Gilbert v District Land Adjudication and Settlement Officer Igamba Ng’ombe Sub-County & 2 others; Rinkuri & 2 others (Interested Parties) (Environment and Land Judicial Review Case E003 of 2022) [2024] KEELC 7132 (KLR)
The bottom line
#What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Competency of the judicial review application (limitation)
The application was competent because it was filed within six months of the impugned ruling of 13th January, 2022
Under Section 9(3) of the Law Reform Act and Order 53 Rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules, leave to apply for certiorari must be sought within six months. The impugned decision was dated 13th January, 2022 and the motion was filed on 4th March, 2022, well within the six-month window, defeating the interested parties' contention that the suit was filed out of time.
Locus standi of an applicant suing on behalf of a deceased father's estate
The applicant lacked locus standi as he had no letters of administration in respect of his late father's estate, rendering the suit incompetent
The applicant's complaints were essentially grievances of his deceased father, Bernard Gitari, who passed on in 2011. The law requires a party suing on behalf of a deceased's estate to hold a grant. There being no letters of administration on record, the applicant lacked legal capacity to institute and maintain the suit, and the court found the suit incompetent on this ground.
Entitlement to certiorari and prohibition
Not entitled - the applicant was attacking the merits of the Minister's decision rather than the decision-making process, and all parties were heard
Judicial review is confined to the decision-making process. The record showed the applicant participated in the appeal hearing on 22nd November, 2021, satisfying natural justice. His complaints about conflicting demarcation maps, replicated proceedings and scribbled minutes went to the substance of the decision, making the application a disguised appeal, which the court cannot entertain.
Legal principles established
#- An application for leave to apply for certiorari must be made within six months of the decision sought to be quashed under Section 9(3) of the Law Reform Act and Order 53 Rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules
- A party suing on behalf of a deceased person's estate must first obtain letters of administration; without them the suit is incompetent
- Judicial review concerns the decision-making process, not the merits of the decision; the court should not act as a court of appeal over the decision maker
Court orders
#- 1.Dismissal of the Notice of Motion dated 4th March, 2022
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Articles 23(3)(f) and 47 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010; Sections 8 and 9 of the Law Reform Act (Cap 26); Order 53 Rules 1(1) and 3 of the Civil Procedure Rules, 2010
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Gilbert v District Land Adjudication and Settlement Officer Igamba Ng’ombe Sub-County & 2 others; Rinkuri & 2 others (Interested Parties) (Environment and Land Judicial Review Case E003 of 2022) [2024] KEELC 7132 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2024). Not stated in the judgment (Judicial Review application; Notice of Motion dated 4th March, 2022). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2024/7132/eng@2024-10-30
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.