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ELRCDismissedMotion dated 24 February 2025 in a Petition dated 24 February 2025 (ELRC, Nairobi)

Lachlan Kenya Ltd v Director of Occupational Safety and Health Services; Lusaka (Interested Party) (Petition E027 of 2025) [2025] KEELRC 763 (KLR)

Employment and Labour Relations Court
12 March 2025
RSRADIDO STEPHEN
1,161 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
AI-assisted case brief
·~5 min to read original · ~4 min brief

The bottom line

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The Employment Court dismissed Lachlan Kenya Ltd's attempt to halt a Kshs 14.6 million work injury ruling, finding the company was repeating failed arguments and forum shopping.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This is a first-instance ruling of the Employment and Labour Relations Court at Nairobi (Radido Stephen, J) on a Motion dated 24 February 2025 by Lachlan Kenya Ltd, the Petitioner. The Motion sought a stay of proceedings in Nairobi ELRC Miscellaneous Application No. E265 of 2023 and an arrest of the Ruling scheduled for delivery on 13 March 2025 in that file, pending hearing and determination of a Petition dated 24 February 2025. The Petitioner, the employer of the Interested Party who was allegedly injured at work on or around 19 September 2022, relied on grounds that the Director of Occupational Safety and Health Services' award of Kshs 14,599,468/- was not processed in accordance with the Work Injury Benefits Act, that material facts were withheld, that fraud reports were not investigated, and that an objection lodged in January 2025 went unanswered, curtailing the right of appeal under section 52(2) of the Act and the right to fair administrative action. The Respondent and Interested Party filed no responses but made oral submissions. The Court reviewed the litigation history, noting an earlier Motion filed on 15 May 2024 on substantially the same grounds, which the Court allowed on 18 July 2024 by staying proceedings pending an Objection; that Objection was rejected on 10 December 2024 as time-barred and unsupported by evidence of fraud. The Court found most grounds in the instant Motion to be a replica/copy-paste of the earlier application, and held that by filing in a different Division the Petitioner was seeking to short-circuit legitimate court proceedings. On 12 March 2025 the Court declined to exercise its discretion in the Petitioner's favour and dismissed the Motion with costs. Appearances: Ms Tambo for the Petitioner, Ms Aluoch State Counsel for the Respondent, Ms Ombogo for the Interested Party.

Questions the Court framed

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The issues the Court set itself to decide, in its own words.

  1. 1.Whether a stay of proceedings in Nairobi ELRC Miscellaneous Application No. E265 of 2023 should be granted pending hearing and determination of the Petition dated 24 February 2025
  2. 2.Whether the Ruling in Nairobi Miscellaneous Application No. E265 of 2023 scheduled for delivery on 13 March 2025 should be arrested pending determination of the application and Petition

Key legal issues

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01

Whether a fresh stay application duplicating previously determined grounds should be entertained

Holding

The Court dismissed the Motion because most of its grounds replicated grounds already advanced and determined in the earlier Motion filed on 15 May 2024, and all issues had already been raised in the Petitioner's replying affidavit sworn on 7 May 2024.

Reasoning

The Court traced the litigation history: an earlier Motion of 15 May 2024 sought a stay on substantially the same grounds and a Ruling of 18 July 2024 stayed proceedings pending determination of an Objection. That Objection was rejected on 10 December 2024. The new Motion repeated the same grounds, which the Court characterized as a copy-paste of the earlier application, and raised no new material warranting a fresh exercise of discretion.

p. 3
02

Whether filing the Motion in a different Division to avoid a scheduled Ruling was proper

Holding

The Court held that the Petitioner, by filing the Motion/Petition in a different Division rather than in the file where the Ruling was scheduled for 13 March 2025, was seeking to short-circuit legitimate court proceedings.

Reasoning

The Petition and Motion were placed before the Judicial Review and Labour Rights Division and only came before the presiding Court on direction. The Court viewed the choice of forum as an attempt to have the application placed before a different Court while the original file was about to be decided, which weighed against exercising discretion in the Petitioner's favour.

p. 3

Legal principles established

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  • A litigant cannot circumvent a scheduled ruling in one file by filing the same or substantially similar application in a different Division of the Court; grounds already determined will not found a fresh discretionary application.

Court orders

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  1. 1.The Motion dated 24 February 2025 is dismissed with costs

The bench

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

RS
majority

Wrote the judgment

Jurisdiction invoked
Employment and Labour Relations Court, Judicial Review and Labour Rights Division; Petition dated 24 February 2025

Relief refused

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Stay of proceedings in Nairobi ELRC Miscellaneous Application No. E265 of 2023

The grounds were a replica of grounds already advanced and determined in an earlier Motion; the Court declined to exercise its discretion in the Petitioner's favour

p. 3

Arrest of the Ruling in Nairobi Miscellaneous Application No. E265 of 2023 scheduled for 13 March 2025

The Court found the Petitioner was seeking to short-circuit legitimate court proceedings by filing the Motion in a different Division of the Court

p. 3

Costs

Motion dated 24 February 2025 dismissed with costs to the Respondent and Interested Party (costs awarded against the Petitioner).

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.

In light of the above, the Court declines to exercise its discretion in favour of the Petitioner and the Motion dated 24 February 2025 is dismissed with costs.
p. 3Disposition - dismissal of stay Motion
by failing to file the instant Motion/Petition in the file where Ruling had been scheduled for 13 March 2025, and filing it in a difierent Division of the Court, the Petitioner was seeking to short-circuit legitimate court proceedings knowing that the instant Motion would be placed before a difierent Court
p. 3Forum shopping / short-circuiting proceedings

Issues in the judgment

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minor

Petitioner's Objection dates are inconsistently stated in the judgment: paragraph 19 says the Objection was raised on or around 14 January 2025 while the grounds in support say it was lodged on 15 January 2025.

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, "Lachlan Kenya Ltd v Director of Occupational Safety and Health Services; Lusaka (Interested Party) (Petition E027 of 2025) [2025] KEELRC 763 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Motion dated 24 February 2025 in a Petition dated 24 February 2025 (ELRC, Nairobi). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2025/763/eng@2025-03-12

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