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22 judgments found.
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July 2017
A lengthy (1.5–2 year) delay attributed to counsel’s negligence did not justify extension of time to file an appeal.
Civil procedure
— Extension of time — Application to file appeal out of time — Whether delay caused by counsel’s negligence justifies extension — Civil Procedure Act ss.79(1), 98; O.51 r.6; O.52 rr.1-3
— Finality and timeliness — Limits on excusing long delays to protect administration of justice and avoid indefinite court processes
— Burden of proof — Applicant must account for delay and show steps taken (e.g., request for record) to justify extension of time
27 July 2017
Court held vendor breached land sale contract by refusing completion and ordered refund plus damages and costs.
Contract law
— Sale of land — Effective date and exchange of contracts — Reckoning of contractual payment period
— Remedies for breach — Refusal to complete sale; refund of deposit; assessment of special and general damages (Johnson v Agnew)
20 July 2017
Court granted interim injunction preventing alienation and ordered rental income deposited in court to preserve the disputed property pending trial.
Civil procedure
— Interim injunctions — Preservation of status quo; prima facie case, irreparable harm, balance of convenience
— Mandatory interlocutory injunction — Deposit of rents to preserve assets pending trial — Exceptional but justified where risk of injustice and inability to satisfy judgment
Equity — Balance of convenience and adequacy of damages — Short-term prejudice to respondent compensable; long-term loss to applicant not adequately reparable
20 July 2017
Court allowed taxation of an advocate/client bill despite procedural non‑compliance, distinguishing taxation from commencing a suit.
Advocates Act — Recovery of costs — Taxation of advocate/client bill — Effect of non‑compliance with sections 57 and 58
Civil procedure — Distinction between taxation of a bill and commencement of a suit on a bill — Section 58(5) interpreted to allow taxation applications
Advocates’ obligations — Proof of service and requirement for itemised bill in contentious matters — Evidential burden on advocate
20 July 2017
Municipal council's suspension/removal of Town Clerk was ultra vires, procedurally unfair and unreasonable.
Administrative law
— Judicial review — Ultra vires suspension and removal of municipal Town Clerk
— Natural justice — Right to fair hearing before disciplinary/interdiction decisions
Public finance — PFMA s.80(1) — Requirement of Ministerial inquiry and proof before recovery and disciplinary measures
20 July 2017
Stay of execution granted pending appeal due to likely success and risk of irreparable loss; security for performance refused.
Civil procedure — Stay of execution — Conditions for grant: notice of appeal, likelihood of success, risk of rendering appeal nugatory, delay, security for due performance
Property — Land — Appealability of limitation and evidential issues (Limitation Act s.6; reliance on un‑cross‑examined witness statements)
16 July 2017
The applicant was defamed by the respondent; respondent failed to prove truth, injunction and damages awarded.
Civil law — Defamation
— Publication and causation — Whether defendant caused publications to third parties and media
— Meaning and injury — Whether statements would lower a judge in the estimation of right‑thinking members of society
Civil law — Remedies — Injunctions, compensatory and punitive damages, costs and interest for defamatory publications
14 July 2017
Whether an unwitnessed agreement procured by duress was enforceable and the correct outstanding debt amount.
Civil law
— Contract validity — Duress and coercion — Effect of unwitnessed/menacing agreement procured by duress
— Contract — Proof of indebtedness — Role of documentary annexure and oral testimony in establishing principal and repayment — Unlicensed money-lender rule when claiming interest
14 July 2017
Court reviewed and set aside its judgment after finding an overlooked foreign conviction for issuing a false cheque.
Civil procedure — Review of judgment — Error apparent on the face of the record — Review allowed where foreign criminal judgment attached to pleadings was overlooked
Conflict of laws — Recognition of foreign judgments — Foreign judgment sustaining a claim founded on breach of law in force in Uganda not conclusive — Civil Procedure Act s 9(f)
Commercial law — Negotiable instruments — Cheques issued as security — Illegality and criminality under Bills of Exchange Act and Penal Code (s 385(1)(b))
13 July 2017
Admission letters silent on exemption fees; students not bound and university must resit missed exams.
Education law
— Admissions and fees — Admission letters as contractual terms — Imposition of exemption fees not communicated and not binding
— Assessments and remedies — Obligation to provide special sittings for missed exams under Universities and Other Tertiary Institutions Act s.121
Contract law — Retrospective application of institutional rules — New requirements cannot be imposed on students admitted under earlier terms
13 July 2017
Court awarded reduced quantum for specialist surgery abroad and upkeep after police shooting, costs to plaintiff.
Tort — Negligence — Police shooting causing serious injuries — Quantum for further specialist medical treatment abroad
Civil procedure — Settlement/partial admission — Court determination of outstanding quantum for further treatment
13 July 2017
Appellate court upheld culpability for absenteeism but set aside dismissal as excessive, substituting retirement in public interest.
