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ELCAllowedKapsabet CMELC No. 32 of 2020 (Application dated 10th February 2025)

Chelagat v Kemboi (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Application E009 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 3520 (KLR)

Environment and Land Court of Kenya
9 June 2026
GOG M A Ong'ondo
1,691 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
AI-assisted case brief
·~7 min to read original · ~4 min brief

The bottom line

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Kenya's Environment and Land Court confirmed magistrates cannot decide adverse possession land claims, and transferred the Kapsabet suit to itself.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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The applicant, Sally Chelagat, applied by a notice of motion dated 10th February 2025 for the transfer of Kapsabet CMELC No. 32 of 2019 (correctly No. 32 of 2020), Kiprotich Arap Kemboi v Sally Chelagat, from the Chief Magistrate's Court at Kapsabet to the Environment and Land Court at Kapsabet. She had been sued over ownership of land reference NANDI/KOMBE/275 and had filed a defence and counterclaim for adverse possession, having never occupied the land. The respondent, through Barnaba Kipsang Rotich, holder of a limited grant ad litem over the estate of the original respondent, opposed the application, arguing that only the High Court could transfer suits under Order 37(7) of the Civil Procedure Rules, that the counterclaim was a nullity, and that service was defective. Interim transfer orders made on 4th March 2025 were set aside on 19th March 2025, precipitating this ruling. The court framed a single issue: whether it had jurisdiction to transfer the suit. Relying on Article 162(2)(b) of the Constitution, section 13 of the Environment and Land Court Act, and the Court of Appeal's holding in Sugawara v Kiruti that magistrates' courts lack jurisdiction over adverse possession claims, the court found the suit and counterclaim fell within ELC jurisdiction. It applied section 18 of the Civil Procedure Act and cured the wrong year in the application under Article 159(2)(d) and sections 3 and 19 of the ELC Act. The application was allowed with costs in the cause.

Questions the Court framed

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The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.

  1. 1.Whether this Honourable court is seized of the jurisdiction to transfer the suit from the magistrates' court to the Environment and Land Court

Key legal issues

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01

Whether the Environment and Land Court has jurisdiction to transfer a suit pending in the magistrates' court where the suit involves title to land and a counterclaim for adverse possession

Holding

The ELC has jurisdiction to transfer the suit; magistrates' courts lack jurisdiction over adverse possession claims

Reasoning

The court held that its jurisdiction derives from Article 162(2)(b) of the Constitution and section 13 of the Environment and Land Court Act. The suit and counterclaim concern title to land, squarely within ELC jurisdiction. Relying on the Court of Appeal in Sugawara v Kiruti, magistrates' courts cannot determine adverse possession claims. Section 18 of the Civil Procedure Act (as applied to the ELC) empowers transfer, and Article 159(2)(d) cures the wrong year cited in the application.

p. 3

Legal principles established

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  • Magistrates' Courts do not have jurisdiction to determine claims of adverse possession
  • Jurisdiction flows from the Constitution or legislation, and a court without jurisdiction must down its tools

Court orders

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  1. 1.Orders transferring Kapsabet CMELC No. 32 of 2020: Kiprotich Arap Kemboi versus Sally Chelagat from the Chief Magistrate's Court at Kapsabet to the Environment and Land Court of Kenya at Kapsabet
  2. 2.Costs of the application be in the cause

The bench

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One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.

GO
majority

Wrote the judgment

Jurisdiction invoked
Article 162(2)(b) of the Constitution as read with section 13 of the Environment and Land Court Act

Quotable passages

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Verbatim from the judgment, each located to the page it appears on in the official PDF — so these can be cited and checked directly.

Orders transferring the cause namely Kapsabet CMELC No. 32 of 2020: Kiprotich Arap Kemboi versus Sally Chelagat filed in the Chief Magistrate' court at Kapsabet to the Environment and Land Court of Kenya at Kapsabet to allow fair, just, equitable and expeditious disposition of the cause.
p. 4final orders - transfer of suit
The costs of the application be in the cause.
p. 4costs order
Jurisdiction is everything. Without it, a court has no powers to make one more step.
p. 2jurisdiction - Owners of Motor Vessel 'Lilian S'
Lack of jurisdiction thus renders a court's decision void as opposed to it being merely voidable. When an act is void, it is a nullity ab initio.
p. 3consequences of lack of jurisdiction

Issues in the judgment

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minor

Judgment refers to the suit inconsistently as CMELC No. 32 of 2019 and No. 32 of 2020

minor

Dates internally inconsistent - supplementary affidavit 'dated 26th March, 2026' and orders of '19th March 202' and '19th March 2026' in a matter from 2025, and a 'Ruling Notice dated 18th May 2026' served 'on 19th May 2026'

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, "Chelagat v Kemboi (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Application E009 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 3520 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2026). Kapsabet CMELC No. 32 of 2020 (Application dated 10th February 2025). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2026/3520/eng@2026-06-09

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