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Citation
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Judgment date
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| August 2022 |
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Convictions affirmed on recent-possession circumstantial evidence and discredited alibi; sentences reduced as manifestly excessive.
Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence; identification by single witness and identification parade; alleged police influence; doctrine of recent possession to infer participation in robbery and murder; alibi disproved by prison records; sentencing – parity, consistency and manifestly excessive sentences; appellate substitution under Judicature Act s.11.
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26 August 2022 |
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Respondents failed to strictly prove fraud or customary title; appellate court restored registered titles and removed caveat.
Land law – Registered title – Indefeasibility and fraud – Allegation of fraud must be proved strictly before cancelling a certificate of title; Customary/ancestral land – party asserting customary title must prove customs and instances of exercise; Transfer by gift – absence of payment not, of itself, evidence of fraud against transferee; Appellate review – first appellate court must reappraise evidence and may draw its own inferences.
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26 August 2022 |
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Court granted interim stay of High Court decree pending substantive stay application, finding lis pendens inapplicable.
Civil procedure – Interim stay of execution – Requirement of notice of appeal, substantive stay application and threat of execution – preservation of status quo. Civil procedure – Lis pendens (s.6 Civil Procedure Act) – Application dismissed where prior applications found concluded – abuse of process. Court of Appeal jurisdiction – power under Court rules to grant interim stays pending substantive applications and appeals
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26 August 2022 |
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Application for interim stay dismissed: no Notice of Appeal and no properly filed substantive application despite threat of execution.
Stay of execution — prerequisites: Notice of Appeal; substantive application properly filed and registered; serious threat of execution — Eccmis draft number not proof of filing; failure to satisfy mandatory conditions defeats interim stay.
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25 August 2022 |
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Interim stay denied where substantive application and threat existed but the Notice of Appeal was incompetent.
Civil procedure – Interim stay of execution – Requirements for interim stay: competent Notice of Appeal, substantive application pending, serious threat of execution – Competence of Notice of Appeal requires Registrar endorsement and proper service.
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25 August 2022 |
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15-year sentence for aggravated defilement upheld; remand period and mitigation were adequately considered.
Criminal law – Aggravated defilement – Sentencing – Article 23(8) Constitution – Period on remand to be taken into account – Timing of jurisprudential change on arithmetic deduction – Mitigating factors – Appellate restraint on sentence interference.
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24 August 2022 |
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Stay granted for fine but committal to imprisonment not stayed for lack of notice of appeal and overtaken events.
Contempt of court – social-media disparagement – stay of execution pending appeal; Court of Appeal jurisdiction under rule 6(2)(b) requires notice of appeal; Gashumba criteria for stay (likelihood of success, irreparable harm, balance of convenience, promptness); admissibility of supplementary affidavits requires leave; right to be heard and recusal applications considered by trial judge.
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19 August 2022 |
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A contemnor convicted of criminal contempt cannot obtain temporary release; available remedies are bail pending appeal or pardon; repetitive applications struck out.
Contempt of court – distinction between criminal and civil contempt – scandalising the court constitutes criminal contempt – remedies after conviction: bail pending appeal or pardon; no ‘temporary release’ remedy – purgation and right of audience – abuse of court process and vexatious litigation – striking out repetitive applications.
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19 August 2022 |
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12 August 2022 |
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Application for interim stay dismissed; appeal lacked likelihood of success and counsel produced a forged order, referral to Law Council ordered.
Civil procedure – interim stay of execution – Kyambogo criteria for stay; locus standi and limitation as grounds for dismissal; forgery and unethical conduct by counsel; proper forum for stays of execution (High Court v Court of Appeal).
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10 August 2022 |
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Second appeal: bank held to have breached banker–customer duty after handwriting expert showed disputed signatures inconsistent with specimen.
Banking law — banker–customer relationship — alleged standing orders and electronic instructions — admissibility and weight of handwriting expert evidence — breach of banker’s duty by payments contrary to signature card; civil second appeal — scope and re-evaluation of facts where first appellate court failed to properly assess evidence.
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9 August 2022 |
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Court dismissed UTL's judicial review for challenging the correctness of NSSF's decision and found a breach of fair hearing in execution proceedings.
