Charles Simba v National Cereals and Produce Board & another [2020] KEELRC 1453 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Employment and Labour Relations Court ruled malicious prosecution appeals belong in the High Court and sent a wrongly transferred case back without penalising the appellant.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the subject matter of the appeal falls within the jurisdiction of the E&LRC
The subject matter was pure malicious prosecution, which does not fall within the E&LRC's jurisdiction; the transfer to the E&LRC was made in error
The court examined the pleadings and the judgment in the appeal record and found the suit determined by Hon. Onzere was purely one of malicious prosecution, with no employment and labour element. Since the E&LRC is a court of limited jurisdiction tied to employment and labour relations, a purely malicious prosecution case belongs to the High Court, and the earlier transfer by the presiding judge was erroneous.
The remedy where an appeal was erroneously transferred to a court without jurisdiction without the appellant's participation
The appeal should simply be transferred back to the court where it was originally filed
The appellant filed the appeal in the High Court at Kisumu on 24th November 2017; the presiding judge then transferred it to the E&LRC without the appellant's participation. Since the appellant did not contribute to the error, the appropriate remedy was not striking out but returning the appeal to the High Court for hearing and determination.
Legal principles established
#- A litigant cannot be penalised for an error of the court in transferring a case without the litigant's participation
- A pure malicious prosecution claim belongs to the High Court, not the E&LRC
Court orders
#- 1.The Appeal is transferred back to the High Court, where it was initially filed as HCC at Kisumu Civil Appeal No. 78 of 2017, for hearing and determination
- 2.The Appeal to be mentioned before the presiding judge, High Court Kisumu, for directions
- On appeal from
- Tamu Law Courts
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Jurisdiction of the Employment and Labour Relations Court over the appeal - contested; the court found the subject matter (malicious prosecution) falls outside E&LRC jurisdiction
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Charles Simba v National Cereals and Produce Board & another [2020] KEELRC 1453 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2020). E&LRC Civil Appeal No. 5 of 2018. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2020/1453/eng@2020-03-04
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.