Chege Kibathi & Company Advocates LLP

We have ably represented our clients in relation to various conveyancing transactions and real estate development projects. We walk hand in hand with our clients to meet their goals of acquiring homes, property and completing their development projects. In the process, we help them navigate legal and regulatory requirements, ensuring they have no worries even as they meet their targets.

Our expertise is in:

• Representing developers, property owners and investors in developing, leasing and selling both residential and commercial property.
• Working with lenders and borrowers on project loans and restructuring of project financing
• Representing builders, contractors, developers and purchasers in development contracts and related matters
• Litigation in relation to delays, defects, illegal and fraudulent transfer, adverse possession, eviction, and contract disputes
• Advising clients on land use, zoning and physical planning related matters
• We draw competent charges, leases, mortgages, transfers and other instruments
• Facilitating transactional services
• Handling Mixed Use Development Transactions
• Overseeing of Land Subdivision processes
• Change of Use and Planning
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Estate management and preparation of wills.

Experience and Achievements:

• We have represented a real estate company on a large residential project- Bustani residential development comprising of over 600 units and other projects involving the transfer of land.
• Preparation of leases for various commercial developments within Nairobi.
• We have represented numerous individual purchase sales by Sub-Lease for private residential estates.
• Successfully represented a real estate company as a purchaser in a third party claim under the seller in a dispute for 50 acres of land worth millions of shillings.

We have assisted thousands of clients in conducting of due diligence on properties at the relevant land registries and survey offices: reviewing and negotiating of the terms of sale of property, preparation and registration of transfer documents, registration of titles in the name of the clients, and post-registration due diligence.

We offer bespoke services to our corporate clients involved in high value commercial transactions with both general and specialized needs. These services include formation and registration of all business entities, corporate agreements including mergers and acquisitions, joint venture agreements, asset acquisition, supply contracts, share purchase Agreements and shareholders’ Agreements., drafting designing and reviewing of complex legal documents.

The firm assists existing and startup companies in ensuring efficient compliance. Services offered are filing of annual returns advice on tax compliance, corporate governance advice, legal audits and due diligence, compliance with labour laws, regulatory compliance audits and management as well as training in all these areas. The firm has significant experience in dealing with various government bodies and expeditiously and innovatively finds solutions for clients.

The firm incorporates local companies and also acts on behalf of foreign companies seeking to set up corporate presence in Kenya within the various sectors of the economy such as agriculture, insurance, construction and real estate. Further legal services are also provided to clients to enable the newly incorporated companies begin their operation such as the processing of the relevant tax files (for Value Added Certificate and Tax Identification Number Certificate) and processing of work and residence permits. Upon incorporation, we have successfully maintained an ongoing relationship with the incorporated entities which engage the firm to offer company secretarial services on a retainer basis

Experience and Achievements:

• We have drafted and interpreted numerous non-compete, customer non-solicitation and competitive restrictions agreements for several businesses.

We negotiated advantageous terms for the buyout of a retiring partner from his two business partners.

We have a dedicated litigation team that represents our clients in a broad variety of disputes including class suits, labour disputes, contractual claims, insolvency, real estate, environment, intellectual property and regulatory compliance litigated in all Courts with their respective divisions as well as tribunals across the country. We recognize that litigation can be disruptive to our clients’ businesses and equally time consuming and we thereby work closely with clients and devise strategies that will ensure minimal disruption and less contentious means of resolving disputes to ensure that commercial business relationships are not severed in the process.

With the welcomed introduction of court mandated mediation, the firm prides itself in negotiating out of court settlement of disputes.

Our Advocates are highly trained in their various means of interaction to ensure professional standards are maintained and cooperation of clients is achieved resulting in maximization of productivity and client satisfaction.

Experience and Achievements:

• Represented a water supply company in an application for judicial review orders seeking to quash notices issued against the company for inflated water bills.
• Successfully defended a company in a derivative action suit where some members sought leave to institute the suit on behalf of the company to prevent fraud.
• Successfully represented a supplier in a dispute regarding alleged illegal tendering process for a tender worth Kshs. 100million.
• Successfully defended a renowned construction company in arbitration proceedings filed by a subcontractor alleging breach of the terms of the construction agreement and claiming Kshs.55million.
• Successfully defended a consultancy company where their former legal counsel filed a bill of taxation resulting in saved costs of Kshs. 23 million.
• Conducted mediation for the beneficiaries of a high-net-worth estate in relation to the management and administration of the estate and assets in terms of the instrument establishing the trust.

The firm offers legal advisory services in all areas of intellectual property including protection through registration of patents, trademarks, copyrights, industrial designs, image rights and related licensing requirements, Anti-Counterfeit Procedures and litigation, drafting and reviewing IP contracts such as license agreements and deed of assignments. We understand that intellectual property, like other forms of property, are invaluable to our clients and we assuage their fears of loss by fiercely protecting them legally and pride ourselves in having represented several businesses in the protection and assertion of their intellectual property rights.

Our experience in trademark registration is well flexed in registrations in Kenya and Africa at large through African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) and the African Intellectual Property Organisation (OAPI).

Our advocates are admitted as Patent Agents by the Kenya Industrial Property Institute.

Experience and Achievements:

• Liaised with our legal partners in various jurisdictions in Africa to register trademarks for local and international clients within these jurisdictions such as Uganda and Rwanda.
• We continually monitor client trademarks which ensures that we discover, prevent and enforce infringements.
• Analyzed the IP terms in an Asset Sale Agreement and recommended key changes to the Agreement to ensure our client’s interests were fully safe guarded.

Employers and employees, in all sectors of the economy are the lifeblood of a country’s income revenue. We believe that representing clients on both divides of the employer-employee relationship is fundamental to our economy.

Our firm has a strong presence in the realm of employment and labour law matters and has acted for both individual and corporate clients in several labour disputes. The firm also offers advice to Corporate Clients on compliance requirements as per the relevant Laws and Regulations and in effect protects clients by averting potential adverse claims and ensuring conflict in the workplace is reduced or eradicated in totality. On the other end, we represent individuals and offer advice pertaining to wrongful termination, sexual discrimination, claims related to employee benefits and other related cases. We also negotiate settlement between employees and employers to reach an amicable settlement by employing alternative means of dispute resolution.

We help our clients avoid litigation by ensuring proper drafting of the Letters of Engagement, Termination Letters and Employment Contracts for our clients and advice on Collective Bargaining Agreements. We also apply for work permits and special permits for expatriate employees.

Achievements:

• Representing a manufacturing company in a class suit where 100 former employees allege unprocedural redundancy measures. The suit is ongoing in the Court of Appeal.
• We have advised on employment and labor law aspects of high value transactions in the financial services sector.
• We have represented a tele-communications company against whom employees had commenced a claim for unfair termination and successfully reached settlement with the employees.

We have advised and assisted an international organisation with its Kenyan program in mediating termination of employment claims.

Insolvency and debt recovery procedures are crucial to a well performing financial sector as credit provisions itself. Aligned with this belief, we work together with companies, lenders, funds, licensed insolvency practitioners and individuals on a range of contentious and non-contentious matters. We provide legal and advisory services in complex collections and debt recovery, debt restructuring, composition and schemes of arrangement and reorganizations, attachment sequestration and seizure procedures as well as legal representation in bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings.

We can guide you through the corporate and personal insolvency process and provide alternatives for debtors and companies to work through financial difficulties within your budget.

Achievements

• We have acted for a Swedish non-profit organisation in its claim for recovery of embezzled funds.