Chung & 2 others (Suing as Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer of Lamb Keepers Ministries) v Nguta (Environment and Land Case E092 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 1605 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A Nakuru land court allowed a dispute over church land titles to proceed to trial, ruling it was neither a repeat case nor one the Land Registrar could fix.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether prayer (a) is res judicata
Not res judicata; the High Court petition concerned the defendant's removal as trustee, not the rectification of land registers sought in the plaint.
It was not disputed that the defendant was removed as a trustee and that her petition challenging that removal was dismissed on 1st November 2023. However, the petition was purely about the removal as trustee, whereas the present suit seeks rectification of titles to replace her with a new trustee. The prayers in the plaint were not heard and determined in Petition No. E022 of 2022, so the elements of res judicata are not met.
Whether the plaintiffs were required to first exhaust remedies under Section 79 of the Land Registration Act
Section 79 does not apply because the rectification sought affects the rights of a registered owner and involves substantive trusteeship and ownership questions, not clerical or undisputed errors.
Section 79(1) empowers the Land Registrar to rectify the register only in formal matters, errors, mistakes or omissions not materially affecting a proprietor's interests, with consent, on resurvey, or for updating or correcting particulars. The rectification envisaged here affects the rights of a registered owner and raises complex questions of trusteeship and proprietary rights requiring hearing and determination, which fall within the ELC's jurisdiction under Article 162(2)(b) and Section 13 of the ELC Act.
Nature and scope of a preliminary objection
Applying Mukisa Biscuit, a preliminary objection is a point of law pleaded or arising clearly from the pleadings which may dispose of the suit; this objection failed on its merits.
The court adopted the classic definition in Mukisa Biscuit Manufacturing Co. Ltd v West End Distributors Ltd and the Supreme Court's restatement in Hassan Ali Joho. Having found neither res judicata nor failure to exhaust Section 79 remedies established, the court held the objection lacked merit.
Legal principles established
#- A matter is not res judicata where the orders sought were not heard and determined by a competent court in the earlier suit
- Section 79 of the Land Registration Act does not apply where rectification involves complex legal disputes, substantive ownership rights or allegations of fraud
- Res judicata requires an adjudication that conclusively determines the rights of the parties on the matters in controversy
Court orders
#- 1.The Defendant's Notice of Preliminary Objection dated 21st November 2025 is dismissed
- 2.Costs of the preliminary objection to the Plaintiffs
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 162(2)(b) of the Constitution and Section 13 of the Environment and Land Court Act 2011 (invoked by the plaintiffs' counsel)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Chung & 2 others (Suing as Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer of Lamb Keepers Ministries) v Nguta (Environment and Land Case E092 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 1605 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2026). ELC Suit (Nakuru) – rulings on Defendant's Notice of Preliminary Objection dated 21st November 2025 (suit number not stated in judgment). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2026/1605/eng@2026-03-19
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.