Also known as: ELC · Environment and Land Court in Nairobi · Environment and Land Court in Iten
Kenyan court specializing in land and environmental disputes, handling cases from property ownership and public land recovery to forest conservation and national park management.
… le engaged in conspiracies involving public land,” he said. “But eventually, we believe all public assets should go back to the public to serve the intended purpose.” The recovered parcel was returned to the government following a landmark ruling by the Environment and Land Court …
… On Monday, during the swearing-in ceremony of newly appointed judges to the High Court and Environment and Land Court at State House, President William Ruto convened a high-level strategy meeting that underscored the importance of the campaign. …
… es By Citizen Reporter May 06, 2026 02:57 (EAT) Add as a Preferred Source on Google Follow us Follow on Whatsapp Follow on Google Follow on Twitter Audio By Vocalize On May 4, 2026, President William Ruto swore in 37 new judges to the High Court and the Environment and Land Court …
… Earlier this year, the Environment and Land Court reaffirmed Langton Investments as the legitimate owner and ordered the cancellation of all irregular titles. …
… The remarks came as President Ruto presided over the swearing-in of 24 High Court judges, 13 Environment and Land Court judges, and 12 judges of the COMESA Court of Justice marking the largest intake in Kenya’s history. …
… The ceremony marked the swearing-in of 24 High Court judges, 13 Environment and Land Court judges, and 12 judges to the COMESA Court of Justice; one of the largest judicial appointments in Kenya’s history. …
… The Environment and Land Court in Garissa issued the ruling on Tuesday in the absence of the County Executive Committee Member for Finance, Ibrahim Mohamed Aden, and County Secretary Billow Issack Hassan, both of whom had been cited for contempt of court. …
An opinion piece argues that chiefs, despite their administrative role, lack authority to determine land ownership or decide succession matters, yet widespread misconceptions in rural areas lead families to treat their letters as proof of inheritance rights. The Standard says courts alone have authority over such determinations, and introductory letters from chiefs serve only administrative purposes.
An opinion piece argues that chiefs, despite their administrative role, lack authority to determine land ownership or decide succession matters, yet widespread misconceptions in rural areas lead families to treat their letters as proof of inheritance rights. The Standard says courts alone have authority over such determinations, and introductory letters from chiefs serve only administrative purposes.
The Court of Appeal has overturned an earlier judgment and awarded ownership of a 135-acre property valued at more than Sh8 billion to Muchanga Investments, a company incorporated by former Vice President Moody Awori, his wife, and Francis Da Gama Rose. The Environment and Land Court had previously ruled that neither Muchanga Investments nor rival claimants had proved ownership, ordering the property revert to the estate of its original owner, Arnold Bradley.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission recovered a Sh55 million government house in Kizingo, Mombasa after an Environment and Land Court nullified a 99-year lease fraudulently and irregularly allocated to former senior resident magistrate Gilbert Mwangi Njuguna over two decades ago. The court also ordered Njuguna and three others to pay EACC Sh10 million in general damages for trespass on public land.
The Judicial Service Commission has defended its judicial accountability record, saying it received 506 complaints against judges this year and has processed 417 of them, while warning that the Law Society of Kenya's planned boycott of selected courts risks disrupting access to justice.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has recovered two grabbed public properties in Mombasa and Kwale counties valued at Ksh.100 million after securing favorable court judgments. The Environment and Land Court nullified irregular allocations of a government house in Kizingo, Mombasa (Ksh.55 million) and a public beach access road reserve in Diani, Kwale (Ksh.45 million), and found former public officials liable for misfeasance in public office.
Individual judges' performance data reviewed by The Standard shows significant variations in how quickly land and environmental cases are resolved depending on the judge assigned, according to leaked ELC (Employment and Land Court) data from the last financial year.
The Environment and Land Court in Iten has lifted temporary orders that restrained the Kenya Forest Service from fencing Kaptagat Forest, allowing the conservation programme to proceed while the substantive case remains before the court. The dispute arose after applicants sought to stop the fencing, citing concerns over public participation and the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment process, and the court has allowed Kaptagat Community Forest Associations to be joined in the proceedings.
The Environment and Land Court in Iten lifted a July 15 restraining order that had halted fencing of Kaptagat Forest by the Kenya Forest Service. The court's decision allows the conservation exercise—a 270-kilometre electric fence project that began in May—to resume despite objections from five individuals and community groups who cited lack of public participation and environmental impact assessment.
The Environment and Land Court in Iten lifted a temporary halt on the fencing of Kaptagat Forest after hearing an application by five individuals opposing the project. The fencing, which began in May 2026, had been temporarily stopped on July 15 by court order; opponents argued the Kenya Forest Service had not conducted public participation or an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment.
Petitioners in a case filed by more than 4,600 Kenyans seeking to halt developments in Nairobi National Park claim the Kenya Wildlife Service locked out members of the media and most petitioners from a court-ordered site inspection on Tuesday, despite an Environment and Land Court direction for all parties to be present.
