High Court of Uganda

The High Court of Uganda is the third court of record in order of hierarchy and has unlimited original jurisdiction, which means that it can try any case of any value or crime of any magnitude. Appeals from all Magistrates Courts go to the High Court. 

The High Court is headed by the Honorable Principal Judge who is responsible for the administration of the court and has supervisory powers over Magistrate's courts. 

Physical address
Plot 2, the Square Kampala
26 judgments

Court registries

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26 judgments
Citation
Judgment date
June 2012
Civil Procedure|Orders
27 June 2012
A borrower denied an injunction against a bank’s foreclosure after failing to meet loan repayments under a contractually variable interest rate.
Civil Procedure – Temporary injunction – Principles for grant – Loan facility – Whether undue increase in interest and installments without notice justifies injunction – Irreparable harm – Adequacy of damages – Clean hands doctrine – Contractual relationships and enforcement of securities.
26 June 2012
Administrative Law
26 June 2012
Court finds respondents in contempt for failing to comply with election annulment orders and orders purge by compliance within 14 days.
Judicial review – enforcement of election-declaration orders – contempt of court for non-compliance – appeal does not automatically stay execution in local council matters – s.172 Local Government Act and s.95(3)(b) PEA distinction – constitutional duty of state organs (Art.128(3), Art.189) to give effect to court orders – remedies: purge by compliance, fresh election, committal for non-compliance.
26 June 2012
Administrative Law|Writ of Certiorari
22 June 2012
21 June 2012
Petitioner’s condonation of adultery precluded divorce; court substituted judicial separation and ordered no costs.
Family law – Divorce – Adultery – Condonation by continued sexual relations – Effect of condonation in barring divorce – Judicial separation as alternative remedy; Default of respondent at trial.
20 June 2012
Civil Procedure
19 June 2012
Where court-aided mediation leads to consent judgment, costs may be awarded against a respondent whose actions necessitated the proceedings.
Judicial review—Costs—Consent judgment following mediation—Responsibility for costs—Examination malpractices proceedings—Dismissal of unmerited claims—Procedural fairness in contempt applications.
19 June 2012
Contract Law
19 June 2012
A customary heir confirmed by the monarch cannot be removed; Administrator General acted ultra vires in redistributing the estate.
Customary succession – Kabaka’s confirmation of heir final under Kiganda custom – clan leaders’ removal void; Administrator General’s powers under S.I.150/1967 limited to issuing certificates for estates already administered; certificate of succession is functus officio once issued; Administrator General acted ultra vires in cancelling and redistributing estate; Titles issued pursuant to wrongful distribution are nullities; reliefs include declarations, cancellation and re-registration of titles, general damages and costs.
19 June 2012
A judgment creditor held liable for wrongful sale of attached cattle where bailiff acted without court authority.
Execution—attachment and sale of livestock; bailiff duties under Order 22 r.40 CPR; wrongful sale without court authority; creditor's liability for participating in improper attachment; vacated orders require review or appeal; technical procedural defects disregarded under Article 126.
15 June 2012
Criminal law
14 June 2012
Constitutional Law|Elections
14 June 2012
Civil Procedure
13 June 2012
Court exempts severance package claim from limitation period but finds suit res judicata for some plaintiffs.
Employment law – severance packages – limitation period for contractual claims – res judicata – specific performance
12 June 2012
Consent variation orders waiving interest are valid where counsel is authorized; abuse of process to relitigate settled claims.
Civil procedure – Consent judgment – Authority of counsel to compromise suits – Variation of decrees by consent – Interests of parties in repetitive litigation – Setting aside consent orders – Illegality or error on record.
12 June 2012
Contract Law|Breach of Contract|Labour and Employment Law|Contract of Employment
12 June 2012
The applicant proved ownership and the school’s foundation; the respondent is a trespasser and the trial magistrate misdirected on evidence.
* Property law – ownership and trespass – proof on a balance of probabilities – weight of documentary records versus conflicting oral testimony. * Evidence – assessment of contradictions and inconsistencies – minor, explainable inconsistencies should not be given decisive weight. * Appellate review – misdirection by trial court through reliance on extraneous facts and conjecture. * Remedies – vacant possession and permanent injunction; costs with interest; discretionary refusal to award damages to preserve reconciliation.
12 June 2012
Delict and Tort Law|Negligence
6 June 2012
Civil Defences|Laches and Acquiescence|Affidavits|Pleadings
6 June 2012
A preliminary objection challenging the timeliness of a judicial review application was overruled as the application was filed within three months of the operative decision.
Judicial review – preliminary objection – time limits – determination of date when cause of action arises – proper interpretation of Rule 5, Judicature (Judicial Review) Rules, 2009.
6 June 2012
Administrative Law
5 June 2012
Application for judicial review of dismissal from civil service dismissed as time-barred due to unreasonable and unexplained delay.
Judicial review – Application for certiorari – Dismissal from public service – Limitation of actions – Unreasonable delay – Time-barred application – Whether remedies available after lengthy delay – Discretion to extend time.
1 June 2012
The appellate court overturned the assault judgment against five appellants, maintaining only the first appellant's liability.
Tort Law – Assault – Evaluation of Evidence – Burden of Proof – Appellate Review.
1 June 2012
The court found UMEME Limited liable for negligence causing fire damage from a loose electric wire.
Tort law – Negligence – Electricity provider liability – Property and personal losses from electrical mismanagement – Damages awarded for negligence.
1 June 2012