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90 judgments found.
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December 1999
Extension of time granted where delay caused by arranging large security and counsel’s insistence; interest of justice prevailed.
Civil procedure — extension of time — Rules 4 and 42 and s.13(1) Judicature Act — sufficient cause where delay arises from counsel’s insistence on security for stay — practical difficulties of overseas corporate litigant raising large decretal security — interest of justice and public importance as factors.
23 December 1999
Applicant granted extension to appeal because counsel-caused delay and public-interest considerations justified late filing.
Court of Appeal — Extension of time — Rules 4 & 42 — Sufficient cause for delay — Counsel-caused delay due to insistence on security for stay of execution — Applicant abroad and need to raise substantial security — Interest of justice and public importance of large decretal sums.
23 December 1999
16 December 1999
Appellant’s conviction quashed for defective locus in quo proceedings and premature judicial demeanour findings; retrial ordered.
Criminal law — Evidence — Identification by single witness — Need for proper procedural safeguards and cautious evaluation of demeanour
Criminal procedure
— View of locus in quo — Presence of accused and right to cross‑examine witnesses — Article 28(5) Constitution
— Recording of witness demeanour in High Court — Impermissibility and impropriety of premature conclusions
16 December 1999
A robbery conviction based solely on a deceased's statements was unsafe where section 30(a) Evidence Act did not apply.
Evidence — Statements of deceased — Admissibility under s.30(a) Evidence Act — Section limited to statements when cause of death is in issue
Criminal law — Robbery — Reliance on statements of a deceased complainant — Conviction unsafe if founded solely on improperly admitted statements
8 December 1999
An award of unpleaded special damages for accrued emoluments was set aside for failure to plead and strictly prove them.
Pleadings and proof — Special damages must be specifically pleaded and strictly proved — Award of unpleaded damages; Sufficiency of evidence — evidence adduced at trial cannot substitute for required pleading where opposite party had no opportunity to meet it; Assessment — award for accrued emoluments must have clear, justifiable calculation.
7 December 1999
Credible eyewitness identification and established common intention upheld murder convictions despite claimed alibis and incitement.
Criminal law
— Murder — Common intention — Incitement does not absolve joint liability
— Evidence — Identification and credibility of eyewitnesses — Child witnesses and alleged intoxication
— Intent — Malice aforethought — Beating causing death
1 December 1999
November 1999
Assessor’s absence for part of trial rendered proceedings void, quashing conviction and ordering retrial.
Criminal law
— Trial procedure — Absence of assessor — Fundamental irregularity affecting jurisdiction — Trial on Indictment Decree s.67
— Remedy — Irregular trial not curable under s.137 T.I.D. — Retrial ordered
25 November 1999
Identification evidence upheld but aggravated robbery overturned for lack of proof of deadly weapon.
Criminal law
— Identification evidence — Visual identification at night — Caution, opportunity and familiarity as factors in reliability
— Robbery — Aggravated robbery — Necessity to prove use or threat of specified deadly weapon as particularised in indictment
25 November 1999
Whether senior civil servants' criminal liability for financial loss raises points of law of great public importance.
Criminal law — Appeals — Third-appeal certification — Whether a question raises law of great public or general importance — Judicature Statute s 6(5)
Constitutional/Administrative law — Accounting officers — Responsibility for proper expenditure — Permanent Secretary duties — 1967 Constitution art 67(2)(d)
Public law — Appointments — Qualifications of accounting officers — Policy matter for the Executive, not a justiciable point of law
24 November 1999
Eyewitness identification and corroborating medical evidence upheld murder convictions; appeal dismissed.
Criminal law
— Identification evidence — Single and multiple eyewitness identification — Safeguards and conditions for safe identification
— Defence — Alibi — Assessment where eyewitness evidence places accused at scene
— Causation and medical evidence — Sufficiency of post-mortem findings where internal examination limited
8 November 1999
Appellate court grants injunction and stay of execution to prevent further development after respondent's demolition of disputed property pending appeal.
Civil procedure — Stay of execution — Injunctions — Competence of appeal — Inherent powers of appellate court — Amendment of application after supervening events — Ends of justice — Abuse of process — Respondent’s wrongful demolition of suit property — Service of notice of appeal.
3 November 1999
Court granted stay of execution and injunction to prevent respondents benefiting from illegal demolition pending appeal.
Civil procedure — Stay of execution and interim injunction pending appeal — Competency of notice of appeal and service requirements — Inherent power to amend notice of motion and prevent abuse of process — Illegal demolition of suit property renders preservation orders nugatory — Costs awarded.
