Church Commissioners for Kenya Samuel Sawa Maneno t/a Kwale Tumaini Academy Salome Kuvuna Maneno t/a Kwale Tumaini Academy v Zungu & 36 others (Environment and Land Case E033 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 3936 (KLR)
The bottom line
#The Environment and Land Court in Kwale temporarily barred people from interfering with the Church Commissioners' land and ordered police to enforce the ban while the case continues.
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 Motion application dated 25th March, 2025 meets the threshold required for the grant of a temporary injunction under Order 40 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules, 2010
- 2.Whether the Plaintiffs/Applicants have demonstrated sufficient grounds to warrant police enforcement of any restraining orders issued by this Court
- 3.Who will bear the costs of the Notice of Motion application dated 25th March, 2025
Key legal issues
#Whether the Plaintiffs established the Giella v Cassman Brown criteria for a temporary injunction
Yes - a registered title plus evidence of construction, felling of trees, fencing, cultivation and purported fraudulent sales established a prima facie case; destruction of indigenous trees, disruption of school activities and fraudulent alienation of land are irreparable harms not compensable by damages; and the balance of convenience favours registered proprietors against parties showing no lawful claim
The court applied the three sequential Giella tests as refined in Nguruman. The title deed and postal search proved ownership; photographs evidenced ongoing trespass and destruction; police refusal to act absent a court order heightened the risk. As defendants showed no lawful claim to occupation, the balance of convenience lay with the Plaintiffs and preservation of the property pending trial.
Whether police enforcement of the restraining orders was warranted
Yes - the OCS Kwale and OCPD Kwale were directed to enforce compliance, the court holding that injunctive relief without enforcement mechanisms may be rendered illusory
Administrative remedies were exhausted since police declined to act without a court order; the trespass also amounted to criminal offences under the Penal Code and Trespass Act; threats of force, political incitement and disruption of school-going children elevated the dispute to one implicating public safety. Police involvement was characterised as protective, not punitive.
Who bears the costs of the application
Costs in the cause, reserved to abide the outcome of the main suit
Although costs follow the event and the application succeeded on merit, the court held that awarding costs at an interlocutory stage may prejudice fair determination of substantive issues, so reserving costs ensures the successful party at trial is appropriately compensated.
Legal principles established
#- An application for an interlocutory injunction must establish a prima facie case with a probability of success, irreparable injury not adequately compensable by damages, and balance of convenience, applied as sequential hurdles
- A prima facie case in civil cases is one in which a right has apparently been infringed so as to call for an explanation or rebuttal from the opposite party
- In an interlocutory application the court is not required to make final findings on contested facts but only to weigh the relative strength of the parties' cases
- Costs follow the event under Section 27(1) of the Civil Procedure Act, but interlocutory costs may be reserved to the cause
Court orders
#- 1.The Notice of Motion application dated 25th March, 2025 be and is hereby found to have merit and thus allowed with costs in the cause
- 2.An order of temporary injunction restraining the Defendants/Respondents, their agents, servants, and/or any other persons acting under their authority from entering into, occupying, constructing, felling trees, cultivating, fencing, selling, leasing, disposing of, or in any other manner whatsoever interfering with Plot No. L.R. 5007/1 – C.R. 8280, Kwale Township, pending the hearing and determination of this suit
- 3.The Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Kwale Police Station and the Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD Kwale) shall enforce compliance with the restraining orders
- 4.Mention on 21st July, 2026 for a Pre-Trial Conference pursuant to Order 11 of the Civil Procedure Rules, 2010 before ELC No. 2, with further directions on hearing preferably through physical means
- 5.The parties are encouraged to fully explore out-of-court negotiation in tandem with the AJS and STAJ judiciary policies pursuant to Article 159(2) of the Constitution and Section 20(1) & (2) of the Environment and Land Court Act
- 6.Costs of the Notice of Motion application dated 25th March, 2025 shall be in the cause
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Article 40 of the Constitution; Order 40 Rules 1, 2 and 3 of the Civil Procedure Rules; Sections 1A, 1B & 3A of the Civil Procedure Act, Cap. 21
Relief refused
#Costs of the application to be paid by the Defendants forthwith
Costs reserved to abide the outcome of the main suit as the matter is interlocutory
Costs
Costs of the Notice of Motion application dated 25th March, 2025 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.
THAT an order of temporary injunction do issue restraining the Defendants/Respondents, their agents, servants, and/or any other persons acting under their authority from entering into, occupying, constructing, felling trees, cultivating, fencing, selling, leasing, disposing of, or in any other manner whatsoever interfering with Plot No. L.R. 5007/1 – C.R. 8280, Kwale Township, pending the hearing and determination of this suit.
THAT the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Kwale Police Station and the Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD Kwale) shall enforce compliance with the restraining orders herein.
THAT the costs of the Notice of Motion application dated 25th March, 2025 shall be in the cause.
The Plaintiffs have produced a title this evidence establishes a prima facie case since the Plaintiffs’ proprietary rights have apparently been infringed, warranting explanation or rebuttal from the Defendants.
there has been destruction of indigenous trees, interference with learning activities and fraudulent alienation of land cannot be adequately compensated by damages
The balance of convenience tilts in favour of the Plaintiffs. They are the registered proprietors, while the Defendants have not shown any lawful claim or justification for their occupation of the suit property
The intervention of the OCS and OCPD Kwale is necessary to give effect to the Court’s orders, prevent further trespass, safeguard the Plaintiffs’ proprietary rights under the provision Article 40 of the Constitution, and maintain public order.
Issues in the judgment
#Judge's surname is spelled inconsistently within the judgment - 'NAIKUINI' in the running header versus 'NAIKUNI' in the signature block
Submissions date appears chronologically inconsistent - parties directed to file written submissions on 26th February, 2026, yet the ruling records that none of the parties complied and a ruling date was reserved on 18th June, 2026
Penal Code section for obtaining by false pretenses is given as Section 339, duplicating the section cited for malicious damage to property
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Church Commissioners for Kenya Samuel Sawa Maneno t/a Kwale Tumaini Academy Salome Kuvuna Maneno t/a Kwale Tumaini Academy v Zungu & 36 others (Environment and Land Case E033 of 2025) [2026] KEELC 3936 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2026). ELC No. E033 of 2025. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelc/2026/3936/eng@2026-06-18
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.