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ELRCAllowedNot stated on the face of the judgment (appeal against ruling in Eldoret CMCC No. 473 of 2017)· [2024] KEELRC 41 (KLR)

Mugatsia v Protective Custody Services (Employment and Labour Relations Appeal 6 of 2021) [2024] KEELRC 41 (KLR)

Employment and Labour Relations Court (inferred from the presiding judge; not expressly stated in the judgment)
25 January 2024
MOMaureen Onyango
2,069 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
AI-assisted case brief
·~8 min to read original · ~4 min brief

The bottom line

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A Kenyan worker's injury claim filed in 2017 was wrongly struck out; the court reinstated it, protecting claims filed during a key legal window.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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The Appellant, an employee, sued the Respondent employer in Eldoret CMCC No. 473 of 2017 claiming compensation for injuries sustained in the course of employment. While the suit was pending, the Respondent successfully applied to strike out the suit, and on 17th June 2021 the trial magistrate struck it out on the ground that, following the coming into force of the Work Injury Benefits Act (WIBA), jurisdiction over work injury claims vests in the Director of Occupational Health. The Appellant appealed, contending that when he filed suit in May 2017 the ouster provisions of WIBA had been declared unconstitutional by the High Court in 2009 and were only restored by the Court of Appeal on 17th November 2017 and by the Supreme Court in Petition No. 4 of 2019 decided on 3rd December 2019, giving him a legitimate expectation that his claim would be concluded in court. The Respondent relied on decisions upholding strike-outs. The court identified one issue: whether the trial court erred in striking out the suit. Relying on the Chief Justice's Practice Directions issued through Gazette Notice No. 5476 of 2023, which direct that all work injury claims filed after commencement of WIBA but before the Supreme Court decision shall proceed to conclusion in the ELRC or Magistrates' Courts where filed, the court held that the Appellant's suit, filed on 9th May 2017, falls within that window. The appeal was allowed, the strike-out orders of 17th June 2021 were set aside, the suit was reinstated for hearing, and the Appellant was awarded costs of the appeal.

Key legal issues

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Whether the trial court had jurisdiction over the Appellant's WIBA-era work injury claim filed on 9th May 2017

Holding

Yes; under the Chief Justice's Practice Directions, suits filed after commencement of WIBA but before the Supreme Court decision of 3rd December 2019 must proceed to conclusion in the courts where filed, so the strike-out was erroneous.

Reasoning

The High Court's 2009 declaration of invalidity of key WIBA provisions created a legitimate expectation that claimants could lodge claims directly in court. Though the Court of Appeal (2017) and Supreme Court (2019) reversed that declaration, the Practice Directions via Gazette Notice No. 5476 direct that pending claims filed in that window proceed in the courts in which they were instituted. The suit, filed 9th May 2017, falls within that window, so it must proceed before the trial court.

p. 5

Legal principles established

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  • Claims for compensation for work related injuries and diseases filed after the commencement of WIBA but before the Supreme Court decision in Law Society of Kenya v Attorney General shall proceed to conclusion before the ELRC or Magistrates' Courts in which they were filed.

Court orders

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  1. 1.Appeal allowed
  2. 2.Orders issued by the trial court on 17th June 2021 set aside
  3. 3.Appellant's suit reinstated for hearing before the trial court
  4. 4.Appellant awarded costs of the appeal
On appeal from
Magistrate's Court (Eldoret)
CMCC No. 473 of 2017
Jurisdiction invoked
First appellate jurisdiction over the ruling of the trial magistrate's court (not expressly stated in the judgment)

Key timeline

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Practical implications

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Frequently asked questions

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Later judgments citing this (1)

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Judgments in the corpus that rely on this one. Where the Court said how it treated the authority, that is shown.

Cite this brief

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Cite this brief

Caselaw, "Mugatsia v Protective Custody Services (Employment and Labour Relations Appeal 6 of 2021) [2024] KEELRC 41 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2024). Not stated on the face of the judgment (appeal against ruling in Eldoret CMCC No. 473 of 2017). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2024/41/eng@2024-01-25

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