John Elego & 103 others v Pressmaster Limited [2021] KEELRC 613 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Employment Court refused to reopen a completed judgment, confirming that once a court delivers final judgment, your remedy is an appeal, not another review application.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the Court could review its own final judgment to include omitted claimants
The application for review was dismissed; the Court could not reopen the judgment.
The Court held that it had evaluated the evidence of all 104 claimants and found sufficient evidence only for those terminated on 3rd October, 2012. The 19 claimants had not adduced sufficient evidence of individual unlawful termination, and the exclusion was clear and unequivocal. The same issue had been determined by Maureen Onyango, J. on 20th December, 2019, and the proper remedy was an appeal, not a second review application.
Whether the judgment created ambiguity as to the claimants entitled to compensation
No ambiguity existed; the exclusion of the 19 claimants was clear and had been clarified by Maureen Onyango, J.
The applicants argued that paragraph 84 of the judgment entered judgment for all claimants without exclusion, creating ambiguity. The Court rejected this, holding that it had expressly excluded the 19 claimants from the specific award of compensation, and that Maureen Onyango, J.'s rulings of 20/12/2019 and 25/9/2020 had confirmed they were not entitled to compensation.
Legal principles established
#- A court that has rendered a final judgment in a matter is functus officio and cannot reopen or vary it on review; a party aggrieved must pursue an appeal.
Court orders
#- 1.The application dated 20th February, 2021 is dismissed
- 2.Costs of the application awarded to the respondent
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Review jurisdiction under the Employment and Labour Relations Court (Procedure) Rules (not expressly cited in the excerpt); the court decided the application on the doctrine of functus officio
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "John Elego & 103 others v Pressmaster Limited [2021] KEELRC 613 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2021). Cause 1745 of 2012 (as inferred from application dated 20th February, 2021). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2021/613/eng@2021-10-28
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.