Ouya (Suing as the Personal Representative of the Estate of Faith Judith Ouya) v Kuriah & another; Equity Bank Kenya (Garnishee) (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Case E007 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 1140 (KLR)
The bottom line
#What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the decree holder established a proper case for a garnishee order despite not specifying the account number
Yes; the garnishee did not deny the existence of the 1st judgment debtor's USD account at its Nyali Branch, so the order nisi was made absolute.
The court accepted that the certificate of taxation had been converted into a decree and remained unsatisfied. The garnishee's only objection was the failure to specify the account number, but it did not dispute that the 1st judgment debtor holds a USD account at its Nyali Branch or any other branch. Following Lesinko Njoroge, the burden shifted to the garnishee once the decree holder alleged indebtedness; the garnishee produced no evidence. Whether the funds satisfy the decree is a question of fact, unnecessary to determine at this stage.
Costs of the garnishee proceedings
The decree holder, being successful, recovers the costs of the garnishee proceedings from the attached accounts.
Applying the proviso to Section 27 of the Civil Procedure Act, costs follow the event and a successful party ordinarily receives costs unless the court directs otherwise for good reason. No reason was advanced to depart from the general rule, and the costs are recoverable from the attached accounts.
Legal principles established
#- The decree holder need only allege the garnishee's indebtedness on sound evidence; the burden then shifts to the garnishee to prove otherwise with strong, sufficient and convincing evidence.
- A garnishee order nisi may be made absolute where the garnishee does not expressly deny holding an account of the judgment debtor; whether the funds satisfy the decretal sum is a question of fact not requiring inquiry at that stage.
Court orders
#- 1.The Garnishee Order made on 26.11.2025 is hereby made absolute.
- 2.Execution be and is hereby issued against the Garnishee (Equity Bank Limited) directing it to pay the amounts in account held in the names of Purity Wangui Kuriah towards the satisfaction of the decree.
- 3.The decree holder shall recover the costs of these garnishee proceedings from the said accounts.
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Order 23 Rules 1, 2, 9 & 10 and Order 51 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules, Sections 1A and 1B of the Civil Procedure Act
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Ouya (Suing as the Personal Representative of the Estate of Faith Judith Ouya) v Kuriah & another; Equity Bank Kenya (Garnishee) (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Case E007 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 1140 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2026). Not stated in the judgment. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2026/1140/eng@2026-02-26
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.