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ELCOtherEnvironment and Land Case E009 of 2025· [2025] KEELC 6438 (KLR)

Mkaya v Gitimu & another (Environment and Land Case E009 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 6438 (KLR)

Environment and Land Court
24 September 2025
JOJ. M. Onyango
1,900 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
AI-assisted case brief
·~8 min to read original · ~4 min brief

The bottom line

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Kenya's Environment and Land Court sent a Kshs 7 million land dispute to the Magistrates' Court, confirming cheaper, lower courts can handle land claims.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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The Plaintiff, claiming to be the registered owner of title No. Nachu/Mikuyu/116, moved the Environment and Land Court at Thika by Notice of Motion seeking temporary and permanent injunctions restraining the Defendants from trespassing upon, vandalizing, dividing, transferring or interfering with the suit property, a declaration that the Defendants were contemptuous of court process, and an order compelling the OCS Nachu Police Station to enforce the orders. The 1st Respondent opposed, asserting that he contracted to purchase the property for Kshs. 6,500,000 under a sale agreement executed by the 2nd Respondent as the Plaintiff's attorney under a power of attorney dated 6th March 2024, paid a deposit of Kshs. 1,000,000 and took possession; he alleged the application was mala fide and, crucially, challenged the court's jurisdiction on the ground that the property's value of about Kshs. 7,000,000 falls within the magistrates' courts' pecuniary jurisdiction. The court framed a single issue: whether the application was before the appropriate forum for injunctive relief. Applying the Lillian S doctrine on jurisdiction as restated by the Supreme Court, and the statutory scheme in Sections 13 and 26 of the Environment and Land Court Act and Section 9(a) of the Magistrates' Courts Act, the court held that although the ELC possesses jurisdiction, the value and nature of the claims render the magistrates' court the more suitable forum. The matter was transferred to the Magistrates' Court at Kikuyu with liberty to pursue the claim there, the interim orders were extended until the lower court is seized of the matter, and costs were awarded in the cause.

Key legal issues

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Whether the Environment and Land Court is the appropriate forum for injunctive relief where the suit property is valued at about Kshs. 7,000,000

Holding

The court has jurisdiction under Article 162(2)(b) and Section 13 of the ELC Act, but the pecuniary value of the dispute brings it within the magistrates' courts, and the matter was transferred to the Magistrates' Court at Kikuyu

Reasoning

The court traced the statutory framework: Section 26(3) and (4) of the ELC Act empowers gazetted magistrates to handle civil land matters within the pecuniary limits of the Magistrates' Courts Act, and Section 9(a) of the Magistrates' Courts Act confers corresponding jurisdiction. Citing Lillian S and the Supreme Court's interim electoral commission decision, it held jurisdiction flows from law, and although the ELC as a superior court may entertain the matter, judicial efficiency and Parliament's allocation of jurisdiction favour the magistrates' court for a dispute valued at Kshs. 7,000,000.

p. 5

Legal principles established

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  • Jurisdiction is everything; a court without jurisdiction cannot take even a single step
  • A magistrate's court duly constituted and acting within its pecuniary and statutory limits may adjudicate land and environment disputes including matters of title, possession and enforceable interests
  • Matters falling within the magistrates' court's statutory and pecuniary jurisdiction ought to be heard in that forum

Court orders

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  1. 1.The matter is transferred to the Magistrates' Court at Kikuyu, which is duly vested with jurisdiction over the subject matter considering the pecuniary value of the dispute
  2. 2.Liberty granted to the Applicant to pursue her claim in the Magistrates' Court at Kikuyu
  3. 3.The interim orders are extended until such time as the lower court shall be seized of the matter
  4. 4.Costs shall be in the cause

Authorities

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Legislation

  • Constitution of Kenya, 2010Article 162(2)(b)
  • Constitution of Kenya, 2010Article 169 and 169(2)
  • Constitution of Kenya, 2010Articles 23(2) and 169(1)(a) and (2)
  • Environment and Land Court Act, 2011Section 13
  • Environment and Land Court Act, 2011Section 26(3) and (4)
  • Magistrates' Courts Act, 2015Section 9(a)
  • Magistrates' Courts Act, 2015Section 7(1) (pecuniary limits, referred to)

Cases cited (3)

  • In the Matter of the Interim Independent Electoral Commission
    [2011] eKLR
  • Owners of Motor Vessel 'Lillian S' v. Caltex Oil (Kenya) Limited
    [1989] KLR 1
  • Patrick Ndegwa Munyua v Benjamin Kiiru Mwangi & Another
    [2020] eKLR
Jurisdiction invoked
Article 162(2)(b) of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 and Section 13 of the Environment and Land Court Act, 2011

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, "Mkaya v Gitimu & another (Environment and Land Case E009 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 6438 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Environment and Land Case E009 of 2025. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2025/6438/eng@2025-09-24

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