3 November 1999
October 1999
Intoxication found to negate malice aforethought; murder conviction quashed and substituted with manslaughter and 10-year sentence.
Criminal law
— Intoxication and criminal liability — Whether voluntary intoxication can negate malice aforethought under Penal Code s 13(4)
— Conviction substitution — Quashing murder conviction and substituting manslaughter under Penal Code s 182
29 October 1999
Court upheld respondent’s dismissal of the applicant for gross misconduct and allowed set‑off of losses against terminal benefits.
Employment law
— Dismissal for gross misconduct — Sufficiency of evidence to justify termination
— Disciplinary procedure — Suspension, union representation and condonation under Staff Standing Instructions and Union Agreement
— Deductions from terminal benefits — Employer’s right to recoup losses and set‑off advances for employee dishonesty
21 October 1999
Ownership of a vehicle raises a prima facie inference of vicarious liability; lost dependency and funeral expenses awarded with corrected multiplier.
Law Reform (
Miscellaneous Provisions) Act — actions for benefit of family members — requirements for naming and proving dependants; production/parading of dependants in court
Evidence — ownership of motor vehicle as prima facie evidence that vehicle was driven by owner or his servant; burden to rebut rests on owner
Vicarious liability — employer liability where servant causes death in course of employment; failure to rebut prima facie ownership inference
Damages — special funeral-related expenses recoverable even without receipts where foreseeable; assessing lost dependency (multiplicand and multiplier) and proper apportionment among dependants
21 October 1999
Dependants awarded lost dependency damages despite not being paraded; vicarious liability affirmed and special damages granted.
• Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act — dependency claims — requirement to produce dependants in court and proof of particulars; • Evidence — prima facie effect of vehicle ownership and burden to rebut to avoid vicarious liability; • Damages — foreseeable special damages recoverable without receipts; multiplier methodology for lost dependency and apportionment among children.
21 October 1999
Vehicle ownership creates prima facie vicarious liability; dependants awarded recalculated damages despite procedural irregularity.
Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act — dependency claims — production/parading of dependants — vehicle ownership as prima facie evidence of driving by owner/servant — vicarious liability — assessment of lost dependency (multiplier principle) — special funeral expenses recoverable without receipts.
21 October 1999
Short delay in serving Notice of Appeal excused where caused by clerical error, with extension of time granted by the court.
Civil procedure — extension of time — failure to comply with time limits due to inadvertence — sufficiency of cause — responsibility of counsel for action of clerks — omission from affidavit — judicial discretion under Rules of Court.
5 October 1999
A short delay in serving a Notice of Appeal due to an inadvertent clerical error was condoned, extending time for service.
Civil procedure — extension of time — service of notice of appeal out of time — sufficient cause — inadvertent error by legal clerk — relevance of supporting affidavit contents — judicial discretion.
5 October 1999
September 1999
Appeal dismissed as incompetent for non‑service of the Notice of Appeal; Registrar lawfully cancelled a tainted title under the Registration of Titles Act.
Civil procedure — Court of Appeal Rules — requirement to serve Notice of Appeal (rule 77(1)) — failure to serve renders appeal incompetent. Civil procedure — leave to appeal — lodging Notice of Appeal before grant of leave permissible (rule 75(4)). Land law — Registration of Titles Act — powers of Registrar to amend/cancel entries (ss. 69, 178(a)) — correction of Register where registration tainted by irregularities or obvious mistake
Evidence — admissions by appellant’s solicitors acknowledging irregularities supporting Registrar’s action
30 September 1999
Non‑service of a notice of appeal renders it incompetent; registrar may cancel title to correct obvious irregularities.
Land law — Registration of Titles Act — Registrar’s power to rectify Register/cancel certificate of title under ss.69 and 178(a) where obvious irregularities exist; Civil procedure — Court of Appeal Rules — rule 75(4) (lodging notice before leave) and rule 77 (service of notice of appeal) — failure to serve notice renders appeal incompetent.
30 September 1999
The court awarded costs to the applicant despite dismissing the application as it was bemused by events.
Civil procedure — appeal — extension of time — costs incurred due to misinterpretation of legal deadlines by counsel.
30 September 1999
Appellate court upheld UGX 15,000,000 general damages and 24% interest against a bank for wrongfully withholding a client's funds.
Bank liability for mishandling current account; general damages for injury to business reputation and credit; limits on awarding damages for lost profits; discretion to award interest under s.26(2)(3) Civil Procedure Act; appellate interference with quantum of damages.
