Court of Appeal rules Green Park estate not on riparian land

The ruling, delivered by a three-judge bench comprised of Justices Kahthurima M'Inoti, Hellen Omondi, and Imaana Laibuta, confirmed that the estate's developer, Superior Homes (Kenya) PLC, followed all necessary procedures before constructing the estate.

The appellate court upheld the previous decision of the Environment and Land Court (ELC), which ruled in favour of the residents and the developer.

 "Accordingly, we are satisfied that the ELC did not err in finding that the units were not on riparian land, and that the enforcement order was unlawful, null, and void,” the judges stated in their ruling.

This decision effectively overturns an earlier enforcement order by the Water Resources Authority (WRA) that sought to demolish the estate's housing units on the grounds that they were allegedly built on riparian land.

The decision is viewed as a significant victory for both the residents and Superior Homes, who were facing the possibility of losing their homes and incurring significant financial losses.

The court, however, declined to award Superior Homes the KSh 466 million it sought as compensation for alleged business and reputational losses caused by the enforcement order.

The developer, represented by lawyer Phillip Nyachoti, claimed that the enforcement order resulted in a public relations disaster and financial losses for which they should be compensated.

The judges rejected this claim, stating, "In the absence of pleaded special damages in the petition, the appellant was not entitled to an award of special damages." We would accordingly affirm the decision of the ELC on this further ground.”

The Water Resources Authority, which opposed the compensation claim, argued that Superior Homes' loss and damage were caused by flooding rather than the enforcement order.