Dawoodia v Muthaiga Travel Limited (Employment and Labour Relations Cause 1014 of 2016) [2025] KEELRC 1047 (KLR)
The bottom line
#The Employment Court dismissed a bid to review an employment award, confirming that disagreements with a judgment's merits belong in an appeal, not a review application.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Whether the review application met the Order 45 threshold
The application failed to meet the threshold for review under Order 45 rule 1
The court applied Order 45 rule 1 and the National Bank of Kenya Ltd v Ndungu Njau principles: review requires discovery of new and important matter, an error apparent on the face of the record, or other sufficient reason. The applicant's affidavit from Misc. Application No. 560 of 2016 was available at trial, so there was no new evidence, and the grounds attacked the merits of the award, which are matters for appeal.
Whether failure to annex the Decree was fatal
It is not mandatory to annex the Decree; filing a copy of the judgment suffices
The claimant objected that the decree was not annexed. The court held that under Rule 74(3) of the ELRC (Procedure) Rules 2024, a party seeking review shall file a copy of the judgment or decree or ruling or order to be reviewed, so annexing the judgment alone satisfied the rule.
Whether there was discovery of new evidence
There was no new information; the Misc. Application No. 560 of 2016 affidavit was known to the applicant at trial
The applicant relied on the respondent's affidavit of 8th December 2016 in a matter that closed on 30th March 2017. The claimant's directorship had been disclosed in her witness statement dated 27th May 2016 and raised in the defence, so the material was within the applicant's knowledge when the decree was passed.
Legal principles established
#- A review may only be granted to correct an error or omission that is self-evident on the face of the record and requires no elaborate argument; a different view of the matter or an erroneous conclusion of law is not a ground for review
- Challenges to the merits of an award are grounds of appeal and not grounds for review
Court orders
#- 1.The application for review is dismissed
- 2.Costs of the application awarded to the respondent
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Order 45 of the Civil Procedure Rules 2010 read with Rule 74 of the Employment and Labour Relations Court (Procedure) Rules 2024
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Dawoodia v Muthaiga Travel Limited (Employment and Labour Relations Cause 1014 of 2016) [2025] KEELRC 1047 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Notice of Motion dated 7th February 2025 (Review of Judgment dated 26th September 2024 and Decree of 21st December 2024). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2025/1047/eng@2025-03-28
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.