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Court of AppealAllowedNot stated in judgment (application dated 27th October 2023)

Burton v Madhivani (Civil Appeal (Application) 181 of 2020) [2024] KECA 517 (KLR)

Court of Appeal of Kenya
26 April 2024
JLJ. Lesiit
151 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Kenya's Court of Appeal certified an application as urgent for priority hearing after initially declining, showing urgency certification can be reconsidered with consent.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This document is a brief single-judge procedural ruling of the Court of Appeal at Nairobi delivered by Lesiit, JA on 26th April 2024, arising from an inter partes hearing convened under Rule 49(5) of the Court of Appeal Rules to consider a certificate of urgency application dated 27th October 2023. The same application had earlier been declined certification in the Court's ruling of 23rd April 2024. On this occasion, counsel Ms Kulohoma appeared for the applicant and Ms Ogwanda held brief for the respondent, who did not oppose the application. The judge certified the application as urgent for hearing on a priority basis and directed that the substantive application likewise be given a hearing on a priority basis. There was no order as to costs. The ruling contains no merits determination, no review of a lower-court decision, no framed questions of law, and no binding propositions of law; it is purely a case-management direction. Because it is a single-judge procedural certification rather than a decision of a division of the Court on an appeal or reference, it establishes no precedent and the earlier ruling declining certification is not reversed or analysed. The judgment is clean in its internal logic but skeletal: the parties' names, the case number, and the substance of the underlying application are not disclosed, which limits the brief's identifying detail.

Questions the Court framed

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The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.

  1. 1.Whether the application dated 27th October 2023 should be certified as urgent for hearing on a priority basis, notwithstanding the Court's earlier ruling of 23rd April 2024 declining certification

Key legal issues

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Legal principles established

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    Court orders

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    1. 1.The application dated 27th October 2023 is certified as urgent for hearing on priority basis.
    2. 2.The substantive application be given a hearing on priority basis.
    3. 3.No order as to costs.

    The bench

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    One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.

    JL
    majority

    Wrote the judgment

    Jurisdiction invoked
    Rule 49(5) of the Court of Appeal Rules (procedural certification jurisdiction, not a substantive appellate provision)

    Quotable passages

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    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 application dated 27th October 2023 is certified as urgent for hearing on priority basis.
    p. 1Certification of urgency
    The substantive application be given a hearing on priority basis.
    p. 1Priority listing of the substantive application
    No order as to costs.
    p. 1Costs

    Issues in the judgment

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    material

    The document is a short single-judge procedural certification ruling, not a full appellate judgment; the names of the parties, the case number, the substantive appeal number and the underlying application's subject matter are not stated.

    minor

    The ruling does not explain why certification, earlier declined on 23rd April 2024, was now granted; the respondent is recorded as not opposing.

    Key timeline

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    Practical implications

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    Frequently asked questions

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    Cite this brief

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    Cite this brief

    Caselaw, "Burton v Madhivani (Civil Appeal (Application) 181 of 2020) [2024] KECA 517 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2024). Not stated in judgment (application dated 27th October 2023). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2024/517/eng@2024-04-26

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