Chief Justice Martha Koome has established a new division of the High Court that will exclusively hear appeals arising from tribunals, marking a significant change in the handling of such cases within the Judiciary.
The new Tribunals Appeals Division will operate from the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi and took effect on July 1, 2026, according to a notice published in the Kenya Gazette.
The division was established under the High Court (Organization and Administration) Act and will hear appeals from tribunals whose decisions are appealable to the High Court.
However, appeals from the Tax Appeals Tribunal have been excluded from its jurisdiction.
“The Chief Justice has established a Tribunals Appeals Division of the High Court at Milimani Law Courts, to hear appeals emanating from Tribunals whose appeals lie in the High Court save for those emanating from the Tax Appeals Tribunal with effect from 1st July, 2026,” the gazette notice stated.
The notice announcing the establishment of the division was signed by Chief Justice Koome in her capacity as President of the Supreme Court of Kenya.
New Division for Tribunal Appeals
The creation of the new division introduces a specialized forum within the High Court for disputes originating from tribunals established under various laws.
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Kenya has numerous tribunals that handle disputes in specialized sectors, including land, business, competition, energy, communications, political parties, sports and environmental matters.
Many of their decisions can be challenged before the High Court.
Until now, such appeals were handled through existing High Court structures.
The gazette notice states that the new division will specifically deal with tribunal appeals, except those arising from the Tax Appeals Tribunal.
The Judiciary did not disclose in the notice why the new division was being established or whether the move was intended to reduce case backlogs, improve efficiency or enhance specialization in the determination of appeals.
The notice also did not indicate the number of judges who will be assigned to the division, the volume of cases expected to be handled, or how pending tribunal appeals will be managed.
The decision was made under Section 12(2) of the High Court (Organization and Administration) Act, 2015, which empowers the Chief Justice to establish High Court divisions where necessary for the effective administration of justice.
Tribunal Appeals in Kenya
Tribunals play a significant role in Kenya’s justice system by resolving disputes in specialized fields that require technical expertise.
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They are established through various Acts of Parliament to determine matters that would otherwise place additional pressure on the ordinary courts while providing quicker and sector-specific dispute resolution.
Although tribunal decisions are legally binding, parties dissatisfied with the outcome may appeal to the High Court where the law grants that right.
The new division will therefore become the primary forum for determining whether tribunals correctly interpreted the law, observed due process and acted within their statutory powers when making decisions.
The move is expected to bring together appeals previously handled across different High Court divisions, creating a single judicial forum dedicated to tribunal matters.
Legal practitioners appearing before tribunals are also expected to file qualifying appeals before the new division in line with the Judiciary’s administrative framework.
The establishment of the division reflects the Judiciary’s continued use of specialised court structures to manage different categories of cases.
Similar specialized divisions already exist within the High Court to handle constitutional and human rights matters, commercial disputes, family cases, anti-corruption and economic crimes, among others, allowing judges to develop expertise in particular areas of law while promoting consistency in judicial decisions.
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