The National Land Commission has been ordered to pay Senior Counsel Prof Tom Ojienda Sh143.4 million for legal fees arising from a case in which his law firm represented the commission over a decade ago.
The Environment and Land Court directed the NLC to settle the lumpsum within six months from October 28, 2025, failure to which the commission's chief executive officer would be cited for contempt of court.
The undue delay in settling the decree of Sh69.2 million has cost the commission a staggering Sh74.2 million in accrued interest, which increased the total legal fees payment to Sh143, 473,221.
Further, the court noted that under the Government Proceedings Act, it could issue orders to the effect that what is due to the advocate becomes a public debt, dismissing the commission’s assertion that there was no public duty to pay legal fees.
Prof Ojienda, who is also the Kisumu Senator, moved to court seeking to compel the NLC to pay his fees. The court pronounced the decree was for Sh69.2 million plus interest at 14 percent per annum, which accounted for a total of Sh74.2 million.
Kisumu Senator and lawyer Tom Ojienda.
Photo credit: Dennis Onsongo | Nation Media Group
The legal charges arose out of a Supreme Court judgment where the Attorney-General had sought an advisory opinion regarding the working relationship between the Lands Ministry and NLC.
In the suit, the Supreme Court advisory opinion of 2014 involved the NLC, the AG, the Ministry of Lands, Housing & Urban Development, the Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution, and the Institution of Surveyors Kenya.
Prof Ojienda said he fully represented the NLC to the conclusion of the matter and obtained a favourable judgment.
Consequently, the legal fees were taxed at Sh112.7 million in a ruling delivered on March 6, 2017, and a certificate of taxation issued on March 15, 2017.
Aggrieved, the commission challenged the ruling, and the amount was reduced to Sh69.2 million in March 2019.
Prof Ojienda subsequently filed an application in December 2023 seeking judgment together with accrued interest.
However, the NLC lodged an application in February 2024 seeking to stay execution of the judgment pending determination of an appeal before the Supreme Court.
In October last year, the court allowed the application and entered judgment in favour of the law firm for Sh143.4 million.
For a considerable period in the recent past, Prof Ojienda has secured favourable judgments against NLC, Narok, and Nairobi Counties for services rendered by his firm, Prof Tom Ojienda & Associates.
In December last year, a judge directed the NLC to pay the law firm Sh29.5 million for representing the commission in a land dispute in Eldoret. In February this year, Prof Ojienda was paid by NLC another Sh9.3 million in legal fees.
On February 2 last year, the High Court in Nairobi ordered Narok County to pay the law firm Sh66.7 million. This comprised a taxed fee of Sh45.7 million and accrued interest amounting to Sh20.9 million.
Prof Ojienda had represented the devolved unit in a Supreme Court petition in 2015 where the defunct County Council of Narok had sued Livingstone Kunini Ntutu, Olkiombo Limited, and the Attorney-General.
The Environment and Land Court has directed the National Land Commission to pay Senator Tom Ojienda's law firm Sh143.4 million for legal fees.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
In another matter involving Narok County, the High Court entered judgment of Sh14.2 million in favour of the law firm for services rendered.
Nairobi County, in December 2020, paid the lawyer Sh264 million in legal fees arising from five separate suits in which he represented City Hall in 2014.
In July 2024, the High Court ordered Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja’s administration to pay Prof Ojienda Sh153 million in legal fees.
The payment arose from an industrial suit over the implementation of a collective bargaining agreement valued at Sh10.4 billion.
And in August 2022, a court in Eldoret issued a garnishee order allowing Prof Ojienda to recover Sh397 million from NLC.
