Republic v County Government of Kiambu; Kenya Rural Roads Authority & 3 others (Interested Parties); National Land Commission (Exparte) (Judicial Review E003 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 4896 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's land commission can now sue Kiambu County to fund compensation owed to landowners whose property was taken for a road.
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 Ex parte Applicant is entitled to Judicial Review orders sought, i.e. leave to apply for an order of mandamus compelling the Respondent to furnish the Commission with compensation funds or to pay the Interested Parties directly
Key legal issues
#Whether the Ex parte Applicant demonstrated an arguable case warranting leave to apply for mandamus against the County Government of Kiambu
Leave was granted; a prima facie case was established on the material before the court
The court restated the supervisory nature of judicial review and the purpose of the leave stage under Order 53 Rule 1, namely to filter out frivolous or vexatious applications without delving deeply into the merits. It noted the undisputed decrees of Justices Gacheru and Kemei awarding compensation against the Commission, and Section 111(1)(A) of the Land Act requiring the acquiring body to furnish funds. On a cursory perusal of the record and submissions, the Commission's contention that the County Government is the acquiring body responsible for furnishing compensation funds was found sufficiently arguable to justify leave.
Legal principles established
#- Judicial review is concerned with the decision-making process, not the merits of the decision itself; the court's role is supervisory
- The threshold for obtaining leave to commence judicial review is low; the applicant need only demonstrate an arguable case fit for further investigation at a substantive hearing
Court orders
#- 1.Leave to file Judicial Review order of mandamus directing and compelling the Respondent to forthwith furnish the Commission with the money required to pay the 2nd - 4th Interested Parties compensation for the compulsory acquisition of their land is granted
- 2.The Applicant shall file and serve the substantive Motion within 14 days
- 3.The Respondent shall file and serve its responses within 14 days of service
- 4.The Applicant shall file and serve its submissions within 10 days
- 5.The Respondent shall file and serve their submissions within 10 days of service
- 6.Mention on 15/10/2025 to report compliance
- 7.Costs shall be in the cause
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 67 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010; Sections 8 & 9 of the Law Reform Act, Cap 26; Order 53 Rules 1 & 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules, 2010; Section 13 of the Environment and Land Court Act
Relief refused
#Costs of the Application in favour of the ex parte Applicant
Leave-stage application; costs were reserved to the cause rather than awarded to the Applicant
Costs
Costs shall be in the cause
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.
Judicial Review is about the decision-making process, not the decision itself. The role of the Court in Judicial Review is supervisory.
In order to obtain leave to commence Judicial Review proceedings, an Applicant only needs to show that he has an arguable case.
Leave to file Judicial Review order of mandamus directing and compelling the Respondent to forthwith furnish the Commission with the money required to pay the 2nd - 4th Interested Parties compensation for the compulsory acquisition of their land is granted.
Cost shall be in the cause.
Issues in the judgment
#The judgment inconsistently refers to the date of the Gacheru judgment as 25/10/2019 and to a 'Judgement dated 15th June 2020' for Thika ELC Case No. 94 of 2018, and the Interested Parties refer to a judgment 'made on 15/06/2020'
The Replying Affidavit of the 1st Interested Party refers to a 'Chamber Summons dated 12th February 2025' whereas the Application before the Court is dated 12/03/2025
The applicant is described inconsistently as the '1st Respondent' in one passage when the Respondent is the County Government of Kiambu
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Republic v County Government of Kiambu; Kenya Rural Roads Authority & 3 others (Interested Parties); National Land Commission (Exparte) (Judicial Review E003 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 4896 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Chamber Summons Application dated 12/03/2025 (Judicial Review). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2025/4896/eng@2025-06-26
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.