Ngala v Kitete & another (Environment and Land Appeal 1 of 2018) [2024] KEELC 504 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Environment and Land Court voided two land tribunal decisions because they decided who owns land, a power tribunals never had.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the Tribunal and Appeals Committee exceeded their jurisdiction by determining ownership of land parcel Nzaui/Kawala/225
The Tribunal and Appeals Committee acted ultra vires; their decisions were a nullity because they determined ownership of land, a matter outside section 3(1) of the Land Disputes Tribunal Act, the dispute being merely couched as a boundary dispute.
Section 3(1) of the repealed Land Disputes Tribunal Act confined tribunals to division/boundary disputes, claims to occupy or work land, and trespass. The pleadings and proceedings showed the real issue was ownership of parcel Nzaui/225. Relying on Joseph Malakwen Lelei and M'Marete, the court held that tribunals cannot determine title to registered land, and a decision rendered without jurisdiction is void ab initio.
Rectification/cancellation of first registration
The Appeals Committee's order that the Appellant's first registration be cancelled and the land registered in the Respondents' names was contrary to the protections of first registration under the Registered Land Act, though the court's primary basis was lack of jurisdiction.
The Appellant argued that the land was first registered in his favour and could not be cancelled or amended under section 143 of the Registered Land Act. The court did not make a standalone finding on this ground, but since the Tribunal and Appeals Committee lacked jurisdiction, all their orders, including the cancellation of the first registration, fell away as nullities.
Legal principles established
#- Jurisdiction of a court or tribunal flows from the Constitution and/or legislation and cannot be conferred by parties or assumed by the tribunal itself.
- Where a court or tribunal exercises a jurisdiction it does not possess, its proceedings and decisions are a nullity and every resulting award is void.
- Land Disputes Tribunals under the repealed Act had jurisdiction limited to division/boundary disputes, claims to occupy or work land, and trespass - not determination of title to or ownership of registered land.
Court orders
#- 1.The decisions of the Provincial Land Dispute Appeals Committee and the Wote Land Disputes Tribunal are hereby set aside.
- 2.Each party to bear its own costs in the instant Appeal and costs in the proceedings before the Tribunal and Appeals Committee.
- On appeal from
- Eastern Provincial Land Dispute Tribunal Appeals Committee (upon the award of the Wote District Land Disputes Tribunal in Makueni Land Dispute Tribunal Case No. 8 of 2005)
- Eastern Provincial Land Dispute Tribunal Appeal No. 56 of 2007
- Jurisdiction invoked
- First appellate jurisdiction over decisions of the Land Disputes Tribunal Appeals Committee under the Land Disputes Tribunal Act (now repealed)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Ngala v Kitete & another (Environment and Land Appeal 1 of 2018) [2024] KEELC 504 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2024). Not stated in the judgment (arising from Eastern Provincial Land Dispute Tribunal Appeal No. 56 of 2007). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2024/504/eng@2024-01-31
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.