Godfrey Karume Macharia v Richard Premchard Rama & 6 others; Benard Taura the County Government of Kilifi (Interested Party) [2021] KEELC 3188 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Malindi land court allowed a landowner's constitutional case to proceed to a full hearing, rejecting arguments that it was duplicated or poorly drafted.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Res sub judice under Section 6 of the Civil Procedure Act
The objection failed: Petition No. 9 of 2018 had been withdrawn before the objection was filed, and the Petitioner was not a party to Malindi ELC 78 of 2019, so the parties were not litigating under the same title
The court applied the Supreme Court's four-part test. Petition 9 of 2018 was withdrawn on 30 May 2019, over a year before the objection, so it provided no basis. In ELC 78 of 2019, although the subject property is the same, the Petitioner is not a party and the plaintiffs claim under their own purchase, so the identity-of-parties requirement was not met. The second ground of objection therefore failed.
Precision of constitutional pleadings and abuse of process
Despite verbosity, the Petition disclosed discernible grievances, including violation of Articles 40 and 65, so it was not defective or an abuse of process
Applying Mumo Matemu, the court held precision does not require exactitude. Reading paragraphs 40 to 48 and 61 of the 63-paragraph Petition, the Petitioner's complaint of collusion to deprive him of land and the invocation of Articles 40 and 65 were evident. The pleading deficiencies did not justify striking out the Petition at the preliminary stage.
Legal principles established
#- A party invoking res sub judice must establish suits over the same subject matter, instituted at different times, pending before competent courts, and between the same parties or their representatives
- Precision in constitutional pleadings does not demand formulaic prescription of factual claims or formalistic utterance of constitutional provisions
Court orders
#- 1.Dismissal of the 1st Respondent's Amended Notice of Preliminary Objection dated 23rd November 2020
- 2.Costs of the Preliminary Objection to the Petitioner
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 22 of the Constitution (enforcement of Bill of Rights) - invoked by the parties; the court was seized of the Petition under its constitutional jurisdiction
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Godfrey Karume Macharia v Richard Premchard Rama & 6 others; Benard Taura the County Government of Kilifi (Interested Party) [2021] KEELC 3188 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2021). Petition dated 1st October 2019 (Malindi). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2021/3188/eng@2021-05-28
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.