Muthaiga Country Club wants to lift a court order obtained by lawyer Donald Kipkorir last week, directing management to allow him access to the premises when invited by his clients, who are members of the club.
In a request filed under a certificate of urgency, the club said on Tuesday that the order conflicts with the club’s private right and privilege to admit or exclude persons from its premises, in the manner permitted by law.
The club added that Mr Kipkorir’s petition does not raise any constitutional issues for the court to consider and should be dismissed.
On September 9, High Court Judge Chacha Mwita directed the club to allow Mr Kipkorir into the premises, when invited by his clients, who are members of the club.
“The petition does not meet the minimum threshold for a constitutional petition because there is no evidence to support the allegations that any of the petitioner’s constitutional rights as set forth in the petition, including freedom from discrimination, have been violated,” the club said in its motion.
The lawyer went to court earlier this month, accusing the club of barring him from entering the building, in violation of his constitutional rights.
Mr Kipkorir said he had been banned from the club on two occasions, a move that had hampered his work as a lawyer.
But the club said the petition was an improper attempt to give Mr Kipkorir access to a members’ club when he was not a member and did not wish to become one.
Muthaiga Country Club added that Mr Kipkorir failed to disclose the facts and material matters relating to the dispute between him and the club.
“Petitioner failed to disclose that the first respondent (the club) informed him of the reasons for denying him entry to the premises,” the club said through law firm Hamilton Harrison & Matthews.
The club also wants the names of the 17 current and former club officials named in the petition to be struck off, saying there is no cause of action against them and they are not necessary parties to the case.
The club added that “the petition is frivolous, disturbing and represents an abuse of court proceedings.”
After Justice Mwita granted Mr Kipkorir the order, he gave the club seven days to file its response and set the hearing date for October 15.
Mr Kipkorir said he often meets his clients outside his room to receive instructions, and Muthaiga Country Club is one such place.
He said he received an invitation on August 9 from one of his clients, a club member, to receive instructions on something, but was denied entry.
He said that when he asked security officials why he was denied entry, there was no convincing explanation.
The lawyer said the incident was a continuation of another incident allegedly occurring in October 2022 when he was denied entry but allowed in after complaining.
In addition to being denied entry, he said he was asked to leave while being treated “like a stray dog, a stray dog trampling the sacred grounds of the privileged elite.”