[2023] KEHC 2633 (KLR)
The court found that the applicant, Rosemary Queen Reri, was not the widow of the deceased but the widow of his late son, Anthony Peri. The children listed in the application were not the deceased's children but his grandchildren. The true beneficiaries were identified as Anthony Peri Ayisi (now deceased) and...
Source-derived case information.
- Citation
- [2023] KEHC 2633 (KLR)
- Parties
- Applicant: Rosemary Queen Reri; Respondent: Harriet Imbiti Shitundu
- Court
- High Court
- Court Station
- High Court at Kakamega
- Jurisdiction
- Kenya
- Case Number
- Succession Cause 721 of 2011
- Procedural Posture
- Succession Cause / Ruling on Summons for Confirmation of Grant
- Outcome
- Grant confirmed with estate to be shared equally between the late Anthony Peri Ayisi and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu.
- Judges
- WM Musyoka
- Legal Topics
- Succession, Confirmation of Grant, Distribution of Estate, Beneficiary Entitlement
- Source Language
- en
Source-derived case record
Summary, issues, holding and outcome
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Parties
Rosemary Queen Reri
Applicant
Harriet Imbiti Shitundu
Respondent
Procedural Posture
Succession Cause / Ruling on Summons for Confirmation of Grant
Legal Issues
- 1 Whether the applicant is a lawful widow of the deceased entitled to inherit the estate.
- 2 Who are the rightful beneficiaries of the deceased's estate under the Law of Succession Act.
- 3 How the estate should be distributed among the surviving beneficiaries.
Ratio Decidendi
The court found that the applicant, Rosemary Queen Reri, was not the widow of the deceased but the widow of his late son, Anthony Peri. The children listed in the application were not the deceased's children but his grandchildren. The true beneficiaries were identified as Anthony Peri Ayisi (now deceased) and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu, the minor child of another deceased son, Ernest Shitundu. In accordance with sections 38 and 41 of the Law of Succession Act, the estate should be shared equally between the two. The share due to the late Anthony Peri Ayisi is to devolve upon his estate, to be distributed in separate succession proceedings, while the share for Harriet Imbiti Shitundu is to be...
Court Disposition
Grant confirmed with estate to be shared equally between the late Anthony Peri Ayisi and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu.
Orders
- Butsotso/Shikoti/441 shall be shared equally between the late Anthony Peri Ayisi and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu.
- The ½ share due to the late Anthony Peri Ayisi shall devolve upon his estate, to be distributed in succession proceedings to be initiated in his name.
Full Case Text
Judgment text and source record
14 paragraphs
In re Estate on Raphael Ayisi Liboni (Deceased) (Succession Cause 721 of 2011) [2023] KEHC 2633 (KLR) (24 March 2023) (Ruling)
Neutral citation: [2023] KEHC 2633 (KLR)
Republic of Kenya
In the High Court at Kakamega
Succession Cause 721 of 2011
WM Musyoka, J
March 24, 2023
Ruling
1. Am called upon to determine a summons for confirmation of grant, dated January 22, 2022. The beneficiaries are listed as 1 widow, 3 sons and 2 daughters, that is Rosemary Queen Reri, Josephat Songore Peri, Bonface Atolwa, Stefano Machafu Peri, Irine Isalo Peri and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu. It is proposed that the entire estate devolves wholly upon the widow.
2. The information given in the application is misleading. The alleged widow is not a widow of the deceased, but of a late son of the deceased. She is a daughter-in-law of the deceased, not his widow. Her children are listed as children of the deceased, yet they are not, for they are the grandchildren of the deceased.
3. When the matter came up for hearing, on April 26, 2022, the administratrix disclosed that the deceased had 4 children, being Leonida Shisiali, Martin Igado, Ernest Shitundu, Fredrick Apoti and Anthony Peri. The husband of the administratrix was the late Anthony Peri. She stated that all the other children of the deceased were dead, that is to say Leonida Shisiali, Martin Igado, Ernest Shitundu and Fredrick Apoti, and that they had not been survived by children, except for Ernest Shitundu, who was survived by 1 child, Harriet Imbiti Shitundu, a minor.
4. What the foregoing then means is that the deceased was survived by 2 individuals, Anthony Peri Ayisi and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu, who were his immediate survivors. Harriet Imbiti Shitundu steps into the shoes of her late father, Ernest Shitundu, in terms of section 41 of the Law of Succession Act, Cap 160, Laws of Kenya. The estate shall, therefore, be shared out equally between the 2, in keeping with section 38 of the Law of Succession Act. The grant herein is hereby confirmed, on terms that Butsotso/Shikoti/441 shall be shared equally between the late Anthony Peri Ayisi and Harriet Imbiti Shitundu. The ½ share due to the late Anthony Peri Ayisi shall devolve upon his estate, to be distributed in succession proceedings to be initiated in his name, as it would appear that there are individuals claiming purchasers’ interests. The ½ share for Harriet Imbiti Shitundu shall devolve upon her, to be held in trust for her by the administratrix, Rosemary Queen Reri, until she attains the age of majority. A certificate of confirmation of grant shall issue in those terms.
5. It is so ordered.
DELIVERED, DATED AND SIGNED IN OPEN COURT AT KAKAMEGA ON THIS…………….24th…………….………...….DAY OF …………………March.………..…………….2023WM MUSYOKAJUDGEErick Zalo, Court Assistant.Rosemary Queen Reri, the administratrix, in person.