In our previous two articles in this series (see Part I and Part II) we covered how parties may rely on force majeure clauses or on the doctrines of frustration, impossibility or impracticability of performance as defences to non-performance or delayed performance as a result of the impacts of COVID-19.
The COVID-19 pandemic and Government-imposed measures to contain its spread have triggered a large-scale disruption of the Kenyan economy, leading to a slowdown in many sectors. Given the local and global effects of the pandemic, businesses are grappling with their inability to meet their obligations under existing contracts.
In response to the rise of COVID-19 cases in Kenya, the Government has implemented various measures and restrictions to contain the spread of the virus across the country.
In the wake of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), several aspects of the economy have been forced to a slow trot and, in some cases, a complete halt. The Judiciary has not been excluded. To ensure that justice, the rights of litigants and the health of the public are kept in an economically friendly balance, the Judiciary has issued several Guidelines and implemented precautionary measures. The most recent Guidelines were published on 13 May 2020 (the May Guidelines).
This legal alert highlights the provisions of the Employment Code (Exemption) Regulations, Statutory Instrument No. 48 of 2020 (the Exemption Regulations) which came into effect on 11 May 2020 pursuant to Gazette Notice No. 394 of 2020.
The Finance Bill, 2020 was published on 5 May 2020 (the Bill) to make amendments to a raft of laws in Kenya, including the Income Tax Act, the Value Added Tax Act, of 2013, the Tax Procedures Act, of 2015, the Miscellaneous Fees and Levies Act, 2016 and the Excise Duty Act, 2015 among others.
For the first time in Kenya, the Competition Tribunal has made a ruling which reversed or amended merger conditions that had been imposed by the Competition Authority of Kenya as part of its approval to a transaction, in an application filed by ALN Kenya | Anjarwalla & Khanna on behalf of Telkom Kenya and Airtel.
The COVID-19 pandemic presents a challenge for companies listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (the NSE) which have had to postpone general meetings (GMs) due to the ban on public gatherings in Kenya. This has meant that listed companies cannot hold physical GMs as they have done traditionally.
The Tax Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2020 (the Bill) underwent its second and third reading in Parliament on 22 April 2020.
The Tax Amendment Bill, 2020 (the Tax Bill) seeks to amend a number of laws to (amongst other things) address and mitigate the effects of the current COVID-19 pandemic in Kenya.
