In re AWM (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Application E096 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 8557 (KLR)
The bottom line
#A Kenyan court allowed a mother-trustee to sell her minor son's land to fund his education, insisting proceeds be strictly accounted for.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Questions the Court framed
#The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.
- 1.Whether a vesting order should issue for the Applicant
- 2.Whether this Court should approve the sale of the suit property and the proceeds realized thereon applied strictly towards the upkeep, education and general welfare of the said minor and other dependents under the Applicant's care
- 3.Whether the Applicant be directed to file an account of the utilization of the said proceeds within ninety days of completion
Key legal issues
#Whether the court has jurisdiction to grant leave to sell trust property and a vesting order under the Trustees Act and Civil Procedure Rules
The court has jurisdiction under Order 37 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules and Section 56 of the Trustees Act to approve a trustee's sale of trust property and issue a vesting order.
Order 37 Rule 1 permits trustees and persons interested in a trust to take out an originating summons for relief including approval of a sale or other transaction and directions to trustees. Section 56 of the Trustees Act donates the court's power, and Section 13 and Section 17(1) of the Trustees Act confer on the trustee a power of sale and the ability to raise capital money. The application was non-contentious and properly brought.
Whether sufficient cause and good faith were demonstrated to justify the sale
Yes. The applicant satisfactorily explained the need to sell, having been confirmed as trustee by the succession cause, and the sale is for the minor's upkeep and education.
The court noted the applicant is the confirmed trustee for the minor under Succession Cause No. E122 of 2021 at Ruiru Law Courts, faces financial hardship including unpaid school fees and tertiary tuition arrears, and that the minor retains two other properties. The purposes are those for which the property was entrusted, satisfying Section 17(1) of the Trustees Act.
Whether the sale is in the best interests of the minor
Yes. Article 53(2) of the Constitution and Section 4(2) of the Children Act, 2022 require the best interests of the child to be paramount, and the proposed sale meets that standard.
The court adopted the best interests of the child as the guiding principle. The proceeds are meant to enable the minor's education and upkeep; the minor retains ownership of two other properties; and the application was made in good faith. Allowing the application therefore served the child's welfare.
Legal principles established
#- A trustee may seek the court's approval under Order 37 Rule 1 and Section 56 of the Trustees Act to sell trust property, where the sale is demonstrated to be necessary and in the best interests of the beneficiary.
Court orders
#- 1.The Applicant AWM is granted leave to sell the property known as Ruiru East/Juja East Block X/2xxx2, currently registered in the name of her minor son ENM which she holds in trust for the said minor
- 2.A vesting order issued authorizing the Land Registrar, Ruiru Lands Registry, to effect the transfer and registration of the said parcel in favor of the prospective purchaser JMN upon completion of the sale
- 3.The net proceeds of the sale be applied strictly towards the upkeep, education and general welfare of the minor and other dependents under the Applicant's care, and the Applicant directed to file an account of the utilization of the proceeds within ninety days of completion of the sale before the Court
- 4.The Applicant shall, with leave of the Court, apply the balance of the sale proceeds to any authorized investment within the meaning of the Trustee Act for the benefit of the minor and others under her care
- 5.The costs of and incidental to the transfer and the costs of and incidental to the application be realized from the proceeds of the sale
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Sections 56 & 57 of the Trustees Act; Section 3A of the Civil Procedure Act; Order 37 Rules 1, 8, 9 and 10 of the Civil Procedure Rules
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.
it is my finding that the Applicant has properly invoked the jurisdiction of this Court under Order 37 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules and Section 56 of the Trustees Act
the purposes for which the proceeds of the sale are intended are in the best interest of the minor as the same are meant to enable the minor to further his education and for upkeep
That the Applicant AWM, is granted leave to sell the property known as Ruiru East/Juja East Block X/2xxx2, currently registered in the name of her minor son ENM which the Applicant holds in trust for the said minor.
That Court hereby issues a vesting order authorizing the Land Registrar, Ruiru Lands Registry, to efiect the transfer and registration of the said parcel Ruiru East/Juja East Block X/2xxx2 in favor of the prospective purchaser JMN, upon completion of the sale.
That the costs of and incidental to the transfer and the costs of and incidental to this application be realized from the proceeds of the sale thereof.
Issues in the judgment
#The parties are inconsistently described; the supporting affidavit deposes that the applicant is 'the biological mother of the minors' while elsewhere she is described as mother/guardian only of ENM, and paragraphs 4 and 8 give the minor's initials as both ENM and EWM/ENM for other sons.
The application is styled under Sections 56 & 57 of the Trustees Act but the judgment variously refers to 'Trustees Act' and 'Trustee Act'.
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "In re AWM (Environment and Land Miscellaneous Application E096 of 2025) [2025] KEELC 8557 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Chamber Summons dated 7/10/2025. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2025/8557/eng@2025-12-09
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.