Keronei v County Government of Uasin Gishu & another (Cause 37 of 2020) [2023] KEELRC 958 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A Kenyan court struck out a bid for damages and costs, confirming that special damages claims must be fully pleaded and proved at trial, not won on paper applications.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Effect of non-exhaustion of the Public Service Commission dispute resolution mechanism
The suit was filed before exhaustion of the statutory mechanism, but Section 87's mandatory terms do not void the suit; the Court may stay it in exceptional or urgent circumstances. No exceptional circumstances were shown here.
Section 74 allows an optional appeal ('may appeal') but Section 87 prohibits court proceedings before exhaustion ('shall not file'). The Court's constitutional jurisdiction cannot be absolutely ousted, so rather than rendering the suit void the Court reserves the right to stay it where urgency or injustice demands. The Claimant concurrently invoked both forums, amounting to forum shopping, and no exceptional circumstances justified bypassing Section 87.
Whether PSC compliance equalled admission of liability
The Respondent's reinstatement of the Claimant was in compliance with the PSC decision and did not amount to admission of the Claimant's court claim.
The PSC decision preceded the hearing of the suit and both parties confirmed compliance. The PSC's directions are not binding on a dissatisfied party in court, and complying with them cannot be construed as an admission of the claims in the suit. The presumption underlying the damages claim therefore fails.
Competence of the Motion for costs and damages
The Motion was incompetent as it sought final, substantive relief (special damages) on an interlocutory application, and was struck out with costs.
The prayers raised new claims in the nature of special damages which require pleading and strict proof through oral evidence at a full trial. Affidavit evidence on an interlocutory application cannot sustain such relief. The Motion was in substance a fresh suit deviating from the main claim, whose substratum had already been addressed and honoured through the PSC decision.
Legal principles established
#- A suit filed contrary to the mandatory wording of Section 87 of the Public Service Commission Act is not thereby void; the Court retains discretion to stay such a suit pending exhaustion of internal mechanisms, particularly in urgent cases.
- Decisions or directions of the Public Service Commission do not bind a dissatisfied party from litigating the same facts before the Court, but internal remedies must first be exhausted.
- Special damages must be pleaded and strictly proved through evidence at a full hearing and cannot be awarded on an interlocutory application.
Court orders
#- 1.The Notice of Motion seeking costs and assessment of damages is struck out with costs
- 2.IT IS ordered accordingly
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Jurisdiction derived from the Constitution; dispute concerns County Public Service and the Public Service Commission Act (Sections 74, 85, 87, 99 County Government Act also cited)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Keronei v County Government of Uasin Gishu & another (Cause 37 of 2020) [2023] KEELRC 958 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2023). . Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2023/958/eng@2023-04-28
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.