off land allotted to Lake Basin Development Authority, showing long possession counts in double-allocation disputes.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the plaintiff established a prima facie case with a likelihood of success
Yes - the plaintiff was allotted the suit property by the National Land Commission on 23 November 2016 under Letter of Allotment Ref No 209163/A(VIII)/34, paid the requisite fees, and had been in possession since 1984; the court found it unclear how the respondent could have been allocated the same land by the same Commission.
The court found the plaintiff proved allocation by the NLC and payment of requisite fees, coupled with possession from 1984 and existing projects on the land. It noted the anomaly of the respondent being allocated the same land by the same Commission without considering the plaintiff's interest, and that the plaintiff's existing projects elevated its interest above the respondent's, which commenced only in 2016.
Whether the plaintiff demonstrated irreparable harm
Yes - the plaintiff invested on the land, has old indigenous trees of sentimental and environmental conservation value, and the trespass threatens disease control for its livestock.
The court accepted that the plaintiff had invested in the suit property, including an Integrated Technology Transfer Center with a dairy unit of about forty cattle, and that the defendant's fencing, ploughing and destruction of indigenous trees, plus open grazing by the local community, created a threat of disease spread that damages could not adequately compensate.
Where the balance of convenience lies
With the plaintiff, whose projects on the land date from 1984, as opposed to the defendant's projects commencing in 2016.
The court weighed the longevity of the respective parties' activities: the plaintiff had undertaken projects on the suit property since 1984, while the defendant's activities were comparatively recent (2016), so disruption would fall more heavily on the plaintiff's long-established operations.
Legal principles established
#- A mandatory injunction will be granted on an interlocutory application if the case is clear, the act is simple and summary and easily remedied, or the defendant has attempted to steal a march on the plaintiff.
- A higher degree of assurance than for a prohibitory injunction is required before an interlocutory mandatory injunction is granted.
Court orders
#- 1.A mandatory order of injunction, pending the hearing and determination of the suit, directed at the defendant, its employees, servants or persons acting under its authority, compelling it to stop any activities in and remove its items, machines, employees or persons acting with its authority from the unsecured Bungoma Municipality plot measuring 13.4 ha allotted to the Lake Basin Development Authority pursuant to the Letter of Allotment dated 23/11/2016
- 2.An order of injunction, pending the hearing and determination of the suit, directed at the respondents themselves, their servants or agents, to stop any activities/continued trespass over the unsecured Bungoma Municipality plot measuring 13.4 ha allotted to the Lake Basin Development Authority pursuant to the Letter of Allotment dated 23/11/2016
- 3.Costs in the cause
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Original jurisdiction of the Environment and Land Court over land disputes (interlocutory notice of motion for injunction); no specific constitutional provision invoked.
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Lake Basin Development Authority v Registered Trustees of the Agricultural Society of Kenya (ASK) [2020] KEELC 3021 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2020). not_stated_in_judgment. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2020/3021/eng@2020-04-29
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.