Heineken has returned to Kenya’s Court of Appeal to challenge KSh230 million in post-judgment interest attached to a distribution damages award owed to Ngugi Kiuna’s Maxam Limited, arguing the interest component was never pleaded during trial and cannot be introduced after final judgment.
A three-judge Court of Appeal bench agreed the point is arguable. The court conditionally suspended enforcement of the KSh230 million claim, directing Heineken to provide a KSh250 million bank guarantee within 30 days or face execution. The order lapses automatically if the guarantee is not filed on time.
The underlying dispute traces to a distribution agreement that took effect in May 2013, under which Heineken East Africa Import Company appointed Maxam as exclusive distributor of Heineken products in Kenya. Heineken terminated the agreement in January 2016. Maxam contested the termination, arguing it had made substantial investments in warehousing, logistics and third-party agreements in anticipation of a continuing commercial relationship. The High Court awarded Maxam KSh1.799 billion in special damages. The Court of Appeal upheld that figure in May 2024. Heineken’s subsequent petition to the Supreme Court was struck out in October 2024 for want of jurisdiction, with the apex court finding the matter turned on contractual rather than constitutional questions.
Enforcement proceedings then returned to the High Court, where Maxam successfully sought the inclusion of 14% interest on the award. That November 2025 decision is what Heineken is now contesting. The brewer’s position is that interest was neither pleaded nor awarded under the 2019 and 2024 rulings, and adding it now changes the terms of a settled judgment. Heineken also argued that Maxam is no longer operational and would be unable to return funds if the appeal succeeds, a claim Kiuna’s legal team rejected as unsupported by evidence.
The Court of Appeal noted that whether post-judgment interest can be introduced where it was not originally pleaded raises a question that is not frivolous. That framing is enough to keep the challenge alive, but the 30-day guarantee deadline removes any practical option to simply delay. If Heineken posts the KSh250 million guarantee, total exposure across the principal award and contested interest component exceeds KSh1.7 billion.
Drinkabl.media’s recent coverage of the Diageo-EABL tax dispute tracked how Kenya’s courts are actively shaping the commercial terms under which multinationals operate in the market. Tusker’s brand strength ranking as Africa’s strongest this year reflects the commercial depth of Kenya’s beer sector — the same sector that produced the distribution economics at the centre of the Maxam dispute. The interest appeal will test whether Kenyan courts treat post-judgment interest as a procedural right or an award requiring independent pleading, a question with implications for how future distribution terminations are litigated across East Africa.
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