16 September 1999
Proceedings instituted by counsel without a valid practising certificate are void and may be quashed with costs against counsel.
Civil procedure — validity of proceedings — institution of proceedings by counsel lacking a valid practising certificate — proceedings declared nullity and quashed
Costs — personal liability of counsel for costs where counsel knowingly conducted proceedings without practising authority
14 September 1999
Proceedings commenced by counsel without a valid practising certificate are nullities and will be quashed with personal costs.
Civil procedure — validity of proceedings — commencement by counsel without valid practising certificate — proceedings are nullities and liable to be quashed; Costs — personal liability of counsel who knowingly prosecutes without a practising certificate.
14 September 1999
Court granted extension of time to file notice of appeal due to counsel's justified delay and oversight by legal assistant.
Civil Procedure — extension of time — failure to file notice of appeal within prescribed time — sufficient cause — mistake by counsel — delay due to personal reasons — Rule 75(2) of the Court of Appeal Rules.
9 September 1999
Applicant withdrew the appeal under Court of Appeal Rule 42(3)(b); matter struck out and applicant ordered to pay respondent’s costs.
Civil procedure — Withdrawal of application — Court of Appeal Rules r.42(3)(b) — Withdrawal by applicant’s counsel permitted by consent. Civil procedure — Costs — Costs awarded where respondent requests costs on withdrawal and applicant concedes
3 September 1999
August 1999
Equitable lease arose from offer, acceptance and payment; laches did not bar specific performance where equitable title existed.
Property law — Lease — Contract for lease and equitable lease — Whether offer, acceptance and payment created enforceable equitable lease and entitlement to specific performance
Equity — Laches and limitation — Whether laches may bar specific performance where claimant has equitable title and went into possession; interplay with Limitation Act
12 August 1999
Appeal dismissed; conviction for murder upheld on reliable eyewitness identification, dying declaration and corroborative physical evidence.
Criminal law
— Murder — Identification evidence by household members — Visual identification and corroboration
— Evidence — Dying declaration and conduct after offence — Corroborative value
Criminal procedure — Trial irregularity — Ruling at 'case to answer' stage — Irregular but not necessarily fatal
5 August 1999
Malice aforethought not proved against the appellant; conviction reduced to manslaughter due to possible accidental shooting.
Criminal law — Murder v Manslaughter — Proof of malice aforethought
Criminal procedure — Evaluation of evidence — Duty to consider charge and caution statements and unsworn statements together with other evidence
Criminal law — Defences — Self‑defence, provocation and accidental discharge: assessment of credibility and impact on intent
2 August 1999
July 1999
Issuing bank exerted undue influence and failed to verify documentary conformity, causing liability for delivery of wrong machinery.
Banking law — Letters of credit — duty of issuing bank to verify conformity of documents; undue influence — bank officer pressuring purchaser’s agent; negligence in documentary payment — liability for loss of wrong goods; pre-shipment inspection discrepancies (SGS report, invoices, bill of lading); typographical error alleged as fraud; seizure of secured asset for loan default; costs apportionment on mixed outcome.
29 July 1999
A judge must not pronounce guilt when ruling on whether a prima facie case exists; such pronouncement vitiates the trial.
Criminal law
— Trial procedure — Prima facie case at close of prosecution — Judge must decide if evidence is fit to be left for accused to answer, not pronounce guilt — Trial on Indictments Decree s.71(2)
— Miscarriage of justice — Prejudicial pronouncement of guilt before accused is heard — Verdict vitiated and retrial required
29 July 1999
Appellate court condemned evaluating prosecution in isolation but upheld conviction after re‑evaluating the evidence.
Criminal law — Aggravated robbery — Evaluation of evidence — Prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt; trial judge must not evaluate prosecution case in isolation
Criminal procedure — Severability of judgment — Defective judgment may be severed from otherwise regular trial proceedings; appellate court may re‑evaluate and substitute judgment
Criminal law — Credibility and contradictions — Minor inconsistencies do not overturn conviction where accused was arrested at the scene; prejudicial comments on prior charges should be avoided
29 July 1999
Applicant granted extension to seek Supreme Court certificate due to the instructed advocates' failure to apply in time.
Appellate procedure
— Extension of time for filing — Whether delay caused by instructed advocate constitutes sufficient reason — Court of Appeal Rules r.4
— Certificate to appeal to Supreme Court — Duty of advocate to apply for certificate in timely manner — Fault of advocate not visited on applicant
28 July 1999
Contradictions in eyewitness evidence rendered the murder conviction unsafe; accidental discharge not excluded.
