Muchanga Investments Limited v Habenga Holdings Limited & 8 others; Joseph Kangethe Wanyoike (suing and being sued as the Executors of the Will of Carmelina Ngami Mburu (Applicant); Barclays Bank of Kenya Ltd (Interested Party) (Environment and Land Case Civil Suit 1180 of 2014) [2022] KEELC 3120 (KLR)
The bottom line
#When a Kenyan court revokes a grant of representation, everything that person did for the estate is wiped out, and only the duly appointed representative can continue the case.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the court was functus officio or the application res judicata
Neither: the prior ruling of June 14, 2021 declined joinder for want of jurisdiction, and the present application merely seeks to actualize the Family Court's revocation decision
The earlier application sought joinder of the executors as interested parties but the court declined for lack of jurisdiction over competing grants, referring parties to the Family Division. The present application is founded on the Family Court's subsequent revocation of the 9th Defendant's grant and seeks only to give effect to that decision, so neither finality doctrine applies.
Whether the Applicant should be substituted for the 9th Defendant
Yes; with the revocation of the 9th Defendant's limited grant she has no locus, and the Applicant holds a limited grant ad litem authorizing him to represent the estate
The 9th Defendant's authority derived first from a power of attorney terminated by the deceased's death, then from a limited grant ad litem since revoked. A litigant has locus standi upon obtaining limited or full letters of administration. The pending appeal does not bar substitution, which merely replaces one administrator with another while the estate's interests remain paramount.
Whether pleadings and documents filed after the deceased's death under the revoked grant should be expunged
Yes; acts done under a nullified grant are a nullity and the documents are liable to be expunged
Since the grant issued to the 9th Defendant on January 15, 2019 was revoked, anything done in reliance on it is invalid. Documents filed during the lifetime of the revoked grant are therefore liable to expungement. However, the court allowed cross-examination of affected witnesses rather than wholesale recusal of their evidence.
Legal principles established
#- Once a grant of letters of administration is revoked, any action undertaken on the strength of the nullified grant is a nullity
- The estate of a deceased person vests in personal representatives duly appointed by the court, who alone have locus to sue or be sued for the estate
- The mere filing of an appeal does not operate as a bar to execution of a decree unless otherwise expressly provided
Court orders
#- 1.The 9th Defendant is substituted with Joseph Kangethe Wanyoike sued as the Executor of the Estate of Carmelina Ngami Mburu
- 2.All pleadings and documents filed by Catherine Njeri Nganga after the death of Carmelina Ngami Mburu on October 24, 2017 are expunged
- 3.The Applicant and his counsel are at liberty to cross-examine witnesses handled by Catherine Njeri Nganga and her Advocate after the death of Carmelina Ngami Mburu
- 4.The issue of additional documents to be filed by the applicant, if any, to be determined in a separate application
- 5.Each party will bear its/his/her own costs
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Original civil jurisdiction of the Environment and Land Court; substitution in respect of representation of a deceased party's estate (Civil Procedure Act and Succession Cause No 1130 of 2018 proceedings)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Muchanga Investments Limited v Habenga Holdings Limited & 8 others; Joseph Kangethe Wanyoike (suing and being sued as the Executors of the Will of Carmelina Ngami Mburu (Applicant); Barclays Bank of Kenya Ltd (Interested Party) (Environment and Land Case Civil Suit 1180 of 2014) [2022] KEELC 3120 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2022). . Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2022/3120/eng@2022-06-09
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.