Category: Legal Articles

Capital Gains Tax in Kenya: What it is charged on, How it is calculated and Who pays it

Introduction Capital Gains Tax (CGT) was introduced in Kenya in 1975 but was later suspended in June 1985. The tax was subsequently reintroduced by the Finance Act of 2014 which amended the Eight Schedule of the Income Tax Act cap 470 Laws of Kenya (Income Tax Act), with effect from 1st January 2015 at the…
Revisiting the test for Industrial Design Infringement in Kenya: The Judgment of the Industrial Property Tribunal in Kenrub Limited Versus Metro-Polykenya Limited

Kenya offers statutory protection of intellectual property rights primarily under two laws: the Industrial Property Act (“IPA”), the Copyright Act and the Trade Marks Act. In respect of industrial designs (“IDs”), the IPA sets out the criteria for registration and consequent protection as follows at section 84(1)the IPA: “an industrial design means any composition of…
Customs Watch: New Mandatory Recordation of Imports into Kenya with Anti Counterfeit Authority

The Anti Counterfeit Authority (ACA) has been working to operationalise section 34B of the Anti Counterfeit Act 2008 (the Act) and the more recent implementation framework introduced by the Anti Counterfeit Recordation Regulations 2021 (Recordation Regulations). By newspaper notice on 26th April 2022, the ACA has set the deadline for compliance with the Act and…
Kenya Data Protection: New mandatory registration for businesses

The publication in the Kenya Gazette of the Data Protection (Registration of Data Controllers and Data Processors) Regulations 2021 (via Legal Notice no. 265) implemented section 18 of the Data Protection Act 2019 which provides for mandatory registration of data controllers and processors by the Data Protection Commissioner, DPC. Mandatory registration will now commence on…
Kenya Data Protection Compliance Guide: The Privacy Principle

In our third article in our Data Protection law series, we discuss the principles of data protection and how organisations can implement them. Principles & Rights based legislation Those who are by now familiar with Kenya’s Data Protection Act of 2019 will appreciate that this law, like the EU’s GDPR. is inward looking; it requires…
Kenya’s Recognition of Electronic Signatures

The use of electronic signatures is regulated by the Kenya Information and Communication Act, 1998 (“KICA”). KICA, under section 83P, recognizes the legality of ‘electronic signatures’ as well as ‘advanced electronic signatures.’ An advanced electronic signature as that which is: uniquely linked to the signatory; capable of identifying the signatory; created using means that the…
Trade Mark Trafficking? High Court Rules in Favour of Barclays Bank

In the High Court’s decision in ABSA Kenya Limited versus Barclays Bank here, the Court addressed itself to what amounts to ‘using’ a registered trade mark in Kenya. The decision and the Court’s analysis is important because of hitherto scanty decisions on the topic, despite the clear statutory provision in the law that requires a…
Disney trade marked Hakuna Matata in the US, but unlikely in Kenya and East Africa

https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/analysis/ideas/How-US-firm-trademarked-the-hakuna-matata/4259414-5197122-o853diz/index.html
Business Laws (amendment) Act, 2020: Easing doing business in Kenya

The enactment and subsequent coming into force of the Business Laws (Amendment) Act in March 2020 is in tandem with Kenya’s efforts to increase the ease of doing business in the country. Against a backdrop of many Kenyan businesses going through financially challenging times occasioned by a global health crisis, legislative measures to reduce ‘red…