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Court of AppealOtherCivil Appeal (Application) 30 of 2017· [2025] KECA 1754 (KLR)

Chanase Investments Limited v Keruzi Enterprises Limited & 7 others

Court of Appeal
24 October 2025
FSF SichaLE
258 words in judgment
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The bottom line

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The Court of Appeal refused to hear Chanase Investments' application because it showed no proof it had served the other side, and ordered it relisted afresh.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This is a short procedural order of the Court of Appeal at Nairobi, delivered by Sichale, JA, on 24 October 2025 in Civil Appeal (Application) 30 of 2017. The applicant, Chanase Investments Limited, had moved the Court by a motion dated 3rd June 2025 seeking extension of time to file an application to reinstate its appeal, which relates to Nairobi High Court Civil Suit No. 3818 of 1994. When the motion came up for hearing on 1st October 2025, the Court observed from the record that counsel for the applicant appeared in person and that there were no responses on record from any of the eight respondents. More significantly, there was no proof of service of the motion on the respondents. In those circumstances the Court held it had no option but to take the motion out of the hearing list. It directed the registry to relist the motion afresh. No substantive determination was made on the extension-of-time application, no decision below was reviewed or disturbed, and no costs order appears in the order as reproduced. Because this is a purely interlocutory procedural order on case management and service, it carries no ratio that would bind lower courts on any substantive question; the only proposition capable of citation is that an unproved service and absence of responses will cause a listed application to be taken out and relisted afresh.

Key legal issues

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01

Effect of absence of proof of service on an application listed for hearing

Holding

The court took the motion out of the hearing list and directed that it be relisted afresh by the registry.

Reasoning

When the matter came up for hearing, the court noted that the record showed counsel appearing in person for the applicant and no responses on record from any of the respondents. With no responses and no proof of service of the motion, the court considered itself unable to proceed, and exercised its case-management power to take the motion out and have it relisted afresh. The determination is procedural and sets no substantive precedent.

p. 1

Legal principles established

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  • An application listed for hearing cannot proceed where there is no proof of service on the respondents; it will be taken out of the hearing list.

Court orders

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  1. 1.The motion dated 3rd June 2025 is taken out of the hearing list
  2. 2.The motion to be relisted afresh by the registry
On appeal from
High Court
Nairobi High Court Civil Suit No. 3818 of 1994
Jurisdiction invoked
Inherent jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal over its own registry/process (application for leave to file an application for reinstatement of an appeal; appeal listed as Civil Appeal (Application) 30 of 2017)

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, "Chanase Investments Limited v Keruzi Enterprises Limited & 7 others", Case Analysis (2025). Civil Appeal (Application) 30 of 2017. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2025/1754/eng@2025-10-24

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