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Citation
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Judgment date
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| May 2015 |
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Interlocutory discovery application struck out as incompetent and an abuse; Judicial Service Commission not a proper party.
Civil procedure – Discovery – Order 10 rr.12,14 CPR – discovery available only in relation to a suit pending before the court and relevant to issues in that suit. Public bodies – Judicial Service Commission – not a legal person capable of being sued absent statutory conferment. Abuse of process – fishing expedition – discovery will be denied where used to initiate or probe for a case. Constitutional law – access to information and supremacy do not displace procedural and enabling laws governing discovery.
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28 May 2015 |
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Failure to visit locus and misapprehension of evidence caused miscarriage of justice; retrial ordered recognizing widow’s interest.
Land law – adverse possession and widow’s interest – right to sue for trespass; Evidence – contradictions in descriptions and partition of land; Civil procedure – duty to visit locus in quo in land disputes; Appellate review – re-evaluation of evidence and miscarriage of justice where trial court fails to investigate material contradictions.
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28 May 2015 |
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Failure to visit locus and misapprehension of evidence amounted to miscarriage; appeal allowed and retrial ordered.
Land law – adverse possession by widow – right to sue for trespass and vacant possession. Evidence – appellate duty to re-evaluate evidence afresh and correct misapprehension. Civil procedure – necessity and importance of visiting locus in quo in land disputes. Procedural fairness – irregularities in judgment delivery and unresolved contested documents may vitiate trial.
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28 May 2015 |
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Appellate court set aside the magistrate’s finding, holding plaintiffs failed to prove ownership and appellant proved purchase by court auction.
Land law – title dispute – burden of proof in civil claims – plaintiff must prove ownership on balance of probabilities. Evidence – assessment of credibility of oral testimony versus documentary evidence; hearsay. Civil procedure – appellate correction of respondent misnomer; inherent powers and CPR/O.43 r.3. Jurisdiction – magistrate cannot nullify or treat as quashed a High Court ruling. Property – bona fide purchaser at court auction and evidential value of auction/sale documents.
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28 May 2015 |
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Appellant’s Will-based claim collapsed when the Will was rejected; appeal dismissed and trial judgment upheld.
Land law – trespass – ownership dispute over deceased’s estate; Testamentary documents – validity of purported Will and consequences of a rejected Will; Appellate review – limits to issues that may be raised on appeal; Civil procedure – competence and timing of appeal where earlier appeal abandoned and leave granted.
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27 May 2015 |
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Plaintiff's claims rejected: no cause of action and suit barred by res judicata; plaint dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — plaint discloses no cause of action — requirement of an existing right and its violation; res judicata — matters previously determined in a civil review bar re-litigation; professional misconduct and vicarious liability — necessity of a professional/fiduciary or employment relationship; Order 7 rule 11(a) and (d) CPR — rejection of plaint.
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27 May 2015 |
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The applicant’s competing lease claim failed because the respondents’ leases were validly enlarged and registered titles are conclusive.
Land law – lease enlargement by performance/user – automatic enlargement to full term; Registration of Titles Act – certificate of title conclusive; Section 176 protection against ejectment; Evidence Act – agreed facts need no proof; Survey overlap/competing lease offers cannot override existing registered titles.
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27 May 2015 |
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Long, uncontested possession and acquiescence established an inter vivos gift, defeating the appellants' claim to the estate land.
Property law – inter vivos gift by owner; uninterrupted possession and conduct as evidence of donation; proof and admissibility of documentary evidence; equitable doctrines – acquiescence and laches as bar to recovery; requirements for establishing ownership in intestate estate disputes.
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26 May 2015 |
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A landowner may be liable for trespass by obstructing a pre-existing right of way across his land; Access to Roads Act inapplicable.
Property law – trespass and easements – enforcement of existing right of way; owner held liable for blocking pre-existing access road. Access to Roads Act – inapplicable to enforcement of pre-existing access/right of way; statutory leave required only for creating new access. Evidence – burden under Section 103 Evidence Act satisfied by witness corroboration and exhibits. Registration of Titles Act s.146 – power of attorney invalid where donor ceased to be registered proprietor.
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21 May 2015 |
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A vesting order requires evidence of sale/payment and vendor unavailability; occupation alone is insufficient.
Vesting order – exceptional remedy – requires evidence of sale and payment, occupation with seller’s knowledge, and death/unavailability/untraceability of registered proprietor; occupation alone insufficient; applicant must exhaust ordinary remedies (suit, substituted service, advertisement).
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21 May 2015 |
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High Court rules revision lies only for finally determined magistrate cases; premature revision and Notices of Motion refused.
Civil Procedure – Revision – Section 83 CPA – Revision limited to cases "which have been determined" by magistrate’s court; Premature revision applications inadmissible; Striking out a written statement of defence not necessarily a final, appealable order; Initiation of revision is discretionary and typically by the High Court calling for the record, not by party’s Notice of Motion.
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15 May 2015 |
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IGG may enforce mandatory ten‑year disqualification under s46 of the Anti‑Corruption Act without a separate court order.
