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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 2010 |
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Appellant’s appeal allowed: special damages unproved and vicarious liability for off‑loaders not established; High Court award set aside.
Civil procedure – limitation of appeals under s.79 Civil Procedure Act – procedural irregularity and discretionary relief; Contract of carriage – passenger’s luggage – proof of special damages – requirement to plead and prove value; Vicarious liability – theft by off‑loaders – necessity to prove employment and acting in course of employment; Evidentiary value of uncertified cargo manifests.
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22 December 2010 |
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Appellate court upheld identification and conviction but substituted a harsh death sentence with 15 years’ imprisonment.
Criminal law – aggravated robbery – visual identification and recognition evidence – factors favouring identification (light, prior acquaintance, time and proximity) – contradictions in witness accounts – appellate re-appraisal of evidence under Rule 30 – standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt – sentencing: reduction of death penalty to fixed term.
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14 December 2010 |
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Conviction for aggravated robbery upheld; death sentence reduced to life imprisonment after appellate re-evaluation.
Criminal law – Aggravated robbery – ingredients of theft and participation – recovery of stolen property and extra-judicial confession as corroboration; minor witness inconsistencies immaterial; agreed medical PF.3 forms admissible; appellate re-evaluation on first appeal; sentence reduced from death to life imprisonment.
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1 December 2010 |
| November 2010 |
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Whether the trial judge properly assessed medical and identification evidence in upholding a rape conviction.
* Criminal law – Rape – evaluation of medical evidence; judge may reject inconclusive medical report if of no probative value. * Identification – visual and voice recognition, prolonged proximity and contemporaneous complaint support reliability. * Evidence – complaint to third party admissible to prove identity of assailant. * Appeals – appellate court re-evaluates evidence but gives weight to trial judge’s credibility findings when properly founded.
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23 November 2010 |
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22 November 2010 |
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Appellant's age and illness do not mitigate aggravated defilement; life sentences substituted for lenient 12‑year terms.
* Criminal law – Defilement – Aggravated defilement where victims under 14 – severe penalty available. * Sentencing – Aggravating features (extreme cruelty, restraint) outweigh age and ill‑health mitigation. * Appeal – appellate court may increase sentence where original term is unduly lenient.
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16 November 2010 |
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Self-defence rejected; common intention and identification proven; death sentence upheld for brutal, deliberate murder.
Criminal law – Murder – self-defence – availability where accused's account contradicted by evidence; identification and corroboration; common intention; sentencing – appropriateness of death penalty for particularly brutal killings.
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14 November 2010 |
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Appeal against defilement conviction dismissed: child’s immediate complaint and medical evidence sufficiently proved guilt; sentence upheld.
* Criminal law – Defilement – sufficiency of evidence – circumstantial and corroborative proof by immediate complaint and medical findings (ruptured hymen, mobile sperm). * Evidence – admissibility and corroborative value of a child’s complaint to a third person. * Criminal procedure – appellate review of sentence – appellate restraint where trial court exercised sentencing discretion judicially.
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14 November 2010 |
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Appeal against an 18‑year sentence for defiling a three‑year‑old dismissed despite claimed mental illness.
Criminal law – Sentence appeal – Defilement of a child – Victim age as aggravating factor – Alleged mental illness as potential mitigation – Appellate discretion to uphold sentence to deter offences against children.
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10 November 2010 |
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Appellate court upholds 15‑year sentence for sexual offence against a seven‑year‑old, finding mitigation properly weighed.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Appeal against sentence – Whether appellate court should interfere with a 15‑year term where offence against a seven‑year‑old is punishable by death; consideration of mitigation (guilty plea and remorse).
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8 November 2010 |
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Appellate court upheld 16-year defilement sentence; appellant’s youth insufficient mitigation to disturb sentence.
Criminal law – Defilement – severity of offence and sentencing; appellate interference with sentence – role of mitigation (age, guilty plea, first-offender status, time on remand) – trial judge’s discretion upheld.
