REPUBLIC OF KENYA
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KENYA AT BOMET
SUCCESSION CAUSE NO. 8 OF 2015
IN THE MATTER OF THE ESTATE OF KIMOTWO ARAP LASOI (DECEASED).
KIPKALAL ARAP KIMINYET ……………………….……. PETITIONER
RULING
1. In this matter, a Grant was issued to the original Petitioner, Kiplasoi Kirinyet (deceased) on 20th March 2013 and the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant was issued to him on 20th May 2015.
2. Upon the death of the original Petitioner, he was substituted by the current Petitioner, Kipkalal Arap Kirinyet and a Grant was issued to him on 30th September 2025. A rectified Certificate of Confirmation of Grant was issued to him on the same day (30th September 2025).
Application dated 3rd November 2025
3. The Petitioner/Applicant sought the following orders: -
I. Spent.
II. THAT this Honourable Court be pleased to issue an order directing the Land Registrar Bomet to cancel all titles emanating from the deceased’s estate being parcel numbers KERICHO/OLOKYIN/1349, 1373, 1358, 1694, 1695, 1356, 1850, 1851, 1349, 1589, 1590, 1591, 1592, 1593, 1594, 1595, 1596, 1364, 1579, 1580, 1367, 1567, 1568, 1589, 1852, 1854, 1674, 1675 and 1676 and the same revert to KERICHO/OLOKYIN/320.
III. THAT this Honourable Court be pleased to direct the Land Registrar to rectify the register in respect to KERICHO/OLOKYIN/320.
IV. THAT this Honourable Court be pleased to revoke and/or annul the Confirmed Certificate of Grant dated 20th May 2015 in respect of the deceased’s estate and issue a rectified Certificate of Confirmation of Grant capturing the correct shares and names of all beneficiaries within the deceased’s estate.
4. The Application was brought under section 76 of the Law of Succession Act, Rules 43(1) and 44 of the Probate and Administration Rules. It was premised on the grounds on the face of the Application and further by the supporting affidavit sworn by Kipkalal Arap Kirinyet on 3rd November 2025.
The Applicant’s case
5. The Applicant stated that the deceased died on 27th August 1997 and left Alice Chepkirui Mestamet, Julius Kipkoech Cheruiyot, Joseph Kipsang Kilele and Kipkalal Arap Kirinyet as his beneficiaries and KERICHO/OLOKYIN/320 as his estate. That the deceased’s estate was entitled to the dependants and the liabilities who purchased portions of the deceased’s estate.
6. It was the Applicant’s case that due to errors in names and shares in the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant dated 20th May 2015, it has been impossible for the beneficiaries to claim their shares. That the rectification was necessary. It was the Applicant’s further case that the illegal titles that emanated from the deceased’s estate be annulled and they revert to the mother title.
7. The Applicant stated that the land survey was done with the consent of the entire beneficiaries. That there would be no prejudice occasioned to the beneficiaries.
8. A similar Application dated 9th June 2026 was filed by the Petitioner’s Advocate M/S Barusei & Co. Advocates seeking the same order for cancellation of the titles emanating from KERICHO/OLOKYIN/320 for the same reasons as advanced by the Petitioner above.
Analysis
9. As stated above, a rectified Certificate of Confirmation of Grant was issued to the Petitioner on 30th September 2025. The Certificate indicated the deceased’s beneficiaries and their respective allocated shares in the deceased’s estate being KERICHO/OLOKYIN/320.
10. The Petitioner sought an order from this court to cancel titles which emanated from KERICHO/OLOKYIN/320 stating that the subdivision was irregular.
11. Mr. Ndege Tiberius who was the Land Registrar, Bomet County told this court that the subdivision on the deceased’s estate was done on 22nd May 2015. The Land Registrar further stated that the subdivision was done without completion of the succession proceedings and it was unprocedural. It was the Land Registrar’s opinion that the resultant parcels were illegal.
