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ELCAllowedKapsabet ELC No. 4 of 2023 (Formerly Kapsabet CMELC No. E127 of 2021)

Choge v Kipkemboi & another (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Application E004 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 619 (KLR)

Environment and Land Court
18 February 2025
GOGEORGE M A ONGONDO
284 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Kenya's Environment and Land Court transferred a land dispute to Tinderet because courts must hear cases where the land is located.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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By a Notice of Motion dated 27th January 2025 lodged through Cherono Jepkosgey and Company Advocates, the applicant sought transfer of Kapsabet ELC No. 4 of 2023, formerly Kapsabet CMELC No. E127 of 2021, Isaac Kipkosei Choge v Peter Kipkemboi and Isaiah Kipchirchir, to the Principal Magistrate's Court at Tinderet for hearing and final determination, with costs in the cause. The application was anchored on eight grounds, principally that the suit parcel Nandi/Kibisem/216 lies within the jurisdiction of Tinderet Law Courts, and that the matter had lain unattended for over one year because the Kapsabet court lacked jurisdiction to handle it. Counsel for the respondent, Mr Kipkosgei Choge, supported the application. The court framed a single question: whether the application was meritorious. It observed that the claim relates to registration and occupation of the suit land and that the cause of action arose within the jurisdiction of the Tinderet Law Courts. Guided by sections 1A, 1B, 3, 3A, 5, 11, 15 and 18 of the Civil Procedure Act and Articles 6(3), 48 and 159(2)(b) of the Constitution, the court found the application merited and ordered the suit transferred to the Principal Magistrate's Court at Tinderet as sought, with costs in the cause. The ruling was delivered at Kapsabet on 18th February 2025 by George M A Ongondo, Judge.

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 by Notice of Motion dated 27th January 2025 seeking transfer of Kapsabet ELC No. 4 of 2023 to the Principal Magistrate's Court at Tinderet is meritorious

Key legal issues

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01

Whether the suit should be transferred to the Principal Magistrate's Court at Tinderet

Holding

The application was merited; the suit was transferred to Tinderet because the suit land and cause of action fall within that court's jurisdiction.

Reasoning

The court noted the suit concerns registration and occupation of parcel Nandi/Kibisem/216, situated within the jurisdiction of Tinderet Law Courts, and that the cause of action arose there. It further noted the matter had lain unattended for over a year since the court had no jurisdiction to handle it. Guided by sections 1A, 1B, 3, 3A, 5, 11, 15 and 18 of the Civil Procedure Act and Articles 6(3), 48 and 159(2)(b) of the Constitution, the court found the transfer warranted.

p. 1

Legal principles established

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  • A suit relating to land should be tried by a court within whose jurisdiction the cause of action arose, guided by the Civil Procedure Act and Articles 6(3), 48 and 159(2)(b) of the Constitution.

Court orders

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  1. 1.Kapsabet ELC No. 4 of 2023 (Formerly Kapsabet CMELC No. E127 of 2021) Isaac Kipkosei Choge v Peter Kipkemboi and Isaiah Kipchirchir be transferred to the Principal Magistrate's Court at Tinderet for hearing and final determination
  2. 2.Costs be in the cause

The bench

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

GO
majority

Wrote the judgment

Jurisdiction invoked
Sections 1A, 1B, 3, 3A, 5, 11, 15, 18 of the Civil Procedure Act (Chapter 21, Laws of Kenya); Articles 6(3), 48 and 159(2)(b) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010

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 suit parcel of land Nandi/Kibisem/216 is situated within jurisdiction of Tinderet Law Courts.
p. 1territorial jurisdiction
The matter herein has been lying in court unattended to for over one year now since the court has no jurisdiction to handle the same.
p. 1delay for want of jurisdiction
In the foregone, the application is merited. The suit is hereby transferred as sought in the application as per paragraph 1 (a) and (b) hereinabove.
p. 2disposition - transfer order

Issues in the judgment

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minor

The title/number of the motion and the names of the moving party are inferred from the prayers; the judgment does not reproduce a formal case caption identifying the applicant by name.

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, "Choge v Kipkemboi & another (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Application E004 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 619 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Kapsabet ELC No. 4 of 2023 (Formerly Kapsabet CMELC No. E127 of 2021). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2025/619/eng@2025-02-18

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