CJ Koome establishes Kapsabet High Court, Iten sub-registry to ease case backlog
Chief Justice Martha Koome.
Chief Justice Martha Koome has established a High Court and a sub-registry in the North Rift, handing a sigh of relief to the locals who have continued to rely on the High Court sitting in Eldoret.
In a Gazette notice dated January 27, Ms Koome established Kapsabet High Court and Iten High Court Sub-Registry, easing congestion at Eldoret High Court.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 12 of the High Court (Organization and Administration) Act, 2015, the Chief Justice/President of the Supreme Court of Kenya has established Kapsabet High Court, with supervisory jurisdiction over Kapsabet, Kabiyet and Tinderet Magistrates Courts, with effect from January 16, 2023,” said reads the notice.
She added: “In exercise of the powers conferred by section 12 of the High Court (Organization and Administration) Act, 2015, the Chief Justice/President of the Supreme Court of Kenya has established Iten High Court Sub-Registry, with effect from January 16, 2023.”
The sub-registry in Iten means locals can file cases there and would get them heard once on a regular basis.
Last year, the Judiciary established Kabiyet and Tinderet Magistrate Courts to allow more than 800 cases from the constituency pending in the Kapsabet court to be expedited.
While unveiling the court in July 2022, Judiciary Chief Registrar Anne Amadi said the Kabiyet courthouse is the sixth to be established with funding from the NG-CDF and the second in Nandi County after the Tinderet one, bringing the total number of courts in the county to three.
“The Judiciary will endeavour to match the beauty of the building with excellence in service delivery,” she said when she received the new courthouse, which has two courtrooms, a registry and two chambers, among other facilities.
“The Judiciary will make the court ICT-ready to enable advocates practising from Eldoret and Kapsabet to take part in virtual courts in tandem with their counterparts in other parts of the country where ICT has been deployed as an enabler of justice,” said Ms Amadi.
In the past year, Ms Amadi said, six law courts have been established after being refurbished under the NG-CDF in five counties – Kilifi, Kiambu, Muranga, Kisumu and recently Nandi.
The courts are Msambweni, Kenol, Ruiru, Rarieda and Tinderet.