Administrative law – Judicial review – Distinction between review of decision-making process and correctness of decisions; fair hearing – parties must be heard when matter adjourned for hearing; civil procedure – section 6 Civil Procedure Act and concurrent jurisdiction of Industrial Court; abuse of process/forum shopping.
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8 August 2022 |
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Appellant failed to prove lack of qualifications or bribery; election valid and appeal dismissed.
Election law – Candidate qualifications – proof of academic credentials and identity; Evidence – evaluation of witness credibility and materiality of inconsistencies; Electoral offences – bribery – elements: gift by candidate/agent, intent to influence registered voters, proof of recipients being registered voters; Electronic evidence – admissibility and authenticity under the Electronic Transactions Act 2011; Appellate review – re-evaluation of affidavit and oral evidence.
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5 August 2022 |
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Applicant’s bribery, violence and irregularity allegations were not proved on the balance of probabilities; appeal dismissed.
Electoral law — Standard of proof in election petitions: balance of probabilities (s.61(3) PEA) but serious allegations require careful scrutiny; Bribery — necessity for credible, corroborated evidence; single partisan witness insufficient; Admissibility — undated/unauthenticated photographs and hearsay affidavits weak; Election irregularities — only those that substantially affect result justify setting aside election; Evidence of violence — need for corroboration/police documentation.
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5 August 2022 |
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Expired practicing certificate does not automatically invalidate affidavits; affidavit defects alone do not mandate dismissal of an election petition.
Election law – validity of affidavits – advocate’s practicing certificate – Commissioners for Oaths – s.14A Advocates (Amendment) Act – Parliamentary Elections Act s.64 – whether defective or absent principal affidavit invalidates election petition – remittal for trial on merits.
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5 August 2022 |
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Appellant failed to prove lack of qualification or bribery; electronic video evidence was inadmissible, appeal dismissed.
Election law – candidate qualifications under Parliamentary Elections Act – proof of identity and academic documents; Election law – bribery – elements required: gift, giver (candidate/agent), intent to influence a registered voter; Evidence – admissibility of electronic/video evidence – requirements under the Electronic Transactions Act; Appellate review – evaluation of credibility findings of trial court in election petitions.
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5 August 2022 |
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A defective affidavit does not invalidate a Local Council election petition, which may proceed with other admissible evidence.
Election petitions – defective affidavits – section 4(1) of the Commissioner for Oaths (Advocates) Act – effect of affidavit commissioned by advocate from representing law firm – procedure for challenging election petitions – admissibility of affidavits based on information – requirements for certification of public documents – timelines for filing affidavits in Local Council election petitions.
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5 August 2022 |
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Administrator’s fraudulent sale and purchaser’s lack of due diligence defeated bona fide purchaser protection; transfers cancelled, beneficiaries registered.
Land law – succession and trusts – administrator’s duties and trust property; transfer procured by administrator in breach of trust; bona fide purchaser for value without notice – requirement of due diligence and imputation of agent’s notice to purchaser; admissibility of evidence given by witnesses subsequently joined as parties; proof of Letters of Administration.
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5 August 2022 |
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Appeal dismissed for failure to prove lack of qualification, bribery, or admissible electronic evidence.
Election law candidate qualifications; identity and academic documents; impersonation/uttering of documents; bribery under Parliamentary Elections Act (donations/gifts, agent liability, intent); admissibility and authentication of electronic evidence under the Electronic Transactions Act; appellate review of credibility findings in election petitions.
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5 August 2022 |
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4 August 2022 |
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Contradictory dying declarations and unreliable identification rendered the murder conviction unsafe; appellants acquitted.
Evidence — dying declarations — contradictory statements made to different witnesses at different times and places may be discounted if materially inconsistent
Evidence — identification — eyewitness identification from a distance and without prior acquaintance or an identification parade is unsafe and prone to mistake. Criminal appeal — first appellate court duty to re-appraise evidence afresh; unsafe convictions must be set aside
Sentence — where conviction is quashed the sentence cannot stand
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2 August 2022 |
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Majority: appellant failed to prove bribery, violence or irregularities substantially affected the election; appeal dismissed.
