Eileen Mercy Wangari Karugi v Crispus Maina Gaitho; Rose Wambui Maina (Proposed Interested Party) [2021] KEELC 4482 (KLR)

The court held it was improper to seek an injunction against a defendant who did not own the property; the plaintiff should have sued the registered owner if she wanted rights over the property determined. Since the proprietor was never heard before the injunction issued, fairness required discharging the order as it applied to that property, leaving the plaintiff to prove her case without injunctive protection.

The plaintiff argued the applicant and her children were in contempt of the injunctive orders and should not be granted audience. The court rejected this: the injunction was against the defendant only, and the plaintiff cannot transfer the order to the applicant. If the plaintiff wanted the applicant bound, she ought to have made her a party in the first instance.

The applicant asserted she is the defendant's wife with a stake in all the properties claimed by the plaintiff. The court found it just that she be enjoined as an interested party, with liberty to file pleadings to safeguard her interest. The court noted the plaintiff may need to amend her pleadings to include the applicant if she wishes orders over Plot No. 9122/93.