Gigiri Development Limited v Warrawee Gigiri Property Limited & 2 others (Environment and Planning Petition E045 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 214 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Environment and Land Court struck out a Gigiri property petition because an earlier suit between the same parties over the same land was already pending.
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 notice of preliminary objection is merited
Key legal issues
#Whether the petition is sub judice given the pending ELCEP E040 of 2025
Yes - the subject matter is the same, the parties are effectively the same (the 3rd respondent could have been joined in the earlier suit), so the later petition must yield to the earlier suit
The court applied section 6 of the Civil Procedure Act and the principles in the Law Society of Kenya ex parte case and the KNCHR Supreme Court decision. A comparison of the two petitions showed the same subject property and overlapping issues on statutory approvals and the enforcement notice. Filing a fresh petition instead of seeking joinder was an abuse of process and a recipe for confusion.
Legal principles established
#- For the sub judice doctrine to apply there must be two or more suits; the matter in issue must be directly and substantially the same; the parties must be the same or claim under them; and the suits must be pending in a court with jurisdiction to grant the relief claimed
Court orders
#- 1.Petition struck out as sub judice
- 2.No orders as to costs
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Original constitutional and environmental jurisdiction of the Environment and Land Court; sub judice objection under section 6 of the Civil Procedure Act
Relief refused
#Conservatory orders restraining further construction, excavation, alteration or development on LR No 91/453 Gigiri Road
The petition was struck out on a preliminary objection because it is sub judice, there being a pending suit (ELCEP E040 of 2025) between the same parties over the same subject matter
Costs
No orders as to costs
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.
Filing of another petition is a recipe for chaos and confusion as well as an abuse of the court process.
the matter that is filed later ought to be stayed in order to await the determination to be made in the earlier suit.
The notice of preliminary objection dated 26th November 2025 is therefore merited and this instant petition should be struck out with no orders as to costs.
Issues in the judgment
#Date discrepancy: response paragraph states the preliminary objection is dated 29th November 2025, but the conclusion refers to a notice dated 26th November 2025
Written submissions directed by the court had not been filed when the ruling was drafted
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Gigiri Development Limited v Warrawee Gigiri Property Limited & 2 others (Environment and Planning Petition E045 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 214 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2026). Petition E045 of 2025 (Environment and Land Court). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2026/214/eng@2026-01-21
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.