High Court 16475 of 2025

3. That this Honourable court be pleased to issue new grant of letters of administration to James Kamau Njenga, Njenga Orlale And Philip Kamuyu Njenga. 4. That this Honourable court be pleased to revoke the certificate of confirmation of grant dated 21st September 2016 and rectified on 21st February 2021 and issue a fresh one in the names of James Kamau Njenga, Njenga Orlale And Philip Kamuyu Njenga. 5. That this Honourable court be pleased give further orders and/or directions as it may deem fit and just to grant. 6. That the costs of this application be in the cause. 3. Since the gist of the two applications is to have the grant of letters of administration issued on 23rd February 2009 rectified or revoked I will look at them simultaneously. The only outstanding difference is who should substitute the deceased administrator, Lydia Muthoni Njenga, if at all. 4. The grant of letters of administration was issued to James Kamau Njenga, Lydia Muthoni Njenga and Philip Kamuyu Njenga as co-administrators on 29th February 2009 and confirmed on 21st February 2021. Lydia Muthoni Njenga, a co-administrator, passed away on 3rd May 2022 leaving the estate of the deceased partially administered. 5. The Applicant in the Summons dated 24th January 2023 aver that the estate is 90% administered save for two immovable assets and bank accounts and since the demise of one of the co-administrators the same has become impossible to administer. 6. The Summons is opposed vide the Interested Party’s Replying affidavit dated 1st July 2023 and a Notice of Preliminary objection dated 1st July 2023. 7. The Interested party in his Preliminary Objection states that the Summons before this court are defective as they rely on the wrong proviso of the law. 8. He further raises his objection to the Summons vide a Replying affidavit dated 1st July 2023 in which he avers that he is a beneficiary of the Estate of Lydia Muthoni Njenga and that the Summons dated 24th January 2023 rely on the wrong provision of the law. 9. The Interested Party’s Summons dated 1st July 2023 seek to have the name of the deceased coadministrator, Lydia Muthoni Njenga, substituted in the Grant of letters of administration with the name of Njenga Orlale. 10. The same is opposed vide the Replying affidavit of Okongo Orlale Kimari dated 4th October 2023 and the Replying affidavit of Wanjiru Akinyi Orlale dated 27th October 2023. 11. Okongo Orlale in his affidavit states that the deceased co-administrator left behind four children amongst them the interested party. That the Interested Party was only issued with a Limited Grant of letters of Administration Ad Litem and that the beneficiaries of the estate of Lydia Muthoni Njenga have not consented to the substitution of the names to include Njenga Orlale in the grant issued to the Estate of Peter Njenga. 12. Wanjiru Akinyi Orlale, a granddaughter to the deceased Peter Njenga and the daughter to Lydia Muthoni Njenga, the deceased co-administrator avers that the Interested Party herein has been intermeddling in the estate of the late Lydia Muthoni Njenga and that she is the appointed administrator of the estate of Lydia Muthoni Njenga. 13. The Administrators filed their submissions. https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/kehc/2025/16475/eng@2025-09-18 2

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Determination 14. I have considered the two Summons, the Replying affidavits, the Notice of Preliminary Objection and the submissions filed by all the parties. The issue for determination is whether the Grant of Letters of Administration issued on the 29th February 2009 has become inoperable. 15. In Re Estate of Elijah Oktah Mikah Tsimbwele (Deceased) [2021] eKLR, Hon. Justice Musyoka stated that: “ The death of one or more administrators does not affect the grant, in terms of rendering it invalid or inoperative or useless. Under Section 81 of the Act, the powers and duties of personal representative rest in the surviving personal representative on the death of one of them. Section 76(e) of the Act only applies where there is a sole administrator who then dies......” Section 76 of the Law of Succession Act provides that a Grant may be revoked if the same is found to have become useless and/or inoperative. Where a single Executor/Administrator dies then the grant is rendered both useless and inoperative. This is because a Grant of representation is issued to a particular person or persons. It is given ‘in personam’ and cannot be transferred to a third party under any circumstances. Similarly in Re Estate of George Ragui Karanja (Deceased) [2016] eKLR, Hon, Justice William Musyoka held as follows:“ The Law of Succession Act does not expressly provide for substitution of personal representatives who die in office, particularly in cases where the estate is left without one. The closest provision is section 81 of the Act which provides for vesting of the powers and duties of personal representatives in the survivor of survivors of a dead personal representative. The provision provides as follows;“Upon the death of one or more of several executors or administrators to whom a grant of representation has been made, all the powers and duties of the executor or administrators shall become vested in the survivors or survivor of them provided that, where there has been a grant of letters of administration which involve any continuing trust a sole surviving administrator who is not a trust corporation shall have no power to do any act or thing in respect of such trust until the court has made a further grant to one or more persons jointly with him. It would appear to me that once all the holders of a grant die section 81 of the Act would be of no application. Indeed, the said grant becomes useless and inoperative and liable for revocation under Section 76(e) of the Law of Succession Act to pave way for appointment of new administrators. The appointment of fresh administrators to take the place of the previous ones following their death is subject to the provisions of sections 51 through to section 66 of the Act.” 16. This court concurs with the above judicial precedents and notes that the parties herein jumped the gun by claiming that the grant has since become inoperable yet there are surviving co-administrators of the estate of the late Peter Njenga Kimaru. 17. It is trite law that the persons who have proper ‘locus standi’ in a succession cause are legal heirs/ beneficiaries of the estate. The Interested Party/Applicant in the Summons dated 1st July 2023 would https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/kehc/2025/16475/eng@2025-09-18 3

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only qualify as a co-administrator if he was able to demonstrate that he was a dependant of the Deceased in terms of Section 29 of the Law of Succession Act. The Deceased in this matter was survived by several children. It is the children of the Deceased who rank in priority to obtain Grant of letters of Administration to the estate. The Interested Party/Applicant being a grandson of the Deceased may only step in to represent the interests of his late mother and even then he must demonstrate that he has legal authority to represent his late mother’s estate i.e. by holding a Grant of Administration to his late mother’s estate. The Applicant has not shown the court any such Grant. 18. Having said the above this court finds that the Summons dated 1st July 2023 lacks merit and is dismissed. 19. The summons dated 24th January 2023 was unnecessary since upon the death of Lydia Muthoni Njenga all the powers and duties of administrators became vested in the remaining survivors. Be that as it may a rectified certificate shall issue containing the names of the remaining administrators. 20. Costs shall be in the cause DATED AND DELIVERED AT NAIROBI THIS 18 TH day of SEPTEMBER, 2025. E.K OGOLLA JUDGE In the presence of: Mr. Karanja ……………………………….……………………for the Interested Party Mr. Dawood Farah Mr. G. Kamau …………………………………….……………. for the Administrators Gisiele M. …………………………………………………………………..Court Assistant https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/kehc/2025/16475/eng@2025-09-18 4

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