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7 November 2010 |
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Interim injunction denied where the applicant disobeyed an existing court order and thus lacked 'clean hands'.
Constitutional jurisdiction (Article 137(3)) – interim injunctions – interlocutory relief pending constitutional petition – equitable relief and the clean hands doctrine – effect of disobedience to court orders on entitlement to injunctions.
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5 November 2010 |
| October 2010 |
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Appellant convicted of embezzlement and forgery; accomplice testimony and circumstantial evidence, plus failure to explain withdrawals, upheld.
Criminal law – Embezzlement and forgery – proof by circumstantial and direct evidence – accomplice evidence and corroboration – burden under s.105 Evidence Act – right to silence and adverse inference – sentencing for misuse of public funds.
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20 October 2010 |
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Consent settlement authorized court assessment of past losses; damages affirmed and interest increased to a 20% commercial rate.
Contract law – consent judgment – consent to court assessment of damages supersedes pleadings; damages to be proved on evidence – distinction between pre‑consent damages and prospective profits dropped by consent – costs agreement construed to exclude post‑consent assessment costs – commercial interest rate appropriate in commercial transactions.
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12 October 2010 |
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A certificate of repossession under the Expropriated Properties Act entitles former leaseholders to possession; reversionary interest is subordinate.
Expropriated Properties Act – effect on existing leaseholds – section 1(2)(b) – certificate of repossession confirms entitlement to repossess; Mailo/reversionary interest – subordinate to leasehold continued by Expropriated Properties Act; Registration of Titles Act – does not defeat repossession under Expropriated Properties Act; physical repossession completes the repossession process.
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11 October 2010 |
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Evidentiary proof of an Islamic marriage and failure to rebut registered ownership resulted in dismissal of the appeal.
* Family law – validity of Islamic marriage – proof by ceremony, witnesses, cohabitation, and conduct under the Marriage and Divorce of Mohammedans Act. * Succession/Property – title to mailo land registered in deceased’s name; burden lies on challengers to prove non-ownership. * Trusts – alleged trusteeship must be established by clear evidence. * Appellate review – Court of Appeal reappraises evidence and will not disturb trial findings absent compelling reason.
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4 October 2010 |
| September 2010 |
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The applicants' challenge fails: the trial judge's credibility finding and documentary admissions supported the respondent's claim.
Contract — supply of agricultural produce; recovery of advance payments; credibility of witnesses — appellate deference to trial judge; admissibility and weight of documents admitted by consent; proof of special damages.
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29 September 2010 |
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An equitable mortgagee cannot register mortgaged land without foreclosure or required ministerial consent; unlawful transfer warrants compensation.
* Land law – equitable mortgage by deposit of title – mortgagee cannot transfer or register mortgaged land in own name without foreclosure.
* Statutory requirement – Land Transfer Act – ministerial consent required for transfers to Non‑Africans; lack of consent renders transfer illegal.
* Evidence – admissibility and probative value of photocopied sale agreements and bank documents; discrepancies negate corroboration.
* Burden of proof – shifts to party asserting legality once illegality is raised in evidence.
* Remedies – where mortgagor dispossessed and property registered to third party, compensation, mesne profits and general damages appropriate.
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20 September 2010 |
| August 2010 |
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Foreclosure sale set aside for unlawful procedure and impermissible clog on the mortgagor's equity of redemption.
Mortgage law – foreclosure sale – validity of sale where statutory notices not properly served and auctioneer did not advertise; receipt by mortgagee of payments before sale operates to discharge mortgagor; equity of redemption – clog or fetter invalid; purchaser with notice not bona fide.
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26 August 2010 |
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A will lacking signatures of two competent attestators and plagued by material inconsistencies is invalid and the estate is intestate.
* Succession law – validity of wills – attestation requirements under sections 36 and 50 – necessity of two or more competent attestators. * Evidence – credibility of attestators – witness who did not see testator sign nor know contents unreliable. * Multiple wills and inconsistencies – material discrepancies may nullify testamentary document and lead to intestacy.
