NAIROBI, KENYA – In a landmark decision affirming gender equality in inheritance, the High Court on Thursday, November 20, 2025, dismissed an attempt by a woman to disinherit her married sisters-in-law, ending a bitter legal dispute that has spanned over three decades. The ruling serves as a powerful reinforcement of the Kenyan Constitution, which prohibits discrimination based on sex or marital status.

The case, Probate & Administration Cause 805 of 1994, involved Teresiah Wanjiku Njoroge, who sought to exclude her sisters-in-law from inheriting a share of their late mother's estate. The dispute centred on the estate of Monica Wamaitha Kihara, who passed away on September 30, 1993. The family's legal battles, however, trace back to the succession of Monica's husband, James Kihara Njoroge, which began in 1985.

Teresiah, the widow of one of Monica's sons, John Njoroge Kihara, argued before the court that only male children were entitled to inherit property. She contended that her sisters-in-law, having been married for many years, had no valid claim to their maternal estate. Teresiah specifically contested the distribution of prime commercial properties in Mombasa's central business district, which she estimated to be valued at over Sh300 million.

Constitutional Principles Overrule Archaic Customs

In her definitive ruling, High Court Judge Helene Namisi declared Teresiah's position as “legally indefensible, repugnant, and archaic.” The court held that such arguments are unacceptable under Kenya's current constitutional framework. Judge Namisi stated, “The Constitution is unequivocal. It provides that women and men have the right to equal treatment and prohibits discrimination, direct or indirect, on the grounds of sex or marital status.”

The judgment heavily relied on Article 27 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, which guarantees equality and freedom from discrimination for all persons. It also affirmed Section 38 of the Law of Succession Act (Cap 160), which stipulates that where an intestate has left a surviving child or children but no spouse, the net intestate estate shall devolve upon the surviving child, if there be only one, or shall be equally divided among the surviving children. The law makes no distinction between male and female children.

Citing established precedents from the Court of Appeal, including Rono v Rono (2005) and M'Murithi v Murithi (2015), Judge Namisi confirmed that the daughters of the late Monica Wamaitha Kihara, led by Irene Wambui Kimani and Caroline Wambui Kihara, are rightful beneficiaries entitled to inherit on an equal footing with the sons.

A Long and Convoluted Legal Journey

The succession case has been in the court system for 31 years, a delay the court itself noted as a denial of justice. The original grant of letters of administration for Monica's estate was issued to her two sons, John Njoroge and Ngugi Kihara, in August 1994. Following their deaths, their respective widows became administrators. Teresiah's grant was revoked by the court in October 2019 after she was accused of misappropriating estate assets, including fraudulent transfers of property titles.

On June 7, 2021, a fresh grant was issued to Monica's daughters, Irene Wambui Kimani and Caroline Wambui Kihara, to administer the estate. Their proposed mode of distribution was consented to by all beneficiaries except Teresiah, leading to the final court showdown. The court applied the hotchpot principle under Section 42 of the Law of Succession Act, requiring that any property gifted to a beneficiary by the deceased during their lifetime be accounted for during the final distribution of the estate. The court found that Teresiah's household had already benefited from several properties, and her demand for an equal share of the remaining assets amounted to a “double-dip.”

This ruling is a significant moment for property rights in Kenya, reinforcing a consistent judicial trend that champions the constitutional rights of women to inherit property, challenging deeply entrenched patriarchal customs. Legal experts believe the decision will serve as a crucial precedent for resolving numerous other succession cases stalled in the judiciary, underscoring that justice, though delayed, can ultimately uphold the supreme law of the land.