Kenya National Union of Nurses v Trustees of the County Pension Fund & 8 others; Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission(Interested Party) [2020] KEELRC 92 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Employment Court struck out a nurses' union pension petition because pension disputes must first go through the Retirement Benefits Authority's process, not straight to court.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the ELRC has jurisdiction over the Petition concerning pension scheme governance, public audit and the adoption of the County Pension Fund
The Court lacks jurisdiction because the Petitioner did not exhaust the statutory dispute resolution mechanism under sections 46 and 48 of the Retirement Benefits Act
The Court accepted that its jurisdiction derives from Section 12(1) of the ELRC Act, but relying on Albert Chaurembo Mumba, Okal v Telkom, Kibos Distillers and Osman v Standard Chartered Bank, it held that pension disputes between scheme members/trustees are governed by the Retirement Benefits Act, whose ADR process before the CEO of the RBA and the Tribunal must be exhausted first. The Petitioner's claims centred on pension fund management, not employer-employee relations, so the Court downed its tools.
The appropriate remedy where a petition is filed in a forum lacking jurisdiction
The Petition was struck out rather than dismissed on the merits, leaving the Petitioner free to pursue its grievances in the proper forum
To avoid a miscarriage of justice and given the age and importance of the questions, the Court struck out the petition instead of dismissing it with costs, explicitly declining to determine the substantive issues (public entity status, conflict of interest, unconstitutionality of Rule 3(6), validity of the Council of Governors' circulars) for want of jurisdiction.
Legal principles established
#- Although the ELRC has jurisdiction over employer-employee issues, disputes concerning pension funds must first be handled through the process in the Retirement Benefits Act, commencing with review by the CEO of the Retirement Benefits Authority under section 46 and appeal to the Retirement Benefits Appeals Tribunal under section 48, with findings appealable to the ELRC
Court orders
#- 1.The Petition is struck out so that the Petitioner is free to pursue its rights in the right forum
- 2.No order of costs
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 162(2) of the Constitution and Section 12(1) of the Employment and Labour Relations Court Act
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Kenya National Union of Nurses v Trustees of the County Pension Fund & 8 others; Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission(Interested Party) [2020] KEELRC 92 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2020). Petition No. 202 of 2019. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2020/92/eng@2020-12-10
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.