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25 August 2010 |
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Refusal to readmit appeal was unjustified where counsel withdrawal and new counsel's omission established sufficient cause.
* Civil procedure – Re-admission / extension of time – sufficient cause to file submissions late; effect of counsel withdrawal; substantive justice under Article 126(2)(e). * Appellate review – interference with discretionary refusal to re-admit where fairness requires merits hearing. * Land law – importance of allowing full investigation of ancestral ownership claims.
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12 August 2010 |
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Representative tobacco farmers entitled to damages for unpurchased crop; 26% interest reduced to 15% per annum.
* Contract law – agricultural sponsorship agreements – obligation of sponsor to purchase crop and to grade and maintain records; evidential consequences of sponsor’s failure to grade or produce records.
* Civil procedure – representative actions – sufficiency of lists and secondary evidence to establish common interest and locus standi.
* Evidence – admissibility and weight of secondary evidence (compiled lists, witness testimony) and burden of proof where defendant holds primary records.
* Remedies – assessment of damages for unpurchased crop, offsets for loans, and statutory interest under Tobacco (Control and Marketing) Regulations; substituting interest where pleaded rate is unsupported.
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1 August 2010 |
| July 2010 |
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High Court erred in ordering execution of a labour officer's award without resolving pending appeal and stay applications.
* Labour law – Execution of labour officer awards – Jurisdiction to order execution where Industrial Court not constituted – Interaction of Employment Act ss.13 and 94 with Trade Disputes rules and stays of execution.
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29 July 2010 |
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The appellant proved fraud in title transfers, allowing impeachment of the respondents' certificates of title; appeal allowed with costs.
Registration of Titles – fraud vitiating certificates – s.77 and s.176 Registration of Titles Act – when a court may go behind the register – purchaser on notice – burden and proof of fraud; failure to testify as evidential factor.
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26 July 2010 |
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Court finds fraud in land title registration, supports appellant’s inheritance claim.
Civil Procedure - land dispute - fraud in the transfer and registration of land titles - inheritance rights.
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26 July 2010 |
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Whether a 14‑year‑old’s evidence requires a voir dire and whether corroboration and life sentence for defilement were proper.
* Criminal law – Defilement – Corroboration of unsworn evidence of a child – contemporaneous statements and medical evidence as corroboration. * Evidence – Section 40(3) Trial on Indictments Act – voir dire required only where witness is a child of tender years (under 14 at trial). * Sentence – Appeal against sentence – interference only where sentence is illegal or manifestly excessive; life sentence upheld where aggravating factors present.
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23 July 2010 |
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Court allowed amendment to join the Attorney General, holding proposed particulars merely elaborated original fraud allegations and were not time‑barred.
* Civil procedure – Amendment of pleadings – Order 6 rules – Amendment that elaborates existing allegations is permissible and should be allowed where it does not change the subject matter of the suit.* Civil procedure – Joinder/Substitution – Order 1 r10 – Attorney General must be joined where allegations implicate government officials and are necessary for complete adjudication.* Expropriated Properties Act s.15(1) and limitation – ministerial decisions deemed communicated when received; absence of proof of communication may prevent limitation running.* Pleadings – particulars of fraud – amplification of particulars does not necessarily create a new cause of action and will not be disallowed merely for introducing greater detail.* Principle against multiplicity of suits – court discretion should favour joinder to enable effectual determination.
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16 July 2010 |
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Leave to amend the plaint and join the Attorney General was wrongly refused where amendments did not introduce a new cause of action.
Civil procedure – amendment of pleadings – joinder of parties – whether proposed amendments introduce a new cause of action – proper exercise of judicial discretion – necessity of joining the Attorney General when government officials are implicated.
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16 July 2010 |
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14 July 2010 |
| June 2010 |
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The appellant’s intoxication and provocation defences failed; murder conviction and death sentence affirmed.
