JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
The appellants are a firm of advocates. Their appeal is against a judgment dated 23rd November, 1999, and signed by Mbito, J. The said judgment was not, however, delivered by him, but by a Principal Deputy Registrar, on 10th December, 1999, at Nairobi.
Order XX rule 2 (2) of the Civil Procedure Rules (hereinafter referred to as the CPR), enacts that:
"A judge of the High Court may pronounce a judgment written and signed but not pronounced by another judge of the High Court."
One of the grounds of appeal in the present appeal is that the learned trial Judge erred in law by requiring the Principal Deputy Registrar to deliver the aforesaid judgment in contravention of the provisions of Order XX rule 2 (2) aforesaid.
Ordinarily a judgment is dated and signed in open court at the time of delivery by the judge who wrote it - {see Order XX rule 3 (1) }. Order XX rule 3 (2) of the CPR , however, does recognize that situations may arise where the judge who wrote a judgment is …