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ELRCAllowedNot stated in judgment

Muoki v Marugi (Cause E503 of 2018) [2025] KEELRC 2450 (KLR)

Employment and Labour Relations Court
17 September 2025
AJAbuodha Nelson Jorum
426 words in judgment
View original judgmentRead on Kenya Law Watch case
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The bottom line

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Kenya's Employment Court reinstated a sacked worker's case dismissed for inactivity, showing courts prefer hearing disputes on their merits over punishing delay.

What this practically means

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Executive summary

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This ruling of the Employment and Labour Relations Court at Nairobi, delivered virtually on 17th September 2025 by Abuodha Nelson Jorum, Presiding Judge-Appeals Division, determines an application dated 27th August 2018 seeking the setting aside of a dismissal of the claimant's suit for want of prosecution. Counsel Khalwale deponed that his failure to attend court was not deliberate, that he had made several attempts to set down the suit for hearing, and that he discovered the dismissal while checking the court portal. In a further affidavit he attached several letters written to the court seeking a mention date to which he received no response. The court perused the record and found that counsel had appeared on 22nd September 2022 seeking a hearing date, and that the matter had been fixed for 7th November 2022 before Lady Justice Mbaru, when both parties were absent and the suit was dismissed. The court observed that more than two and a half years had passed before the present application, attributing this to dilatoriness on the part of counsel and/or the claimant. Balancing the court's objective of determining disputes finally against the need to prevent litigants from taking advantage of that objective, the court accorded the claimant the benefit of doubt, reinstated the suit, and directed a mention on 13th October 2024 for fixing of a hearing date. No costs order was recorded and no authorities were cited.

Questions the Court framed

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

  1. 1.Whether the dismissal of the suit for want of prosecution on 2nd May 2018 should be set aside
  2. 2.Whether the failure to attend court was deliberate and excusable
  3. 3.Whether the delay of over two and a half years in bringing the application is inordinate

Key legal issues

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01

Setting aside dismissal for want of prosecution

Holding

Dismissal set aside notwithstanding inordinate delay, with claimant accorded benefit of doubt

Reasoning

The court found counsel had written several letters seeking a hearing date without response and had appeared in court on 22nd September 2022. Although the matter had been fixed for hearing on 7th November 2022 and both parties were absent leading to dismissal, and although over two and a half years elapsed before the application, the court attributed the dilatoriness partly to counsel but exercised discretion in favour of reinstatement in furtherance of the objective of determining disputes finally.

p. 2

Legal principles established

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  • The court's objective is to determine disputes finally but this ought not be taken advantage of by litigants

Court orders

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  1. 1.The suit dismissed for want of prosecution is reinstated
  2. 2.The matter to be mentioned on 13th October, 2024 before the judge for purposes of fixing a hearing date

The bench

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

AJ
majority

Wrote the judgment

Jurisdiction invoked
Inherent power to reinstate a suit dismissed for want of prosecution

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.

It is so ordered.
p. 2Disposition
The court will accord the claimant the benefit of doubt in the failure to diligently prosecute the case and reinstate the same
p. 2Reinstatement of suit dismissed for want of prosecution
The Court therefore attributes this as dilatoriness on the part of Counsel and or the claimant.
p. 2Dilatoriness

Issues in the judgment

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material

Internal date contradiction: application described as dated 27th August, 2018 but counsel's further affidavit sworn on 27th August, 2024, and dismissal said to be dated 2nd May, 2018 though events of 2022 are discussed

material

Mention date ordered (13th October, 2024) precedes the delivery date of the ruling (17th September, 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, "Muoki v Marugi (Cause E503 of 2018) [2025] KEELRC 2450 (KLR)", Case Analysis (2025). Not stated in judgment. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keelrc/2025/2450/eng@2025-09-17

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