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ELCDismissedELC Case No. 008 of 2021· [2022] KEELC 746 (KLR)

Adan Chuda Sode v Koise Ibrahim Koise & 4 others [2022] KEELC 746 (KLR)

Environment and Land Court
21 March 2022
PNP. M. Njoroge
428 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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The Environment and Land Court in Isiolo dismissed a land suit because both sides failed to show up for a properly noticed hearing date.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This judgment of the Environment and Land Court at Isiolo dismisses a land suit for non-attendance at a scheduled hearing. The plaint was filed on 27 August 2020 at Meru, the file having earlier been transferred from the Embu ELC Court to Meru in October 2020, and later transferred to Isiolo towards the end of 2021. On 14 February 2022, Justice P. M. Njoroge noted that although a Notice of Motion dated 5 October 2020 was on record, the parties had not fully canvassed it, and criticised the parties' tactics for delaying the suit. He directed concurrent compliance with Order 11 of the Civil Procedure Rules within 30 days and fixed the suit for hearing on 21 March 2022. On the hearing date, the court found that the parties had been properly served with notice but did not attend; their names were called outside court without response. Applying Order 12 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules, the court concluded that the suit merited dismissal for non-attendance. The suit was accordingly dismissed, with no costs awarded against any party. The judgment is a procedural dismissal on the court's own motion rather than a determination on the merits, and leaves the underlying land dispute unresolved; a dismissed suit would require reinstatement or a fresh suit to be pursued.

Key legal issues

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01

Dismissal of suit for non-attendance

Holding

The suit was dismissed for want of prosecution/attendance since the parties were served with notice of the hearing date but failed to appear.

Reasoning

The court had, on 14 February 2022, fixed the suit for hearing on 21 March 2022 and directed compliance with Order 11. The parties were properly served but neither the plaintiff nor the defendants attended court, and names were called outside court without response. Under Order 12 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules, non-attendance by a party entitled the court to dismiss the suit. The court declined to let the parties' own inaction stall the suit further.

p. 2

Legal principles established

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  • Failure to fully canvass an application or to comply with Order 11 of the Civil Procedure Rules cannot justify delaying the hearing and determination of a suit.
  • Where a party properly served does not attend the scheduled hearing, the suit merits dismissal under Order 12 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules.

Court orders

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  1. 1.This suit is dismissed
  2. 2.No costs are awarded

Authorities

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Legislation

  • Civil Procedure RulesOrder 11
  • Civil Procedure RulesOrder 12 Rule 1
Jurisdiction invoked
Environment and Land Court jurisdiction under the Environment and Land Court Act (suit transferred from Embu to Meru and then to Isiolo ELC)

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, "Adan Chuda Sode v Koise Ibrahim Koise & 4 others [2022] KEELC 746 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2022). ELC Case No. 008 of 2021. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2022/746/eng@2022-03-21

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