The Environment and Land Court conducted a fact-finding visit to Nairobi National Park to assess a proposed relocation of the Nairobi Animal Orphanage. Kenya Wildlife Service defended the move, arguing the existing facility established in 1964 has ageing infrastructure that no longer meets modern wildlife management standards and is under pressure from growing visitor numbers.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has moved to court to recover 7.6 acres of land belonging to the Kenya Prisons Service in Kisumu, valued at approximately Ksh.790 million, after the land was allegedly illegally excised from public property and converted into private ownership.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has launched legal action to recover 7.6 acres of Kenya Prisons Service land in Kisumu's Milimani area, valued at approximately Sh790 million, alleging the property was fraudulently excised from public land and converted to private ownership. The disputed land was reserved for prison use under colonial-era and 1970s government planning instruments.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission is pursuing nine asset recovery suits to reclaim 7.6 acres of public land in Milimani, Kisumu City, valued at approximately Sh790 million, which it says was unlawfully grabbed from the Kenya Prisons Service and converted into private ownership through fraudulent processes. The disputed property, whose total value including developments is estimated at Sh4.3 billion, forms part of an original 16-acre parcel reserved for prison staff housing and regional offices.
More than 200 Kipsigis clans have issued a 30-day notice to multinational tea companies in Kericho and Bomet counties demanding the return of land taken during British colonial administration, with the community insisting on ownership rather than financial compensation. If the notice is ignored, the clans say they will file a case at the Environment and Land Court.
President William Ruto dismissed concerns about an Ksh.80 million state lodge being built in Meru County, stating the government has earmarked approximately Ksh.40 billion in development projects in the region including affordable housing, markets, roads, and bridges.
An opinion piece argues that a public participation forum on the proposed Imenti State Lodge, Airstrip and golf course inside Imenti Forest was a "sham," with a lawyer denied the microphone, conservationists jeered and removed by security, and the Kenya Forest Service proceeding despite an Environment and Land Court suspension order due to inadequate notice of venue change.
The Environment and Land Court has halted a planned 12-storey apartment near the Kenya Defence Forces headquarters and the Chinese Embassy in Nairobi's Kilimani after declaring the Nairobi City County's approvals unlawful.
The High Court has issued an interim order barring public participation on a proposed Meru State Lodge, airstrip, and golf course project pending the hearing of a petition challenging the developments. Justice Oguttu Mboya noted existing court orders already stopping the project's commencement and scheduled the matter for mention on July 21, 2026.
A High Court petition filed by Abdulrasul Swaleh Mohsin seeks to halt the application of adverse possession, arguing that the legal principle allowing individuals to acquire land ownership through prolonged occupation contradicts the Constitution's guarantee of property rights. The petitioner requests the court suspend ongoing adverse possession proceedings and prohibit the Ministry of Lands and Land Registry from processing related property transfers while the constitutional issues are determined.
The Environment and Land Court in Mombasa has ordered the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to submit a comprehensive plan within seven days on how it will pay Sh2 billion to lead poisoning victims in Owino Uhuru, Mombasa.
The High Court has frozen dealings on a 40.5-acre Maasai Mara property after finding that businessmen Neel Ashwin Gudka and Akash Kirit Gudka established a prima facie case challenging a title issued in favour of Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi and Mara Golf and Wild Resort Limited, despite an earlier court judgment declaring the brothers the lawful owners.
The Environment and Land Court has frozen all dealings on a 40.5-acre parcel in the Maasai Mara after finding that businessmen Neel Ashwin Gudka and Akash Kirit Gudka established a prima facie case challenging a title issued to Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi and Mara Golf and Wild Resort Limited, despite an earlier court judgment declaring the brothers the lawful owners.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has commenced recovery of Ksh1.5 billion paid unlawfully by the National Land Commission for a 13.5-acre plot occupied by two schools, after the Court of Appeal upheld a judgment that the transaction was illegal because the land had already been surrendered to the Government.
Following a Court of Appeal judgment upholding an earlier ruling, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has begun pursuing recovery of Ksh.1.5 billion paid illegally by the National Land Commission to acquire a 13.5-acre plot in Ruaraka that had already been surrendered to the Government. The payment to Afrison Export Import Limited, Huelands Limited, and Whispering Palms Estate Limited was found to be null and void.
The Court of Appeal ruled that compensation paid to private landowners for land occupied by Ruaraka High School and Drive Inn Primary School was illegal, null, and void. The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission will now pursue recovery of the Sh1.5 billion and criminal prosecution following the judgment that found the land had already been surrendered to the government.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has begun recovering Sh1.5 billion paid as compensation for land occupied by Ruaraka High School and Drive-In Primary School after Kenya's Court of Appeal upheld a ruling declaring the payment illegal and null and void, finding the National Land Commission had no legal basis to acquire land already owned by the government.
The Court of Appeal upheld an earlier ruling that the land occupied by Drive-In Primary School and Ruaraka High School is public land, dismissing an appeal by two private companies and declaring a Ksh.1.5 billion payment to them unlawful.
The Environment and Land Court has struck out a second case challenging the construction and operation of the luxury Ritz-Carlton Mara Safari Camp in the Maasai Mara, clearing it to continue operations.
The Environment and Land Court has thrown out a second legal challenge against the JW Marriott Maasai Mara Safari Camp, ruling that opponents should have sought redress before the National Environment Tribunal rather than going directly to court. The judge noted the project was already completed, operational, and had received approvals from relevant authorities.