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ELRCAllowedCause No. 2463 of 2012· [2018] KEELRC 519 (KLR)

Pauline Wangare Nganga & 4 others v County Government of Kajiado & another [2018] KEELRC 519 (KLR)

Employment and Labour Relations Court of Kenya
30 November 2018
RSRadido Stephen
566 words in judgment
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The bottom line

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Kenya's Employment Court reinstated a six-year-old case dismissed while the claimants' lawyer was gravely ill, ruling a missed hearing shouldn't end a genuine dispute.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This ruling of the Employment and Labour Relations Court at Nairobi (Radido Stephen, Judge) determined an application by five Claimants seeking reinstatement of their Cause, No. 2463 of 2012, against the County Government of Kajiado and the Ministry of Devolution & Planning through the Hon. Attorney General, after the suit was dismissed on 27 July 2018. The applicants argued they had a good case, there was an error in listing the Cause, and their advocate was unable to attend court on 27 July 2018 due to ill health, with the Court declining to hear the advocate holding brief. The 1st Respondent opposed the application as fatally defective and without merit, while the 2nd Respondent submitted orally that the applicants lacked diligence because the Cause had been dismissed twice before. Reviewing the record, the Court found the applicants' advocate had been in court on 2 May 2018 when the hearing was scheduled for 26 July 2018; that on 27 July 2018 the applicants explained their advocate's illness, which was widely known and who had subsequently passed on; and that there was no note on the file supporting the claim of a prior dismissal. On those two grounds the Court allowed the application, set aside the dismissal order of 27 July 2018, reinstated the suit, and issued directions for filing of witness statements and agreed issues in preparation for a hearing on the merit, with costs in the cause. The judgment is dated 30 November 2018.

Key legal issues

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01

Whether to set aside the dismissal of the suit and reinstate it

Holding

The application was allowed on two grounds: the applicants' advocate was ill (and had since passed on), and no record supported the claim of a prior dismissal

Reasoning

The Court reviewed the record and found the applicants' advocate had been in court on 2 May 2018 when hearing was scheduled, and on 27 July 2018 the applicants had explained their advocate's illness, which was widely known and the advocate had since died. The Court also found no note on the file supporting the 2nd Respondent's contention of a previous dismissal. On these two grounds it allowed reinstatement and gave directions for hearing on the merit.

p. 2

Legal principles established

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  • A cause may be reinstated where there is an error in its listing and where the advocate's inability to attend was due to illness

Court orders

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  1. 1.The application dated 20 August 2018 allowed and the suit ELRC C/2463/2012 reinstated
  2. 2.The order given on 27 July 2018 dismissing the suit set aside
  3. 3.Claimants to file/serve any witness statements/documents on or before 7 December 2018
  4. 4.Respondents to file/serve any witness statements/documents on or before 14 December 2018
  5. 5.Agreed Issues to be filed before 25 January 2019
  6. 6.Convenient hearing date to be given hereinafter
Jurisdiction invoked
Original jurisdiction of the Employment and Labour Relations Court over employment and labour relations causes

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, "Pauline Wangare Nganga & 4 others v County Government of Kajiado & another [2018] KEELRC 519 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2018). Cause No. 2463 of 2012. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2018/519/eng@2018-11-30

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