|
Citation
|
Judgment date
|
| December 2013 |
|
|
High Court appointed foreign applicants as legal guardians because guardianship served the abandoned siblings’ best interests.
* Family law – Guardianship – High Court jurisdiction under Article 139(1) and inherent powers to grant guardianship despite no specific provision in Children Act. * Guardianship – suitability – non‑nationals may be appointed where they can act in loco parentis and meet welfare criteria. * Children – best interests principle – preference for keeping siblings together in a family setting over institutional care. * Procedure – court will not adjudicate relief not pleaded; counsel must confine submissions to the stated prayers.
|
20 December 2013 |
|
Court appointed the husband legal manager, required a UGX 2,000,000 cash bond, and declined to entertain a moot service dispensation.
* Administration of Estates of Persons of Unsound Mind Act – appointment of legal manager – suitability and best interests of person of unsound mind; * Evidence – medical affidavits and prior adjudication establishing unsoundness of mind; * Procedure – requirement and quantum of bond under rule 9(1); * Procedure – dispense with service on person of unsound mind; mootness and registrar’s jurisdiction.
|
19 December 2013 |
|
High Court appointed foreign applicants as guardians of a Ugandan double orphan, permitting migration subject to conditions protecting the child’s welfare.
Guardianship – High Court jurisdiction – best interests of the child – appointment of foreign nationals as guardians – permission to migrate with child – conditions: preservation of citizenship, reporting and periodic production.
|
19 December 2013 |
|
High Court confirmed a magistrate’s adoption order and waived the 36‑month fostering requirement for a dual‑citizen adopter.
* Children Act – Adoption – Section 46(1)(b) fostering requirement – directory not mandatory; may be waived in best interests of child. * Dual citizenship – effect on applicability of fostering requirement to a prospective adopter. * Intercountry adoption – High Court jurisdiction and requirement for High Court order for immigration purposes. * Civil procedure – Confirmation versus nullification of unappealed lower court orders; High Court’s inherent powers to confirm valid lower court decisions.
|
17 December 2013 |
|
Father appointed guardian and authorised to sell minor’s land where sale and guardianship serve the child’s best interests.
* Guardianship – appointment of biological parent as legal guardian; * Best interests of the child – primary consideration, including child’s wishes where of understanding age; * Property of minor – court may authorize sale/disposal by guardian for minor’s benefit; * Jurisdiction – High Court’s inherent and constitutional jurisdiction in children matters.
|
16 December 2013 |
|
Court appointed foreign applicants as legal guardians and permitted travel for adoption abroad, prioritizing the child’s best interests.
* Children law – Abandonment and failure to trace relatives – suitability for guardianship – best interests/welfare principle. * Guardianship – High Court’s inherent jurisdiction and constitutional powers to appoint guardians to facilitate foreign adoption. * Permission to travel – conditions and oversight (passport, annual reports, notifications). * Institutional care vs. family placement – preference for permanent family environment.
|
10 December 2013 |
|
Court granted legal guardianship to foreign applicants on best-interests grounds, with reporting and passport conditions.
Children — Guardianship — High Court jurisdiction to grant guardianship despite no express provision in Children Act; best interests of the child principle; suitability criteria for guardians (home study, clearances, financial stability); institutional care versus family placement; conditions attached to cross-border guardianship (passport, reporting, notification).
|
2 December 2013 |
|
Court granted guardianship and permitted emigration, prioritizing the child’s best interests with protective reporting and notification conditions.
* Family law – Guardianship – High Court’s inherent jurisdiction to appoint legal guardians where Children Act silent; best interests of the child paramount; institutional care as last resort; permission to emigrate with guardians; conditions imposed (passport, annual reports, notifications).
|
2 December 2013 |
| November 2013 |
|
|
Appointment of a legal guardian granted where the child’s welfare is paramount and the applicant proved fit, consenting and able to provide care.
Children Law – Guardianship – appointment of legal guardian for orphaned child – best interests paramount – evidence of fitness and means – probation officer’s report and consents – authorization for international travel and registration of order with domestic and foreign authorities.
|
14 November 2013 |
|
Court granted legal guardianship to applicants under the best-interests principle where biological parents were unable or unwilling to care for the child.
Guardianship – High Court jurisdiction under constitutional and inherent powers – Best interests of the child paramount – Children Act criteria applied – Loco parentis and fitness of overseas guardians – Protective reporting and passport conditions for guardianship orders.
|
11 November 2013 |
|
Court appointed the natural father guardian and authorized mortgaging minor’s land where proceeds serve the child’s welfare and education.
Children Act (ss.3,5) – Guardianship – Appointment of natural parent as guardian; Mortgage/pledge of minor’s land – Court authorization where transaction is in child's best interests – Paramountcy of welfare – Reliance on precedents permitting mortgage to fund education.
|
7 November 2013 |
|
Applicants fit to care but guardianship refused as removal from the natural family was not in the child’s best interests.
Children Act – guardianship – best interests of the child – whether removal from biological family justified; suitability of foreign applicants; role of guardianship vs parental duty.
|
5 November 2013 |
| October 2013 |
|
|
High Court appointed foreign applicants as legal guardians of an abandoned infant, permitting immigration, as being in the child’s best interests.
* Children law – guardianship – High Court jurisdiction to appoint guardians despite Children Act not expressly providing for guardianship – best interests of the child as primary consideration.
