The cost of filing a petition in Kenya is so exorbitant and many people would be wondering why so yet some judges are pretty aware not all petitioners have the financial muscle.

Share news tips with us here at Hivisasa

Could it be that this is meant to lock out the not-so-well-off petitioners from seeking justice or could it be to prevent the filing of frivolous petitions in court?

What most clients and the general public at large do not understand is that the cost that comes with filing such petitions depends on the time allocation, the lawyers involved and the complexity of the case.

Different petitions raise different issue case by case and this brings out the idea of other cases being vastly complex while some are simple and straightforward hence the difference in charging.

Firstly, there is the security deposit of ksh 500,000 for filing a petition challenging an election for instance of a member of parliament.This is basically to keep off any frivolous petition that could be lacking merit in nature, from finding its way into the courts..

Secondly, there is the remuneration order.

This is the amount an advocate can charge for filing a petition.

The lowest amount of remuneration that an advocate can therefore charge is just sh.500,000.This can dramatically rise as well depending on various issues:

                 -the complexity of the case in question,

                 -the urgency of the case,

                 -the number of prayers a petitioner has.The more the prayers the more complex a case becomes.

Therefore, the petitioner has to negotiate a fee with an advocate who has to put aside every other work given that petitions are time-bound.

Cost Follow The Outcome

Lastly, comes the issue of charges with regard to the outcome of the petition.There is the compensation cost that that is incurred by the loser and awarded to the winner.

The level of compensation cost awarded to the winning party depends on:

  - the number of lawyers on record.

   -the parties on record e.g it would cost more for instance if the defendant brought two lawyers as well as IEBC.

   - the expenses incurred in fighting off the petition has to compensate for as well.