Administrative law – Judicial review – Grounds: illegality, irrationality, procedural impropriety; statutory interpretation of mandatory provisions. Anti‑Corruption Act s46 – "shall be disqualified" – mandatory, self‑executing ten‑year disqualification from public office upon conviction. Enforcement – IGG entitled to invoke statutory disqualification and notify Minister without separate court order. Jurisdiction – High Court circuits retain jurisdiction to hear judicial review applications.
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14 May 2015 |
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Deportation carried out without hearing and by detention without court order was unlawful, irrational and was quashed with damages awarded.
Administrative law – deportation – procedural fairness and natural justice – duty to hear affected person – detention without court order – certiorari to quash unlawful and irrational executive deportation order – damages for constitutional violations.
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12 May 2015 |
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Specific performance cannot be ordered against an heir without Letters of Administration; trial court’s costs discretion was upheld.
Civil procedure - costs: discretion to award costs and reasons for denying costs to successful defendants; Succession law - Letters of Administration required (Succession Act s.191) before rights in deceased’s property can be litigated; Specific performance - requirement of part-performance and that plaintiff must have executed obligations; Trial judgment error - omission to reflect interlocutory costs order for struck-off defendant remedied on appeal.
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12 May 2015 |
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Mandatory mediation makes a dismissal for want of prosecution under Order 17 Rule 5 premature; defective affidavits may be struck out.
Civil procedure – Order 17 Rule 5 and dismissal for want of prosecution – discretionary remedies versus mandatory mediation; admissibility and authority of affidavits filed out of time – striking out defective affidavits; interplay between Judicature (Mediation) Rules (S.I. 10/2013) and time-limits for setting down suits.
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8 May 2015 |
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The applicant’s summary dismissal without a fair hearing breached natural justice; damages and costs awarded.
Employment law – unfair summary dismissal – right to be heard and natural justice; Employment Act s.66 – procedural fairness before dismissal; employer reliance on internal audit report insufficient; damages for unlawful dismissal; interest and costs awarded.
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8 May 2015 |
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A Notice of Motion was procedurally improper but not fatal; general damages unpleaded and unproven were set aside.
Civil procedure – competence of Notice of Motion as mode of instituting suit; substantive justice v technical irregularity; evaluation of conflicting oral evidence in landlord/tenant dispute; requirement to plead and prove general damages; discretionary setting aside of arbitrary damages award.
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7 May 2015 |
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Court refused amendment aimed at circumventing limitation and locus standi defences as mala fide and prejudicial.
Civil procedure – Amendment of pleadings (Order 6 r19) – parameters: no mala fides, no prejudice not compensable by costs, not expressly barred by law – Limitation Act – time-barred plaint cannot be amended to revive claim – Locus standi – post-filing Letters of Administration cannot cure initial lack of standing – bona fide purchaser defence.
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7 May 2015 |
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Appellant aware of prior dispute was not a bona fide purchaser; appeal dismissed and eviction order upheld.
Land law – jurisdiction of Magistrate Grade II after May 16, 2002 – effect of Land Act s.95(6)–(7) preserving pending cases. Property – bona fide purchaser for value – purchaser’s knowledge of existing dispute defeats bona fide status. Civil procedure – right to call witnesses and tender exhibits – appellate review of trial court’s exercise of discretion and fairness in hearing evidence.
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7 May 2015 |
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Whether a party president remains in office pending new elections and if courts can compel internal party elections by judicial review.
Political parties — internal governance — effect of transitional constitutional provisions on term of office; judicial review — scope limited to illegality, irrationality and procedural impropriety; prerogative relief — mandamus, certiorari, prohibition not available where internal remedies exist and no evidence of jurisdictional excess; resignation and delegation — burden of proof on claimant.
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6 May 2015 |
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Applicant failed to prove service irregularity or fraud; consent decree lawfully entered and review dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure – Review under s.82 CPA – Consent decree – Service of process and representation – Allegation of fraud – Requirements for review (new evidence, error apparent, sufficient reason) – Failure to appear – Dismissal for lack of merit.
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6 May 2015 |
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Appellant failed to prove ownership on balance of probabilities; trial court rightly evaluated evidence and appeal is dismissed.
Civil procedure – burden of proof in civil cases – Section 101 Evidence Act; Appellate review – re-evaluation of evidence and credibility findings; Evidence – handwriting expert not required absent issue being raised or proved at trial; Allegation of fraud/collusion – must be proved, cannot be asserted for first time on appeal.
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6 May 2015 |
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Applicant entitled to pay for unexpired fixed-term contract; special allowances denied for lack of proof.
Employment law – wrongful termination of fixed-term contract – measure of damages equals remuneration for unexpired contract period; special damages must be specifically pleaded and proved; claims against NSSF must be pursued against the Fund; exemplary damages require evidential basis.
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5 May 2015 |
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Article 50 public-interest application dismissed as improper for resolving individualized compensation, title and fraud claims without ordinary suit.
Constitutional and administrative law – Article 50 public-interest procedure – limits of reliefs obtainable under Article 50; Civil procedure – representative actions – requirement for leave under Order 1 Rule 8; Civil procedure – pleading fraud – need for specific particulars under Order 6 Rule 3; Property law – compulsory acquisition and compensation – appropriate forum and need for plenary evidence and expert valuation; Evidence – insufficiency of affidavits for complex factual and valuation disputes.
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4 May 2015 |