Njoroge (As Legal Representative of the Estate of Darius Njoroge Kaime) v Land Registrar Narok (Environment and Land Case Judicial Review Application E002 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 7008 (KLR)
The bottom line
#The Environment and Land Court in Narok dismissed a bid to force the Land Registrar to release a title because the applicant had no proof of a request, refusal, or plot connection.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether mandamus could issue to compel the Land Registrar to release the certificate of title/lease
No. The Applicant failed to prove a request for the title or its refusal, failed to link Plot No 6 Block 8 to Plot No 3268, and did not exhaust internal mechanisms; judicial review is a remedy of last resort.
The court reiterated the mandamus principles in R v Kenya National Examinations Council Exparte Gathenji and related authorities: mandamus enforces a public duty whose failure or refusal is proved. The Applicant alleged visits to the Land Registrar but produced no evidence of the request or refusal. Some annexures were illegible and the annexed map he referred to was not before the court. He also failed to show that the Registrar acted illegally, unreasonably or procedurally improperly, or that internal mechanisms were exhausted.
Whether the Applicant proved the connection between Plot No 6 Block 8 and Plot No 3268
No. No evidence connected the two plot numbers, and the map allegedly annexed was not before the court.
The Applicant's case rested on the assertion that Plot No 6 Block 8 was renumbered Plot No 3268 after survey and registration. The court noted that no evidence established this connection, the map referred to was not produced, and several documents were illegible and could not prove the allegations. Payment of rates for Plot No 6 Block 8 did not establish the claimed renumbering.
Legal principles established
#- Mandamus compels performance of a public duty imposed by statute where the person or body on whom the duty is imposed has failed or refused to perform it, to the detriment of a party with a legal right to expect performance
- Judicial review is a remedy of last resort; a person must first exhaust available statutory procedures unless there are exceptional circumstances
- Conditions for grant of mandamus: failure by the public officer to perform duty; the court will not grant mandamus where an alternative remedy exists, or where enforcement poses implementation challenges
Court orders
#- 1.The Judicial Review Application dated 10th July 2024 was dismissed wholly, with no orders as to costs
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Order 53 Rule 3 of the Civil Procedure Rules; Sections 8 & 9 of the Law Reform Act, Cap 26 Laws of Kenya
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Njoroge (As Legal Representative of the Estate of Darius Njoroge Kaime) v Land Registrar Narok (Environment and Land Case Judicial Review Application E002 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 7008 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Judicial Review Application dated 10th July 2024. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2025/7008/eng@2025-10-16
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.