Criminal law — Murder — Evaluation of contradictions in eyewitness evidence — Accidental shooting versus malice aforethought — Standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt
28 July 1999
Advocate's default may justify extension of time to seek a certificate to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Civil procedure — Appeals
— Extension of time to apply for certificate to Supreme Court — Advocate's default as sufficient reason
— Effect of judgment being read by Registrar — Informal application unavailable at delivery of judgment
28 July 1999
Delay caused by counsel’s default is sufficient reason to grant extension of time to apply for a certificate to appeal.
Civil procedure — extension of time — rule 4 — sufficient reason required; Counsel’s default — fault of advocate as sufficient reason for client's extension; Procedural requirements for certificate to appeal to Supreme Court; Evidentiary role of affidavits in applications for extension.
28 July 1999
Extension of time granted to apply for certificate where delay was caused by the applicants’ advocates, not the applicants.
Civil procedure — Extension of time — Rule 4 — Delay caused by advocate’s default constitutes sufficient reason for extension to apply for certificate to appeal to Supreme Court; judgment read by Registrar relevant to timing.
28 July 1999
Appeal partly allowed: inadmissible hearsay medical report influenced an excessive damages award, reduced on appeal.
Civil appeal — Personal injuries arising from a motor-vehicle accident — Admissibility of medical evidence — hearsay medical report inadmissible — proof of loss of hearing and speech on balance of probabilities — assessment of general damages — appellate interference only where award is based on wrong principle or is inordinately high/low — reduction of general damages.
22 July 1999
June 1999
29 June 1999
The court dismissed the appeal due to failure to serve the petition on a necessary respondent, rendering it a nullity.
Election Law — Service of petitions — Mandatory versus waivable procedural defects — Court's authority to extend statutory time limits.
29 June 1999
Registrar's authority affirmed to issue warrants of attachment in Court of Appeal under Judicature Statute.
Civil Procedure — appellate jurisdiction — execution authority of the Court of Appeal — Registrar's competence to issue warrants of attachment under the Judicature Statute.
29 June 1999
The court upheld discretion in awarding general damages for police-inflicted injuries, dismissing the appeal for larger compensation.
Tort law — Negligence — Police shooting — Damages assessment — Discretion of trial judge in awarding general damages.
26 June 1999
Appeal dismissed: conditional sale treated as hire; respondent entitled to possession and hire damages.
Contract v sale — conditional sale converted to hire; detinue — entitlement to possession and damages for loss of hire; appeal practice — new locus standi point not entertained on appeal; hearsay evidence properly rejected; assessment of damages in detinue measured to date of judgment.
25 June 1999
Interest on costs against the Government is not automatic and requires a court order and a taxation certificate.
Government Proceedings Act — applicability — English Crown Proceedings Act not applicable; domestic law governs proceedings against Government
Civil Procedure Act s.21(2) — interest on costs discretionary; costs do not carry interest unless ordered and pleaded
Government Proceedings Act s.20(1) — certificate of taxation required before Government payment; demand to Treasury insufficient
25 June 1999
Delay excused where trial record missing and time for preparing the record is excluded under Rule 82(2).
Appeal procedure — striking out notice of appeal — alleged delay — missing trial court file — time to file excluded while preparing record (Rule 82(2)) — responsibility of Civil Registry for missing records — appellate court cannot order retrial or administrative file reconstruction; reconstruction is for trial court.
15 June 1999
A Rule 109 reference need not include formal grounds; an informative letter suffices, so the objection was rejected with costs.
Civil procedure — Rule 109 Court of Appeal Rules — Reference against Registrar (taxing officer) — Informal references permitted — sufficiency of grounds in a letter. Procedural law — requirement of grounds and prayer — complaint must put respondent on notice but need not be in formal memorandum form
Precedent — earlier case not authoritative to impose formal memorandum requirement
15 June 1999
Extension of time granted where counsel's negligence and circumstances constituted sufficient cause; applicant not penalized for counsel’s error.
Civil procedure — extension of time under Court of Appeal Rules, r.4 — sufficient cause — delay caused by counsel’s negligence or death — counsel’s error not necessarily imputed to applicant — discretion to extend time.
4 June 1999
Extension of time granted where counsel's negligence caused delay; counsel ordered to pay the application's costs personally.
Civil procedure — Extension of time under Rule 4 — Meaning of "sufficient reason" — Counsel's negligence as possible ground for extension — Discretionary relief to be assessed on facts; costs may be ordered against counsel personally where delay attributable solely to counsel.
1 June 1999
