Keroche Breweries has once again failed in its legal efforts to stop payment of Sh45 million owed to its former Managing Director, Sam Shollei, further tightening financial strain on the company, which warns that over 500 jobs could be jeopardised.
The Court of Appeal rejected the firm’s request for additional time to revive an earlier application aimed at suspending enforcement of the award, ruling that the company had not adequately justified a delay exceeding two years.
The case arises from a September 2022 ruling by the Labour and Employment Court, which ordered Keroche to compensate Mr Shollei Sh45.5 million for unfair dismissal. With accumulated interest and legal costs, the total amount has since climbed to more than Sh75 million.
Mr Shollei has also moved separately to have the company liquidated over the unpaid debt.
The dispute comes at a difficult time for the Naivasha-based brewer, which court documents indicate directly employs over 500 people and indirectly supports thousands more through its agricultural supply chain, all while facing multiple financial and legal challenges.
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Keroche had initially lodged a notice of appeal and sought a stay of execution pending the outcome of that appeal. However, its application for suspension filed in March 2023 was dismissed in June the same year after its legal team failed to attend the hearing despite being duly served.
The company later changed its legal representation and, in July 2025, attempted to reinstate the application, arguing it should not be penalised for errors by previous counsel. That bid was withdrawn in January 2026, before a fresh attempt was made in April to extend time for reinstatement of the dismissed application.
Opposing the move, Mr Shollei argued that Keroche had engaged in repeated delays and could not shift responsibility to its former lawyers. The court agreed, holding that mistakes by advocates alone did not justify prolonged inaction in pursuing the matter.
