Kenya Bureau of Standards v National Bank of Kenya & 4 others (Civil Application E017 of 2024) [2024] KECA 1181 (KLR)
The bottom line
#The Court of Appeal refused to stay the Ksh. 1.9 billion garnishee orders against KEBS, confirming that money already paid out cannot be clawed back through a stay.
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 intended appeal against the ruling of Mabeya J. is arguable
- 2.Whether, if stay is not granted, the intended appeal would be rendered nugatory
- 3.Whether the application has been overtaken by events and is moot given full execution of the garnishee orders
- 4.Whether the High Court has jurisdiction to stay a judgment of the Court of Appeal, and whether the Court of Appeal can stay its own decision
Key legal issues
#Test for stay under Rule 5(2)(b)
The applicant must demonstrate an arguable appeal and that the appeal would be rendered nugatory if stay is not granted; both limbs were not met.
The court restated the settled Rule 5(2)(b) principles: arguability requires at least one bona fide point worthy of decision, and nugatory-ness requires that the appeal be rendered useless or of no effect. The grounds advanced related to the intended Supreme Court appeal and certification rather than the impugned ruling, and the judge could not be faulted for declining jurisdiction he did not have. Execution was also complete.
Jurisdiction to stay a superior court's decision
The High Court has no jurisdiction to stay an order or judgment of the Court of Appeal, and the Court of Appeal does not stay its own decisions; counsel could cite no jurisdictional anchor for such a stay.
The court agreed with the trial judge's finding that an application for stay of the Court of Appeal's judgment pending certification had no anchoring provision of law. Hierarchical structure of the courts precludes a lower court from staying a superior court's decision, and no authority was cited for the appellate court staying its own judgment.
Mootness where execution is complete
Where the orders sought to be stayed have already been fully executed, the application is overtaken by events and moot; the court will not act in vain or decide academic questions.
Uncontroverted evidence, including a bank statement, showed the garnishee order absolute had been complied with fully and funds remitted to the 1st respondent. The applicant's claim of partial execution was unsubstantiated. Relying on Mativo J. and the Supreme Court in Dande, the court declined to resolve a controversy that no longer exists.
Legal principles established
#- The High Court, being hierarchically lower, has no jurisdiction to stay an order or judgment of the Court of Appeal; nor does the Court of Appeal stay its own decisions.
- An application for relief under Rule 5(2)(b) fails where the orders sought have already been fully executed, as the court will not make a determination with no practical relevance.
Court orders
#- 1.Dismissal of the applicant's notice of motion dated 15th January 2024
- 2.Costs of the application to the 1st respondent
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
Wrote the judgment
Wrote the judgment
- On appeal from
- High Court of Kenya
- Commercial Suit Number 506 of 2012, Centurion Engineers & Builders vs. Kenya Bureau of Standards
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Rule 5(2)(b) of the Court of Appeal Rules
Relief refused
#Stay of the Ruling of Mabeya J. made on 21st December 2023, including the orders of garnishee absolute, pending hearing of the application inter-partes and pending the intended appeal
The intended appeal was not arguable and, in any event, execution of the impugned ruling was complete, rendering the application moot
Costs
Application dismissed with costs to the 1st respondent.
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 result, as both limbs of the application have not been met, the application fails and we dismiss it with costs to the 1st respondent.
the High Court hierarchically lower, has no jurisdiction to stay an order or judgment of this Court. We are also not aware of any case where this Court has stayed its own decision.
An appeal or an issue is moot when a decision will not have the efiect of resolving a live controversy afiecting or potentially afiecting the rights of parties.
We, in the circumstances, are of the inclination that execution of the impugned ruling is complete and hence the orders that the applicant seeks have been overtaken by events.
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Later judgments citing this (3)
#Judgments in the corpus that rely on this one. Where the Court said how it treated the authority, that is shown.
- Gathaga & another v Mureithi & 2 others (Environment & Land Case 86 of 2016) [2025] KEELC 2907 (KLR)[2025] KEELC 2907 (KLR)26 Mar 2025
- Kenya Bureau of Standards v National Bank of Kenya & 4 others (Civil Application E017 of 2024) [2024] KECA 1181 (KLR)[2024] KECA 1181 (KLR)20 Sept 2024
- Ndumba v M’Atugi & another (Environment and Land Appeal E029 of 2024) [2024] KEELC 6067 (KLR)[2024] KEELC 6067 (KLR)18 Sept 2024applied
Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Kenya Bureau of Standards v National Bank of Kenya & 4 others (Civil Application E017 of 2024) [2024] KECA 1181 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2024). Rule 5(2)(b) Application in Civil Appeal No. 398 of 2021 (High Court Commercial Suit No. 506 of 2012). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2024/1181/eng@2024-09-20
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.