[1] Before this Court is a Summons for Revocation or Annulment of Grant dated 8 th December 2022, filed by Jane Chesang Kesusu on her own behalf and on behalf of five other Applicants.
[2] The Applicants seek the revocation of the Grant of Letters of Administration issued on 17 th July 2015 and the cancellation of the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant issued on 14 th December 2023.
[3] Upon perusal of the court record, this Court makes a critical finding that renders this application moot.
[4] This Court delivered a final Judgment in this Succession Cause on 14 th December 2023.
[5] That Judgment dismissed the Protest filed by Weldon Koech, allowed the Summons for Confirmation of Grant dated 24 th August 2018 and determined that daughters of the deceased were precluded from inheriting based on family meetings. It also determined that Alice Birir is not a beneficiary.
[6] Among the witnesses who testified in that Protest were Jane Chesang, Eunice Cherotich, Recho Chepkemoi and Alice Cherotich Birir who are the Applicants herein.
[7] The doctrine of functus officio is a fundamental principle of law that once a court has finally determined a matter, it becomes functus officio and cannot revisit or rehear the same matter.
[8] The Court of Appeal in Telkom Kenya Limited v. John Ochanda (Suing on his own behalf and on behalf of 996 former employees of Telkom Kenya Limited) [2014] eKLR held;
"The doctrine of functus officio is one of the mechanisms by which the law gives effect to the principle of finality of judgments. It basically means that once a court has given a judgment in a matter, it is functus officio and cannot entertain any further application or motion in the same matter unless the law specifically allows it to do so."
[9] The Supreme Court of Kenya in Raila Odinga & Another v. IEBC & Others [2013] eKLR stated;
"Courts must be vigilant against any attempt to relitigate matters that have been finally determined. The doctrine of functus officio serves to protect the finality of judicial decisions ."
[10] Section 76 of the Law of Succession Act, while allowing revocation of grants at any time, does not empower this Court to sit on appeal over its own final Judgment. Revocation is intended for cases where the grant was obtained defectively at the time of issue, not as a mechanism to reopen a matter that has been fully heard and determined on merit.
[11] Having delivered a final Judgment; this Court is now functus officio. It cannot reopen the same issues, rehear evidence on matters already determined, revoke a grant that was confirmed through a final Judgment on merit or sit on appeal over its own decision.
[12] The Applicants are attempting to do indirectly (through revocation) what they cannot do directly (reopen the Judgment). This is an abuse of the court process. If the Applicants were Aggrieved by the Judgment of 14 th December 2023, their remedy was to appeal to the Court of Appeal.
[13] For the reasons set out above, the Summons for Revocation or Annulment of Grant dated 8 th December 2022 is hereby dismissed in its entirety. Since this is a dispute involving family members, I direct that each party bear their own costs.
Dated, Delivered, and Signed at NAKURU this 21 st Day of MAY 2026 .
J.K. SERGON
JUDGE
In the presence of: -
C/Assistant- Rutoh
Miss Chelimo for the petitioners.
[2] The Applicants seek the revocation of the Grant of Letters of Administration issued on 17 th July 2015 and the cancellation of the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant issued on 14 th December 2023.
[3] Upon perusal of the court record, this Court makes a critical finding that renders this application moot.
[4] This Court delivered a final Judgment in this Succession Cause on 14 th December 2023.
[5] That Judgment dismissed the Protest filed by Weldon Koech, allowed the Summons for Confirmation of Grant dated 24 th August 2018 and determined that daughters of the deceased were precluded from inheriting based on family meetings. It also determined that Alice Birir is not a beneficiary.
[6] Among the witnesses who testified in that Protest were Jane Chesang, Eunice Cherotich, Recho Chepkemoi and Alice Cherotich Birir who are the Applicants herein.
[7] The doctrine of functus officio is a fundamental principle of law that once a court has finally determined a matter, it becomes functus officio and cannot revisit or rehear the same matter.
[8] The Court of Appeal in Telkom Kenya Limited v. John Ochanda (Suing on his own behalf and on behalf of 996 former employees of Telkom Kenya Limited) [2014] eKLR held;
"The doctrine of functus officio is one of the mechanisms by which the law gives effect to the principle of finality of judgments. It basically means that once a court has given a judgment in a matter, it is functus officio and cannot entertain any further application or motion in the same matter unless the law specifically allows it to do so."
[9] The Supreme Court of Kenya in Raila Odinga & Another v. IEBC & Others [2013] eKLR stated;
"Courts must be vigilant against any attempt to relitigate matters that have been finally determined. The doctrine of functus officio serves to protect the finality of judicial decisions ."
[10] Section 76 of the Law of Succession Act, while allowing revocation of grants at any time, does not empower this Court to sit on appeal over its own final Judgment. Revocation is intended for cases where the grant was obtained defectively at the time of issue, not as a mechanism to reopen a matter that has been fully heard and determined on merit.
[11] Having delivered a final Judgment; this Court is now functus officio. It cannot reopen the same issues, rehear evidence on matters already determined, revoke a grant that was confirmed through a final Judgment on merit or sit on appeal over its own decision.
[12] The Applicants are attempting to do indirectly (through revocation) what they cannot do directly (reopen the Judgment). This is an abuse of the court process. If the Applicants were Aggrieved by the Judgment of 14 th December 2023, their remedy was to appeal to the Court of Appeal.
[13] For the reasons set out above, the Summons for Revocation or Annulment of Grant dated 8 th December 2022 is hereby dismissed in its entirety. Since this is a dispute involving family members, I direct that each party bear their own costs.
Dated, Delivered, and Signed at NAKURU this 21 st Day of MAY 2026 .
J.K. SERGON
JUDGE
In the presence of: -
C/Assistant- Rutoh
Miss Chelimo for the petitioners.