AMIRALI HAJI,ANWARALI HAJI,SHERALI HAJI,ABBAS HAJI,SALIM HAJI,ANWARALI BROTHERS vs JETHA RAMJI [2003] KECA 120 (KLR)
The bottom line
#The Court of Appeal threw out the appeal without hearing it because the Haji family never obtained the court permission Kenyan law requires first.
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 appeal was competent in the absence of leave to appeal from the orders intended to be appealed against
Key legal issues
#Competency of the appeal for want of leave
The appeal was incompetent because no leave to appeal from the targeted orders had been granted, and the court struck it out
The court treated the absence of leave as a threshold jurisdictional defect. Where the orders appealed against are of a kind that cannot be appealed without leave, an appeal lodged without that leave is a nullity and the appropriate course is to strike it out, with costs following the event, including costs of any application before the court.
Legal principles established
#- An appeal against orders requiring leave is incompetent where no such leave has been obtained, and must be struck out
Court orders
#- 1.The appeal is struck out
- 2.Costs of the appeal and of the application awarded to the respondent
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
- On appeal from
- High Court of Kenya at Mombasa
- H.C.C.C. No. 371 of 1992 [O.S.]
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Appeal to the Court of Appeal (leave required for the interlocutory orders appealed against; none obtained)
Relief refused
#Leave/permission to pursue the appeal against the orders of 26th September 1996
No leave to appeal from the orders intended to be appealed against had been obtained, rendering the appeal incompetent
Costs
The appeal was struck out with costs, including the costs of the application
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.
In the absence of any leave to appeal from the orders intended to be appealed against the appeal is incompetent.
Accordingly, it is struck out with costs including the costs of the application.
Issues in the judgment
#The judgment is a brief ruling; it does not identify the statutory provision requiring leave, the nature of the orders appealed against, or any application by the parties, limiting the record available for analysis
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "AMIRALI HAJI,ANWARALI HAJI,SHERALI HAJI,ABBAS HAJI,SALIM HAJI,ANWARALI BROTHERS vs JETHA RAMJI [2003] KECA 120 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2003). Civil Appeal No. 41 of 2002. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2003/120/eng@2003-01-23
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.