* Abandonment – orphanage as temporary residence; preference for suitable family placement.
* Evidence – international home-study, employment and clean criminal records as indicators of suitability.
* Safeguards – passport, annual welfare reports, notification to authorities for children residing abroad.
|
24 October 2013 |
|
Court appointed foreign applicants as legal guardians and permitted child’s immigration where it served the child’s best interests.
Children — Guardianship — Best interests of the child paramount — High Court jurisdiction to appoint guardians — Placement from institution to family — Overseas removal subject to safeguards (passport, annual reporting, notifications).
|
24 October 2013 |
|
Alleged fraud in obtaining letters of administration dismissed for lack of strict proof; administrators ordered to file distribution.
* Succession Act – revocation of Letters of Administration – fraud allegations require strict proof; * Administrators’ duty – file inventory and account within statutory periods; * Standard of proof – allegations of fraud require more than a mere balance of probabilities; * Family property disputes – reluctance to award costs where reconciliation is desirable.
|
23 October 2013 |
|
Court appointed foreign applicants as legal guardians and allowed the infants to immigrate, prioritizing the children’s best interests.
Family law – Guardianship; Best interests of the child; Children Act criteria; Institutional care as last resort; High Court jurisdiction to appoint guardians and permit immigration; Conditions to safeguard welfare of children.
|
17 October 2013 |
| September 2013 |
|
|
Court held that only properties to which the parties jointly contributed are matrimonial and should be equally shared; pre-marriage assets may remain individual property.
Family law – divorce – characterization and division of matrimonial property – whether property acquired before formal marriage is automatically matrimonial – Supreme Court guidance on contributions and constitutional protection of individual ownership – consent Decree Nisi and effect of separation agreements.
|
18 September 2013 |
|
Contentious review of Letters of Administration requires an ordinary suit; motion on affidavit was improperly filed; applicants to file suit.
* Probate and Administration – Review of grant of Letters of Administration – Contentious challenges to grants require an ordinary suit and evidence beyond affidavits.
* Civil procedure – Motion on affidavit vs. ordinary suit – Where factual disputes arise, matters are not suitable for determination by notice of motion.
* Preliminary objection – Procedural impropriety – application struck as improperly before court; costs awarded.
|
12 September 2013 |
|
A consent divorce decree settling custody and property is final; subsequent maintenance claims are barred by res judicata and procedural noncompliance.
Children Act – s.76(5) and Rules – procedure for maintenance applications; Civil Procedure Act s.7 – res judicata; consent divorce decree – finality and inability to vary absent fraud or collusion; jurisdiction of Family and Children Court.
|
6 September 2013 |
| August 2013 |
|
|
Court dissolved the marriage for irretrievable breakdown, granted mother custody and maintenance, and dismissed unproven property claims.
Divorce — irretrievable breakdown based on cruelty, adultery and desertion; custody — welfare principle, preference for primary caregiver where father absent; maintenance — reasonable monthly contributions and lump sum as pleaded; matrimonial property — claim fails where title/annexures not proved; substituted service and ex parte hearing of cross-petition.
|
26 August 2013 |
| March 2013 |
|
|
Inter‑country adoption denied for failure to meet residency, fostering, informed consent and recognition requirements.
* Children Act s.46 – inter‑country adoption – residency and supervised fostering requirements; exceptional circumstances; adoption by proxy; informed consent; recognition by receiving state; authentication of translations/documents.
|
20 March 2013 |
|
Adoption of a total orphan granted where petitioners met statutory requirements and the child's welfare and preference were satisfied.
Adoption law – Children Act compliance – welfare of the child paramount – guardianship to adoption – suitability of foreign petitioners – consent/absence of objection by kin – registration and annual welfare reports – permission to travel with child.
|
18 March 2013 |
| February 2013 |
|
|
Sharia Court divorce bars High Court claim as res judicata; Divorce Act not applicable to Mohammedan marriages.
* Family law – Divorce – Validity and competence of Sharia Courts under the Marriage and Divorce of Mohammedans Act (Cap 252) and Article 274 of the Constitution; res judicata where Sharia Court has issued a divorce certificate; applicability of Divorce Act to Mohammedan marriages governed by Section 18.
|
13 February 2013 |
|
Marriage dissolved on grounds of irretrievable breakdown, with custody granted to petitioner and equal property division.
Family law – divorce – adultery and cruelty as grounds for divorce – custody of children – division of matrimonial property.
|
7 February 2013 |
| January 2013 |
|
|
A Family Court lacked jurisdiction to decide a land dispute; those orders are void and were quashed.
* Family and Children Court – jurisdiction – scope under Children Act s.14 – limited to child criminal matters and child care/protection matters; not land disputes. * Jurisdictional error – adjudication of land dispute by Magistrate Grade II in Family Cause exceeds jurisdiction and results in nullity. * Revision – orders and decision made without jurisdiction are quashed and set aside; remedy is fresh suit in competent court and maintenance of status quo.
|
24 January 2013 |
|
A beneficiary's fraud‑based claim against an administrator is not barred by the twelve‑year limitation.
Succession Act s25 – estate vests in personal representative as trustee; Limitation Act s20 – 12‑year bar for claims to personal estate; Limitation Act s19(1) – no limitation for beneficiary actions alleging fraud or fraudulent breach of trust; allegation of fraudulent conversion removes time bar; preliminary objection on limitation dismissed.
|
10 January 2013 |