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Citation
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Judgment date
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| November 2022 |
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Court set aside Registrar’s orders and ordered rehearing inter partes due to procedural irregularity and potential injustice.
Civil procedure – Appeal from Registrar – Order 50 Rule 8 – Distinction from Order 9 set-aside remedies; ex-parte proceedings – existence of affidavit in reply; inherent powers – Section 98 Civil Procedure Act – setting aside Registrar’s orders and ordering rehearing inter partes where strict procedure would cause injustice; taxation of costs and joinder applications.
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30 November 2022 |
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Applicant’s joinder denied where judicial review addresses public-law issues and not private proprietary claims.
Civil procedure – Joinder of parties (Order 1 r10(2), r13) – Discretion to add parties; Judicial review – supervisory public-law jurisdiction not for resolving private proprietary rights; Necessity to show orders would legally affect proposed party; Fraud allegations require particular pleading and are not resolved by affidavit in judicial review proceedings.
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30 November 2022 |
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An alleged transferee of shares subject to attachment is not a necessary party to a company cause and joinder is denied.
Civil procedure – Joinder of parties (Order 1 r.10) – necessary vs desirable parties – locus to be joined; Company law – member status and one-member meeting – effect of attachment-before-judgment on purported share transfers; Relief must be sought against party or effective orders cannot be made in their absence.
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30 November 2022 |
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A party’s constitutional petition does not automatically stay ongoing High Court proceedings; stay is discretionary.
Constitutional procedure – stay of proceedings – filing of constitutional petition by a party does not automatically stay lower court proceedings; distinguishing referrals to the Constitutional Court; stay is discretionary and must avoid abuse and delay.
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30 November 2022 |
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Court granted majority shareholder leave under s.142 to call and conduct a meeting without quorum to appoint directors and secretary.
Companies Act s.142 — court power to order meetings where impracticable; Judicature Act s.33 — remedial jurisdiction; shareholder standing after court-ordered share transfer; relief to call and conduct meetings without requisite quorum; appointment of directors and company secretary; costs against company.
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30 November 2022 |
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Unsigned pre‑taxation agreement is not binding; taxing master may tax ex parte and award of costs will stand absent arbitrary or illegal exercise of discretion.
Advocates' costs and taxation – Power to tax ex parte – Regulation 54; Consent on taxation – requirement of proper execution to bind court; Review of taxing master's discretion – interference only for arbitrariness, illegality, wrong principle or injustice; Consideration of subject‑matter value, complexity, skill, time and documents in taxation.
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30 November 2022 |
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Leave to amend a defence to plead contributory negligence was granted; any prejudice was compensable by costs.
Civil procedure – Amendment of pleadings – Order 6 Rule 19 – Leave to amend to plead contributory negligence – Whether amendment is mala fide or prejudicial – Prejudice compensable by costs – Principles from Gaso Transport governing discretion.
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30 November 2022 |
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Applicants showed bona fide triable issues; court granted unconditional leave to defend a summary suit for taxed costs.
Civil procedure – Order 36 summary suit – leave to appear and defend – requirement to disclose bona fide triable issues; res judicata; recovery of taxed advocate-client costs; parties and enforceability of orders; reliance on Makula principle for threshold test.
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30 November 2022 |
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Unauthorised depositing of excavated material on the applicant’s land constituted actionable trespass warranting removal, damages and injunction.
Trespass to land – unauthorised deposit of excavated material – actionable per se; burden and standard of proof on balance of probabilities; remedies: removal of material, permanent injunction, general and exemplary damages, interest and costs.
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25 November 2022 |
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Default judgment set aside where applicants showed sufficient cause due to counsel’s omission and acted without dilatory conduct.
Civil procedure – setting aside default judgment – sufficient cause – mistake or omission by counsel may amount to sufficient cause if no dilatory conduct by litigant; Affidavit practice – authority to swear on behalf of another – technical defects may be excused where authority is later confirmed and parties were jointly sued; Delay – reasonable promptness required when relying on counsel’s mistake; Relief – leave to file written statement of defence out of time; Costs – court declined to make orders for costs.
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17 November 2022 |
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Applicant lacked grounds to judicially review ESC suspension; ESC lawfully exercised delegated powers and observed fair hearing.
Administrative law – Judicial review – Locus standi – Delegation of statutory powers – Examinations Security Committee’s jurisdiction to hear malpractices and to suspend examination centres – Distinction between administrative disciplinary action for examination malpractice and criminal prosecution – Natural justice and fair hearing requirements.
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17 November 2022 |
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Misnomer not fatal; trespass claim failed for lack of exclusive possession; market creation irregular and must be regularised.
Local Government Act – corporate personality and misnomer; Trespass – possessory action requires exclusive physical possession; Public Procurement – legal services are subject to PPDA and must be properly procured; Irregular establishment of local market must be regularised; Disqualification of counsel for procurement irregularity does not necessarily invalidate pleadings.
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16 November 2022 |
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Reinstatement of a suit that abated under Order 17 r.5 is illegal; plaintiff must bring a fresh suit.
Civil procedure – Dismissal for want of prosecution – Order 17 r.5 (2019) – Automatic abatement – Reinstatement impermissible where statute provides for fresh suit – Deputy Registrar functus officio – Procedural form of applications (motion vs letter).
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16 November 2022 |
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16 November 2022 |
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Suit struck out because the plaint named a non-existent defendant; misnomer provisions inapplicable.
Civil procedure – plaint struck out for naming non-existent defendant – misnomer provisions (Order 30 R10; Order 1 R10) inapplicable – burden to prove identity of defendant – substitution not permissible where defendant does not exist.
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14 November 2022 |
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Applicant granted unconditional leave to defend summary suit after court found triable issues and overruled procedural objections.
Civil procedure — Order 36 leave to appear and defend — bona fide triable issue required; Affidavits — competency and appearance before Commissioner for Oaths; Corporate litigation — authority of deponent and advocate to represent a company; Summary suit — necessity of annexing contract and proof of delivery/invoice.
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14 November 2022 |
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11 November 2022 |
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11 November 2022 |
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11 November 2022 |
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7 November 2022 |
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2 November 2022 |
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2 November 2022 |
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1 November 2022 |
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Court reinstated dismissed suit despite applicant’s counsel’s dishonesty, finding sufficient cause but ordering costs against applicant.
Civil procedure – Order 9 rule 22 & 23 CPR – setting aside dismissal for non-appearance – sufficient cause test (honest intention, diligence, prima facie merit). Evidence and credibility – effect of omissions and falsehoods in affidavits; counsel’s duty of candour. Advocates’ professional conduct – Regulation against acting as both advocate and witness; consequences for dishonest conduct. Costs – misconduct may attract adverse costs orders even where reinstatement is granted.
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1 November 2022 |
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1 November 2022 |