Constitutional Petition Victory

Midenga and Company Advocates successfully represented a coalition of business associations in a landmark constitutional petition challenging the constitutionality of a statutory instrument that imposed excessive licensing requirements on small and medium enterprises without adequate public participation. The petition, filed under Article 258 of the Constitution, argued that the impugned regulations violated the right to fair administrative action, the right to livelihood, and the principle of public participation enshrined in the 2010 Constitution.

The case involved complex questions of constitutional interpretation, including the scope of delegated legislation, the threshold for meaningful public participation, and the balance between regulatory authority and economic freedoms. Our team conducted extensive research, engaged expert witnesses on regulatory impact assessment, and presented compelling legal arguments drawing on comparative jurisprudence from across the Commonwealth.

The High Court declared the statutory instrument unconstitutional and void, finding that the regulatory authority had failed to conduct meaningful public participation as required by the Constitution and that the regulations were disproportionate in their impact on small businesses. The court's decision has been widely cited as a leading authority on public participation requirements in delegated legislation and has influenced subsequent regulatory reform initiatives in Kenya.