Okallo v Kenya Medical Research Institute & another (Cause 558 of 2019) [2025] KEELRC 2343 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A retired KEMRI employee lost her claim for constitutional damages and was ordered to pay over Kshs.1.7 million in rent for staying in employer housing after retirement.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Questions the Court framed
#The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.
- 1.Whether the Claimant is entitled to general damages for psychological stress and violation of Constitutional rights as per the amended claim
- 2.Whether the Respondent's claim for rent is merited
- 3.Costs
Key legal issues
#Whether the claimant proved a constitutional violation entitling her to general damages
No; the claim failed the Anarita Karimi Njeru precision threshold and the delay in pension was a contractual matter for which interest was paid
The court reviewed the demand letters and found them to be mere notices to vacate, not threats or harassment. The alleged physical harassment was unsubstantiated. The pension delay was purely contractual and the pension was paid with interest, which adequately compensated the claimant. The claim therefore did not meet the Anarita Karimi Njeru threshold of specifying with precision the provisions infringed and the manner of infringement.
Whether the claimant was a trespasser and the counterclaim for rent merited
Yes; her right to housing ceased on retirement and after the 60-day grace period she was in breach and a trespasser; the counterclaim was allowed
Housing was an employment benefit under section 31 of the Employment Act. The Housing Policy gave a 60-day grace period after retirement, which expired on 1st June 2018. The claimant's continued stay was unjustified since the obligation to pay pension lay with the pension scheme, not the owner of the house. Following East African Railways Corporation v Karangi and Stella Wambui Muhoro, she was a trespasser duty-bound to pay rent of Kshs. 25,000 per month from 1st June 2018.
Jurisdiction of the ELRC over the rent counterclaim vis-a-vis the Rent Restriction Tribunal and the arbitration clause
The ELRC has original jurisdiction because the rent dispute arose from the employment contract; the arbitration clause was waived by filing a response to the counterclaim
The rent arose from an employment benefit and salary deductions, hence a dispute arising out of employment under section 12 of the ELRCA. The claimant never applied for a stay under section 6(1) of the Arbitration Act and by filing a response to the counterclaim acknowledged the court's jurisdiction, thereby waiving the arbitration clause and the exhaustion objection.
Legal principles established
#- An employee's right to housing under section 31 of the Employment Act ceases upon termination of employment, subject to any contractual provision to the contrary
- A retired employee who refuses to vacate employer's staff quarters after notice is a trespasser
- The right to seek stay and referral to arbitration under section 6(1) of the Arbitration Act is lost once a defence/response is filed without such application
Court orders
#- 1.An order directing that the Claimant vacates House No. M07 situated within the 1st Respondent's Staff Quarters immediately and unconditionally and surrender the keys to the 1st Respondent's Housing Officer
- 2.An order directing the Claimant to pay the 1st Respondent the sum of Kshs. 1,775,000/=, being the rent outstanding as at April 2024, and a further sum of Kshs. 25,000/= per month from that date until she vacates the subject property
- 3.Interest from date of judgment at court rates until payment in full
- 4.Each party to bear own costs in the claim and the counterclaim
- 5.30 days of execution granted
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 162(2) of the Constitution as read with section 12 of the Employment and Labour Relations Court Act
Relief refused
#General damages for breach of rights under Articles 25(a), 27(1), 28, 29(d) and (f) and 57(c) of the Constitution
The claim did not meet the Anarita Karimi Njeru threshold for constitutional violation
General damages for psychological distress and torture
Claimant's pension was paid with interest, which was adequate compensation for breach of contract
Set-off of rent against pension dues
Not granted in the final orders; the claimant's pension claim had been settled by consent
Costs
Each party to bear own costs in the claim and the counterclaim (the court, tempering justice with mercy given the partial consent settlement and the claimant's retirement)
Quotable passages
#Verbatim from the judgment, each located to the page it appears on in the official PDF — so these can be cited and checked directly.
The outstanding prayers for general damages and compensation under the amended claim dated 20th March 2023 are dismissed for lack of merit. The counterclaim is allowed.
An order directing the Claimant to pay the 1st Respondent the sum of Kshs. 1,775,000/=, being the rent outstanding as at April, 2024, and a further sum of Kshs. 25,000/= per month from the said date until the date she vacates the subject property.
To temper justice with mercy the court ordered each party to bear own costs in the claim and the counterclaim.
The contract of employment having gone, the fringe benefits of subsidized housing went with it.
The court finds that the continued stay in the house post 60 days of retirement was in breach of the contractual relationship with the employer and amounted to trespass.
Issues in the judgment
#Internal inconsistency in the disposition: the claim and counterclaim concern House No. M04 throughout, but the final order directs vacation of 'House No. M07'
The judgment inconsistently records the claimant's employment start date
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Okallo v Kenya Medical Research Institute & another (Cause 558 of 2019) [2025] KEELRC 2343 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Not stated in the judgment (claim by consent amended statement of claim dated 16th August 2019, amended 20th March 2023). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2025/2343/eng@2025-07-30
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.