David O. Odunga & 69 Others v Secretary General Acting For the Kenya Union of Commercial, Food And Allied Workers & another [2016] KEELRC 1372 (KLR)
The bottom line
#What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the petitioners deserved interlocutory mandatory injunction to quash withdrawal of their union accreditation and staff committee positions
The application was dismissed; interlocutory mandatory injunctions issue only in exceptional cases and the petitioners failed the clean hands test.
The court held that interlocutory remedies are discretionary and require good faith and clean hands. The petitioners, while Chairman and Secretary of the Central Staff Committee and shopstewards of the 1st respondent, openly formed and sought registration of a rival union, Kenya Supermarket Workers Union, even appealing the Registrar's refusal to register it. The honourable course was to resign from the union first.
Scope of constitutional freedom of association (Articles 36 and 41) in relation to union membership
The right to form a rival union exists but cannot be exercised while remaining a member, especially as a shopsteward, of the union being competed against.
Articles 36 and 41 protect the right to form, join and participate in trade union activities, but that protection cannot be claimed by a person simultaneously championing a rival union that injures the interest of the union whose member he is. Membership obliges the member to espouse, promote and defend the union's core values and principles.
Legal principles established
#- Interlocutory mandatory injunctions are granted only in exceptional cases because they effectively determine the main claim
- A member of a union cannot claim constitutional protection of freedom of association while engaging in activities that compete with or injure the interests of that union
- Equitable interlocutory remedies require good faith and clean hands
Court orders
#- 1.The application dated 13th February 2015 is dismissed with costs
- 2.It is so ordered
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Articles 36 and 41 of the Constitution (freedom of association and labour relations) invoked in an employment and labour relations petition; specific statutory provision not stated
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "David O. Odunga & 69 Others v Secretary General Acting For the Kenya Union of Commercial, Food And Allied Workers & another [2016] KEELRC 1372 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2016). Petition (concurrent with Notice of Motion dated 13th February 2015). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2016/1372/eng@2016-04-08
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.