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Citation
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Judgment date
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| May 2023 |
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The conviction of first appellant is upheld due to credible identification, but second appellant is acquitted.
Criminal Law – Appeal against conviction and sentence – Identification of accused at the crime scene – Alibi defense and sentence appropriateness.
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31 May 2023 |
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Stay of execution denied because no valid notice of appeal existed and no extension/validation of time had been sought.
Civil procedure — Stay of execution pending appeal — Requirement of a valid Notice of Appeal filed in time — Back‑dating allegations and registrar records — Mistake of counsel relevant to extension applications but does not validate an untimely notice within a stay application — Extension/validation of time must be sought separately.
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30 May 2023 |
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An interim stay was granted to suspend monetary execution pending determination of the substantive stay application and appeal.
Civil procedure – Stay of execution – Interim relief – three-prong test: competent notice of appeal, substantive stay application pending, and serious threat of execution. Partial execution (eviction/vacant possession) does not necessarily render interim relief moot where monetary enforcement remains possible. Stay may be limited to monetary decretal orders (mesne profits, damages, costs).
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30 May 2023 |
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Appeal dismissed due to non-compliance with procedural rules in framing grounds of appeal.
Criminal law - Appeal - Evaluation of evidence - Compliance with procedural rules in appeal submissions.
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30 May 2023 |
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A non-party seeking stay of execution pending review lacks locus where decree executed and certificates of title issued.
Stay of execution – locus standi of non-party – review pending in Court of Appeal – criteria for stay (irreparable harm, likelihood of success, balance of convenience, delay) – execution completed and certificates of title issued – consequential vacant possession proceedings.
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29 May 2023 |
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Extension granted to file record of appeal out of time due to counsel's omission and COVID-19 related delays.
Civil procedure — Extension of time — Rule 5 Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) — "Sufficient reason" — Omission or negligence of counsel — Notice of Appeal filed out of time — COVID-19 restrictions — Land dispute to be heard on merits.
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29 May 2023 |
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Conviction quashed for insufficient evidence and failure to state reasons for departing from assessors' joint opinion.
Criminal law – murder – identification and dying declaration evidence – delays and credibility issues; chain of custody of exhibits; Trial on Indictments Act s.82(3) – assessors’ opinion – mandatory duty of judge to state reasons when departing; miscarriage of justice.
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25 May 2023 |
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Unreliable evidence and failure to state reasons for departing from assessors' majority opinion caused acquittal.
Criminal law – murder – identification and dying declaration – undue delay in reporting – chain of custody of exhibits – assessors' joint opinion – s.82(3) Trial on Indictments Act – failure to give reasons for departing from assessors – miscarriage of justice.
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25 May 2023 |
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Life sentence for pre-2019 murder conviction substituted with 20 years, less pre-trial custody, totaling 16 years 8 months.
Criminal law – Murder – Sentence appeal – Meaning of "life imprisonment" for offences committed before 2019 amendment – conversion to determinate term (20 years) and deduction of pre-trial custody – mitigation: youth and first offender.
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25 May 2023 |
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Appeal where missing trial record led to quashed convictions; hearsay could not corroborate single-witness identification.
Criminal law – missing/incomplete trial record – appellate options: retrial or quash conviction; Identification evidence – single eyewitness reliability and need for independent corroboration; Hearsay – investigating officer recounting crowd rumours inadmissible as corroboration; Procedure – appellate resentencing under section 11 Judicature Act; Pre-trial detention – deduction under Article 28(3) of the Constitution.
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25 May 2023 |
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Interim injunction refused where appeal not validly served and applicants failed to show fraud or fresh demand on guarantees.
Court of Appeal — service of Notice of Appeal (Rule 78) — validity of appeal; Interim injunctions — payment on demand guarantees — fraud and unconscionability as exceptional grounds; Demands — distinction between calls by beneficiaries and guarantor’s counter‑indemnity demands; Interlocutory appeals — exhaustion of High Court remedies and abuse of process.
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25 May 2023 |
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Murder sentences on a guilty plea warrant reduction; 22 years reduced to 15 years (less remand), for a 12-year effective term.
Criminal law – Murder – Sentencing – Guilty plea as a mitigating factor – Appellate interference only where sentence is based on wrong principle, overlooks material fact, or is manifestly harsh or excessive – Deduction for time on remand – Concurrent sentences.
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25 May 2023 |
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Second appeal dismissed; Court upheld that second appeals are limited to points of law and affirmed concurrent factual findings.
Criminal appeals — Second appeal limited to points of law under s.45 Criminal Procedure Code Act; compliance with Rule 66(2) — requirement to specify points of law; duty of first appellate court to re‑evaluate evidence; concurrent findings of fact — interference only for miscarriage of justice; allegations of bias must be supported by material.
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25 May 2023 |
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21 May 2023 |
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21 May 2023 |
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Applicant granted temporary injunction but denied substantive stay for failure to deposit security for due performance.