Election law – Local Governments Act – election petition – burden and standard of proof (balance of probabilities) – bribery – identification of recipients and voters’ register – agency by recognition and acceptance – undue influence/violence – publication of false statements – substantial effect of irregularities on result – costs; majority dismissal; dissent would annul election.
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1 August 2022 |
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Court of Appeal clarifies standard of proof in local government election petitions and upholds the respondent’s election by majority decision.
Electoral law – Election petitions – Standard of proof in election petitions – Bribery and illegal practices – Burden of proof – Agency of candidates – Evaluation of evidence – Whether electoral offences proven to warrant nullification – Majority and dissenting opinion.
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1 August 2022 |
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Whether a Country Manager may sign pleadings and depose affidavits under Order 29 r.1 and whether unresolved affidavit falsehoods require remittal.
Company law & civil procedure — corporate representation — Order 29 r.1 permits secretary, director or other principal officer to sign pleadings and depose to facts; Order 3 r.2 not applicable to such principal officers; authority to appear versus power of attorney/board resolution; appellate jurisdiction — powers of High Court on appeal (Order 43 rr.2,20,27) and limited scope of second appeal under Civil Procedure Act (ss.72,74); remittal to trial court where issues raise mixed fact and law (affidavit falsehoods/hearsay).
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1 August 2022 |
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A litigation-financing agreement giving a capped share of proceeds was champertous, illegal, and unenforceable; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure – Champerty and maintenance – financing litigation in return for share of proceeds – tendency to corrupt administration of justice renders agreement illegal and unenforceable
Contracts Act 2010 – non-retroactivity – statutory exceptions to unenforceability do not apply to agreements concluded before commencement. Quantum meruit – cannot revive rights under an illegal contract. Appellate review – first appeal duty to reappraise evidence; preliminary objection validly upheld where agreement legally void
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1 August 2022 |
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Whether alleged falsification, violence and evidentiary exclusions vitiated the parliamentary election result.
Election law – admissibility of uncertified electoral forms; effect when certified copies are later produced – Electronic evidence – WhatsApp printouts admitted by author; authenticity burden discharged – Election petition – falsification of results; requirement to compare DR forms with tally/return forms – Electoral offences – violence, intimidation and partisan recruitment; materiality and vicarious liability under section 61(1)(c) PEA.
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1 August 2022 |
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Conviction for aggravated defilement upheld; discretionary refusal to recall witnesses correct; sentence reduced as manifestly excessive.
Criminal law – Aggravated defilement – credibility of child witness; minor inconsistencies do not necessarily vitiate evidence – medical corroboration (PF3A) sufficient to prove penetration however slight – discretionary power to recall witnesses; no automatic right to re‑cross‑examination – appellate interference with sentence where manifestly excessive; substitution of term.
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1 August 2022 |
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Appellate court set aside election petition dismissal, found wrongful exclusion of material evidence, and remitted the case for retrial.
Election law – admissibility and form of affidavits – Commissioners for Oaths appointment and gazetting – jurat requirements and curability – contested signatures and requirement to hear witnesses – evidential weight of Biometric Voter Verification Machine printouts – proof of electoral offences and substantiality test – costs in electoral petitions.
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1 August 2022 |
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Appeal allowed where petitioner failed to prove omitted polling station results would substantially affect the declared election outcome.
Election law – admissibility and proof of Declaration of Results (DR) forms; burden of proof in election petitions; interruption/adjournment under Local Government Act Section 133; substantial effect test for nullifying election; remedies and costs where winning margin is narrow.
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1 August 2022 |
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The court held that election result forms in a petition need not be certified to be admissible if authenticity is shown.
Electoral law – Parliamentary elections – Admissibility of Declaration of Results Forms and Tally Sheets – Certification under Evidence Act – Standard of proof regarding falsification of results – Substantial effect of noncompliance on election outcome.
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1 August 2022 |
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The court upheld the election result, finding no proven substantial irregularities or falsification sufficient to overturn the declared outcome.
Election petition appeal – Admissibility of evidence – Certification of electoral documents – Allegations of falsification and irregularities – Standard required for invalidating election results – Role of violence and partisan recruitment in election petitions – Substantial effect on election results.
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1 August 2022 |
