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Court of AppealPartially AllowedCivil Appeal (Application) No. E083 of 2022· [2026] KECA 1851 (KLR)

Francis Gakuu Gachaga & 2 Others v Elijah Nderitu Gachaga

Court of Appeal
25 September 2026
WKW. KaranjaLKL. KimaruAMA.O. Muchelule
1,272 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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·~5 min to read original · ~4 min brief

The bottom line

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Kenya's Court of Appeal struck out an appeal filed late because the appellant never copied his request for court proceedings to the other side.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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The Environment and Land Court at Murang'a (Kemei, J.) had struck out the respondent's suit on a preliminary objection for want of locus standi, he having no grant of letters of administration. The respondent lodged a notice of appeal on 26th November 2019 and filed his record of appeal on 2nd August 2022. The applicants moved the Court of Appeal at Nyeri under Rules 86 and 44 of the Court of Appeal Rules and Sections 75 and 76 of the Civil Procedure Act to strike out the appeal as filed out of time, without extension of time, without a certificate of delay obtained before filing, and with an incomplete record. The respondent countered that he orally applied for proceedings after the ruling, received notification on 6th June 2022 that proceedings were ready, and filed within sixty days of that notification. The court held that under Rule 84(1) an appeal must be filed within sixty days of the notice of appeal, and the proviso excluding the time taken to prepare certified proceedings is available only where, per Rule 84(2), the letter bespeaking the proceedings was copied to the respondent. That was not done. The application therefore succeeded and the record of appeal was struck out with costs to the applicants. This is a single ruling of the full bench; it binds the Environment and Land Court and subordinate courts on the copying requirement in Rule 84(2).

Key legal issues

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01

Computation of time for filing a record of appeal under Rule 84(1)

Holding

The record of appeal was out of time; the proviso excluding time taken to prepare proceedings applies only where the bespeaking letter was copied to the respondent.

Reasoning

Rule 84(1) requires filing within sixty days of the notice of appeal, with the sole exception of time certified as required for preparation and delivery of proceedings. Rule 84(2) conditions reliance on that proviso on copying the bespeaking letter to the respondent. The respondent only made an oral application and never copied the letter, so the exclusion did not apply and the appeal was incompetent.

p. 8

Legal principles established

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  • An appellant cannot rely on the proviso to Rule 84(1) excluding time for preparation of proceedings unless the letter bespeaking the proceedings was copied to the respondent.
  • A record of appeal filed out of the sixty-day period under Rule 84(1), without extension of time, is liable to be struck out.

Court orders

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  1. 1.The record of appeal filed on 2nd August 2022 is struck out
  2. 2.Costs of the application to the applicants
On appeal from
Environment and Land Court of Kenya at Murang'a
ELC Case No. 4 of 2019
Jurisdiction invoked
Court of Appeal Rules, Rules 86 and 44; Sections 75 and 76 of the Civil Procedure Act (invoked by applicants)

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, "Francis Gakuu Gachaga & 2 Others v Elijah Nderitu Gachaga", Case Analysis (2026). Civil Appeal (Application) No. E083 of 2022. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2026/1851/eng@2026-09-25

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