Civil procedure — stay of execution — requirements: prima facie case/likelihood of success, irreparable harm, balance of convenience; mandatory security for due performance; Mortgage Regulations 13 not applicable to stopping sale; interlocutory injunction to preserve status quo pending appeal.
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19 May 2023 |
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Appellate court upheld murder conviction despite procedural irregularities, but reduced the sentence to 18 years 8 months.
Criminal law – conviction for murder – assessors' summing up – omission to record summing up notes is procedural irregularity but not fatal absent miscarriage of justice; appellate re-evaluation of evidence – eyewitness identification and post-mortem corroboration – alibi and minor inconsistencies insufficient to raise reasonable doubt; sentencing – appellate interference where sentencing guidelines and consistency not followed, substitution of sentence with credit for remand.
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18 May 2023 |
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Appellate court reduced manifestly excessive sentences, giving significant discount for guilty pleas and first‑offender status.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Manifestly excessive sentence – Importance of guilty plea mitigation – Youth and first‑offender status – Parity with appellate precedents – Appellate jurisdiction to substitute sentence (Judicature Act s.11).
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18 May 2023 |
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Absence of a written, reasoned judgment and required trial steps rendered the conviction a nullity; appellant discharged.
Criminal procedure — Trial on Indictments Act s85–86 — requirement for written judgment and recorded summing up to assessors — absence of a reasoned judgment renders conviction a nullity — remedy: retrial versus discharge where prolonged custody exists.
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18 May 2023 |
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Conviction for rape upheld on cogent identification and circumstantial evidence; sentence reduced to 14 years' imprisonment.
Criminal law – Rape – identification by single witness in difficult circumstances; corroboration and circumstantial evidence; contradictions and missing forensic exhibits immaterial where cogent evidence links accused to offence; sentencing – appellate review and reduction where original term excessive.
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18 May 2023 |
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Voice identification upheld for conviction; sentence reduced due to misapplied sentencing principles and remand credit.
Criminal law – aggravated defilement – identification by voice; single identifying witness; corroboration not always required; weight of ear-witness evidence; witness demeanour and need for contemporaneous notes; sentencing – advanced age as mitigating factor; sentencing consistency and credit for time on remand.
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18 May 2023 |
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Rewriting a trial judgment that convicted previously acquitted persons violated the appellants' protection against double jeopardy and fair hearing.
Criminal law — trial procedure — successor judge rewriting and delivering judgment — droit against double jeopardy (Article 28(9)) — autrefois acquit/convict — right to fair hearing (Article 44(c)) — quashing unlawful convictions and setting aside sentences.
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18 May 2023 |
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Conviction based on weak circumstantial evidence and inadequate investigation is unsafe; acquittal ordered.
Criminal law – Murder – Circumstantial evidence and 'last seen' doctrine – Necessity of excluding alternative hypotheses – Burden of proof remains on prosecution – Inadequate investigation and failure to produce forensic evidence may render conviction unsafe.
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18 May 2023 |
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The court admitted additional evidence on appeal to address allegations of fraud and illegality in property sale.
Civil procedure – Admission of additional evidence – Requirements for admitting new evidence on appeal – Allegations of fraud and illegality in sale of mortgaged property
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8 May 2023 |
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Failure to explain offence ingredients and properly record a change of plea vitiated the conviction; appeal allowed and matter remitted for defence hearing.
Criminal procedure – Plea-taking – Requirement to explain essential ingredients and secure accused’s understanding before recording a guilty plea – Failure to follow Adan v Republic and statutory safeguards may vitiate conviction; appellate remedy includes quashing and remittal for defence hearing.
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5 May 2023 |
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Court dismissed application for stay of execution: applicants failed to show prima facie appeal, irreparable harm, or favourable balance of convenience.
Civil procedure – stay of execution pending appeal – applicant must show prima facie case/likelihood of success, irreparable harm or risk of appeal being rendered nugatory, and balance of convenience; essential evidential burden includes placing impugned judgment and draft memorandum of appeal on affidavit; submissions are not a substitute for evidence.
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5 May 2023 |
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A stay of execution cannot be granted absent a valid notice of appeal; out-of-time or backdated notices require separate extension applications.
Civil procedure – stay of execution – stay pending appeal – requirement of a valid Notice of Appeal on court record before stay may be granted. Civil procedure – appeals – time limits – Rule 76(2) fourteen-day filing requirement; out-of-time and backdated Notices invalidate an appeal absent extension. Civil procedure – extension of time – mistake of counsel may ground a separate extension application but does not validate a defective notice within a stay application. Evidence – findings of trial judge on backdating given deference by appellate court.
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4 May 2023 |
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Application for injunction dismissed because appeal targeted a negative, non-executable order.
Civil procedure – interlocutory injunction pending appeal; competence – negative order (striking out) not capable of execution; stay of execution – forum and procedural preconditions (Mortgage Regulations/security deposit; requirement to apply first to High Court).
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4 May 2023 |