12. I have gone through the record and I have noted that the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant was issued to the original Petitioner (Kiplasoi Kirinyet (Deceased) on 20th May 2015. The subdivision was done on 22nd May 2015. From the above, it is clear that the original Petitioner subdivided the deceased’s estate after he had obtained the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant and not before. This is contrary to the testimony of the Land Registrar who stated that the subdivision was done without the completion of the succession proceedings.
13. At the point of subdivision, the original Petitioner was not deceased and he had the power backed by the law to subdivide the deceased’s estate as per the contents of Certificate of Confirmation of Grant. The rectified Certificate of Confirmation of Grant dated 30th September 2025 was issued to the present Petitioner and the only difference with the previous Certificate of Confirmation of Grant was the name of the Petitioner, who had been substituted. The beneficiaries and their respective shares remained the same.
14. It is important to state that the work of a probate court is to distribute the free estate of the deceased, which in this case it did leading to the issuance of the Certificate of Confirmation of Grant dated 20th May 2015. Any issues relating to the resultant titles from the deceased’s estate after confirming the Grant and the subsequent subdivision would be dealt with by the Environmental and Land Court as it has the requisite jurisdiction.
15. This court’s jurisdiction in cancelling Titles is only limited to intermeddling and in instances where the Grant is revoked. In Santuzzabilioti alias Mei Santuzza (deceased) vs Giancarlo Felasconi (2014) eKLR, the court held: -
“This cannot be the case as the succession court has powers to order a title deed to revert to the names of a deceased person. This in effect amounts to cancelation of the title deed. Further, a succession court can order a cancelation of title deed if a deceased’s property is being fraudulently taken away by non-beneficiaries such as where the property is being sold before a grant is confirmed.”
16. Similarly, in re Estate of Leah Wanguii Nding'uri (Deceased) [2020] KEHC 5505 (KLR), Wendoh J. held: -
“In this case, the respondents filed this cause and brought themselves under the provisions of the Law of Succession Act. The grant that was issued to the respondents was revoked. It means that, all actions taken by the respondents including the registration of the deceased’s property in their names was rendered a nullity………….. this court has jurisdiction to order cancelation of the said titles so that the land can revert back to the deceased’s names………”
17. I have looked at the Petitioner’s pleadings and it is clear to me that his proposed mode of distribution was different from the mode of distribution contained in the rectified Certificate of Confirmation of Grant dated 30th September 2025. They sought a revocation of the Grant and an issuance of a new Grant detailing the new proposed mode of distribution.
18. The law on revocation of Grants is provided for in Section 76 of the Law of Succession Act which states that: -
A grant of representation, whether or not confirmed, may at any time be revoked or annulled if the court decides, either on application by any interested party or of its own motion-
(a) that the proceedings to obtain the grant were defective in substance;
(b) that the grant was obtained fraudulently by the making of a false statement or by the concealment from the court of something material to the case;
(c) that the grant was obtained by means of an untrue allegation of a fact essential in point of law to justify the grant notwithstanding that the allegation was made in ignorance or inadvertently;
(d) that the person to whom the grant was made has failed, after due notice and without reasonable cause either-
(i) to apply for confirmation of the grant within one year from the date thereof, or such longer period as the court order or allow; or
(ii) to proceed diligently with the administration of the estate; or
(iii) to produce to the court, within the time prescribed, any such inventory or account of administration as is required by the provisions of paragraphs (e) and (g) of section 83 or has produced any such inventory or account which is false in any material particular; or
(e) that the grant has become useless and inoperative through subsequent circumstances.
19. Having gone through the record, it is my finding that the Petitioner has not demonstrated any of the above grounds to necessitate revocation of the Grant. I have earlier on established that the subdivision of the deceased’s estate was done procedurally. Additionally, having a new mode of distribution was not a ground for revoking the Grant.
20. In the end, the Applications dated 3rd November 2025 and 9th June 2026 have no merit and are dismissed. There are no orders as to costs.
Ruling delivered, dated and signed at Bomet this 28th day of October, 2026.
.................................
HON. JULIUS K. NG’ARNG’AR
JUDGE
Ruling delivered in the presence of:
Siele/Susan (Court Assistants)
Kipkalal Arap Kiminyet
Source: Supplied judgment file.