Nyang’ongo & another v Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Education & 2 others (Judicial Review E008 of 2025) [2025] KEELRC 1751 (KLR)
The bottom line
#Kenya's Employment Court confirmed you can use judicial review to force a government entity to pay costs awarded to you, and granted leave to do exactly that.
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 enactment, action, decision or failure to act challenged is amenable to judicial review
- 2.Whether the applicant has capacity to bring action seeking redress by way of judicial review
- 3.Whether the applicant has sufficient interest to bring a claim for judicial review
- 4.Whether the challenge may appropriately be brought by the judicial review procedure
- 5.Whether the claim is an abuse of process
- 6.Whether the grounds of challenge are sufficiently meritorious to justify the grant of permission
- 7.Whether the application has been brought promptly
- 8.Whether there are discretionary grounds justifying refusal of permission
Key legal issues
#Whether the pre-requisite conditions for the grant of leave to apply for judicial review were met
Yes - capacity, sufficiency of interest, appropriateness of the judicial review procedure, promptness and merit were all established
The court applied an eight-factor checklist for leave, including amenability to judicial review, capacity, sufficiency of interest, appropriateness of procedure, absence of abuse of process, merit, promptness and discretionary grounds. It found that the Applicants' inaction-based grievance against Government entities satisfied each relevant criterion, and that judicial review by mandamus was the only avenue for enforcement against Government.
Legal principles established
#- Refusal to pay a judgment debt or taxed costs by any entity of Government is amenable to judicial review by way of mandamus
Court orders
#- 1.Leave granted to the Ex-parte Applicants to commence judicial review (seeking orders of mandamus to enforce payment of Kshs. 413,790/- in taxed costs)
- 2.The main application for the orders of mandamus to be filed within 21 days of the date of the Ruling, failing which the grant of leave will automatically lapse
- 3.The file to be closed as the substantive motion shall be filed in a separate and distinct file
The bench
#One judgment of the whole court — no separate or dissenting opinions.
Wrote the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Judicial review jurisdiction over refusal/failure to act by Government entities (order for mandamus to enforce payment of taxed costs per certificate of order against Government)
Relief refused
#Costs of the leave application
Costs were deferred to the substantive motion
Costs
Costs shall abide the outcome in the main motion for judicial review.
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.
The action of refusal to pay by any entity of Government is one that is amenable to judicial review.
The Applicant has chosen judicial review as the vehicle to obtain redress and that is the appropriate procedure.
As such the Court grants leave to commence judicial review. The main application for the orders of mandamus must be filed within 21 days of the date of this Ruling failing which the grant of leave will automatically lapse.
Costs shall abide the outcome in the main motion for judicial review.
Issues in the judgment
#The names of the Ex-parte Applicants and Respondents are not stated in the judgment, and the case number of this leave application is not given; only the underlying Kisumu ELRC Petition E007 of 2022 is identified.
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Nyang’ongo & another v Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Education & 2 others (Judicial Review E008 of 2025) [2025] KEELRC 1751 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Notice of Motion dated 19th March 2025 (Ex-parte Judicial Review Application). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2025/1751/eng@2025-06-17
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.