NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 3 – The High Court has declared unconstitutional sections of the Survey Act that required land surveyors to be full members of the Institution of Surveyors of Kenya (ISK) before obtaining a practising licence.
In Petition No. E440 of 2023, the court ruled that compelling surveyors to join the ISK as a precondition for licensing violates Article 36 of the Constitution, which protects freedom of association.
The petition was filed by land surveyor and advocate Mike Kelvin Muthumba against the Land Surveyors Board (LSB), ISK, the Attorney General and the National Assembly.
In his case, Muthumba argued that being forced to join a private association in order to access a state licence infringed his constitutional rights.
He sought, among other orders: “A DECLARATION THAT part of section 12(1) of the Survey Act Cap. 299 that reads ‘including evidence of full membership of the Institution of Surveyors of Kenya (Chapter of Land Surveyors)’ is unconstitutional with regard to Article 36 of the constitution on Freedom of Association and, therefore, invalid, null and void.”
“A DECLARATION THAT part of Regulation 15 of the Survey Regulations of 1994 that reads …and production of evidence of full membership of the Institution of Surveyors of Kenya, Chapter of Land Surveyors’ is unconstitutional with regard to Article 36 of the constitution on Freedom of Association and, therefore, invalid, null and void.”
The court agreed, holding that ISK is a voluntary professional association registered under the Societies Act, while the Land Surveyors Board is the statutory regulator mandated to license and discipline practitioners.
By tying licensing to mandatory ISK membership, the law effectively compelled association, the court found.
It held that professional standards can be enforced through statutory mechanisms without forcing surveyors to join a specific private body.