Administrative law — Judicial discipline
— Absenteeism versus abscondment — Interpretation of regulation 23(d) and procedure under regulation 24
— Sanctions — Retirement in public interest versus dismissal; proportionality of penalties under regulation 31
Civil procedure — Right to fair hearing — Allegations of bias and procedural irregularity in JSC proceedings — Adequacy of written representations
12 July 2017
Judicial review to restrain prosecution dismissed as time‑barred and the DPP cannot be sued personally.
Administrative law — Judicial review — Challenge to decision to prosecute — Time limits and competence
Civil procedure — Capacity to sue — Director of Public Prosecutions not a body corporate
Criminal procedure — Intervention by civil court — Inappropriateness of restraining prosecutions by prohibition/injunction
10 July 2017
Representative suits dismissed for non‑compliance with advertising requirements and failure to plead a tenable detinue cause of action.
Civil procedure
— Representative actions — Compliance with Order 1 r.8 and mandatory public advertisement of lists of persons represented
— Pleading and preliminary objections — Requirements for detinue: possession by defendant, demand for return, proprietary interest, and adequate description of goods
Civil procedure / Limitation / Res judicata — Actions founded on contract time‑barred after six years; prior adjudication bars relitigation
10 July 2017
Court granted extension of time due to counsel’s mistake, relying on section 98 and sufficient cause, with conditions.
Civil procedure — Extension of time
— Application filed under wrong rule — Court’s remedial discretion under Section 98 of the Civil Procedure Act
— Omission of applicant’s sworn affidavit — Court may decide on available affidavit where interests of justice require
— Counsel’s mistake or negligence — May constitute sufficient cause for extension
7 July 2017
Judicial review dismissed as premature where no final PPDA decision existed and administrative remedies were not exhausted.
Administrative law
— Judicial review — Prematurity where no final administrative decision to review — PPDA Regulations 2014 (Regs 12(1), 13)
— Right to a fair hearing — Whether recommendation by procuring entity triggers Article 28 protections — Requirement to exhaust and participate in PPDA investigatory process
7 July 2017
A disputed debt precludes winding up; court ordered immediate payment of the admitted USD 27,302.16 and costs.
Company law — Winding up — Insolvency for inability to pay debts — Dispute as to quantum precludes winding up for full claimed amount
Conflict of laws — Choice of law clause — Governing law provision does not necessarily oust domestic jurisdiction in cross‑border contracts
Civil procedure/Contract — Dispute‑resolution clause — Requirement to commence civil action or arbitration does not preclude presenting a winding‑up petition
7 July 2017
Applicant’s unsupported, time‑unspecific offsets were a sham; appeal dismissed and judgment for respondent affirmed.
Civil procedure — Summary suit — Application for unconditional leave to appear and defend — Requirement that proposed defence be plausible and raise a real triable issue
Evidence — Admissibility of documents — Documents first produced on appeal will not be considered where not placed before the trial court
Affidavits — Technical irregularity/typographical error — Not fatal where it does not affect the validity or substance of the dispute; courts should administer substantive justice without undue regard to technicalities (Art.126(2) Constitution)
6 July 2017
Commissioner lawfully sealed the applicant's warehouse and declined licence renewal over uncustomed goods and unpaid liabilities.
Administrative law — Licensing — Renewal/non‑renewal of bonded warehouse licences — Discretion, procedural fairness and legitimate expectation
Customs law — Sealing and securing premises — Uncustomed goods — Power under s157 EACMA
Tax law — Compounding offences — Requirement of prior admission under s219 EACMA
6 July 2017
Application for temporary injunction over quarrying dismissed; damages adequate and balance of convenience favors national project.
Civil procedure — Temporary injunction
— Whether applicant established prima facie case
— Irreparable injury and adequacy of damages as remedy
Public interest — National works — Balance of convenience where injunction would delay infrastructure project
6 July 2017
Illness of the applicant plus counsel’s mistake constituted sufficient cause to reinstate the suit; thrown-away costs ordered.
Civil procedure
— Setting aside dismissal for non-appearance — Sufficiency of cause — Illness of litigant and mistake of counsel as sufficient cause
— Costs — Thrown-away (wasted) costs — Assessment and payment at conclusion of main trial
5 July 2017
Disconnection lawful; plaintiff liable for post‑meter plumbing and outstanding water charges under the Water Act.
Tort — Utility liability — Responsibility for repair and maintenance of plumbing after the meter — Water Act s73
Administrative/utility law — Disconnection of supply for unpaid bills — Lawfulness of disconnection where amounts overdue — Water Act s95(2)
Evidence — Burden of proof in civil claims — Proof on balance of probabilities; Evidence Act s101(1)
5 July 2017