* Criminal law – murder – defences – intoxication: mere opinion of drunkenness insufficient; must show lack of knowledge of act or of wrongfulness (Penal Code s.12). * Criminal law – murder – provocation: objective ordinary‑person test; trivial insults do not afford defence (Penal Code s.193). * Sentencing – mitigation – brutal, unprovoked killing of elderly victim: death sentence affirmed.
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28 June 2010 |
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Conviction quashed where circumstantial evidence was insufficient and the appellant’s alibi was not disproved.
Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence – standard requiring inculpatory facts incompatible with innocence – alibi – failure to disprove alibi – hearsay evidence inadmissible where dependent on absent third party – trial judge’s evaluation of defence witness.
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28 June 2010 |
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Criminal law
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23 June 2010 |
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Evidence Law|Witness Testimony
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23 June 2010 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law
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16 June 2010 |
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Criminal law
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10 June 2010 |
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Civil Procedure|Criminal law
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6 June 2010 |
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Criminal law
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2 June 2010 |
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Criminal law
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1 June 2010 |
| May 2010 |
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Registrar entitled to hear interim stay applications; injunctions are executable and may be stayed; reference dismissed.
Practice Direction No.1 of 2004 – powers of Registrars – interim orders; Civil Procedure – executability of injunctions – stay of execution; Appellate procedure – Rule 42 discretion to entertain applications without prior High Court application; Distinction between interim relief and substantive stay of execution.
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25 May 2010 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law|Evaluation of Evidence
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11 May 2010 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law
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3 May 2010 |
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Evidence Law|Admissibility
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3 May 2010 |
| April 2010 |
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Criminal law
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23 April 2010 |
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The applicant's appeal succeeded: the hired vehicle's destruction frustrated the contract, extinguishing the respondent's claim.
Contract law – hire of vehicle – destruction of subject matter – frustration of contract – discharge of mutual obligations; possession/custody – police impoundment vs constructive custody; notification of accident; mitigation and interest.
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16 April 2010 |
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Hire contract discharged by frustration after accident destroyed the vehicle; claimant failed to prove fault and is not entitled to damages.
Contract law – frustration – destruction of subject matter – hire agreement discharged when vehicle destroyed by accident; possession – police custody vs constructive custody; evidentiary burden – claimant must prove fault to recover damages; notification of loss – informal notification by driver accepted.
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16 April 2010 |
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Whether an owner may recover rent arrears when the property was vested in Government and managed by the statutory custodian.
• Property law – Expropriated properties – effect of Expropriated Properties/Assets of Departed Asians legislation on landlord/tenancy rights and entitlement to rent arrears. • Contract law – formation and enforceability of settlement letters; consideration and forbearance. • Contract vitiation – mistake of fact or law and its effect where parties knew payments had been made to a statutory custodian. • Remedies – entitlement to damages/interest where settlement accepted but not fully performed (dissent).
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16 April 2010 |
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Criminal law
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15 April 2010 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law
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13 April 2010 |
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A statutory declaration and documentary trail can prove degazettement and render a registered title indefeasible absent proved fraud.
* Forest reserves – Degazettement – Statutory Instrument and supporting documentary evidence can establish excision of land from a reserve. * Land registration – Indefeasibility of registered title under the Registration of Titles Act – transferee's title not impeachable absent proved fraud attributable to transferee. * Evidence – burden and standard to prove degazettement and fraud; special damages must be specifically pleaded and strictly proved. * Damages – speculative awards reduced; requirements for defamation proof (identification and actual harm).
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9 April 2010 |
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A valid registered mortgage did exist, but the spouse’s equitable interest in the matrimonial home prevented enforcement and rendered eviction unlawful.
Land law – mortgage validity – formal compliance with Registration of Titles Act; surety may be treated as principal debtor/mortgagor as between surety and mortgagee; equitable interest of non-registered spouse in matrimonial home protects against enforcement of mortgage and unlawful eviction; statutes enacted after the mortgage (Land Act 1998, Mortgage Act 2009) not applicable to pre-existing instruments.
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9 April 2010 |
