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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 2005 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law|Burden of Proof|Evaluation of Evidence |
21 December 2005 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law|Burden of Proof
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21 December 2005 |
Criminal law|Evidence Law|Burden of Proof|Evaluation of Evidence |
21 December 2005 |
| November 2005 |
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Evidence Law|Burden of Proof|Evaluation of Evidence |
4 November 2005 |
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Conviction for kidnapping with intent to murder upheld; identification, corroboration and statutory presumption of intent sustained.
Criminal law – Kidnapping with intent to murder – elements: taking away and specific intent under s.235(1)(a) Penal Code Act. Evidence – Identification – single identifying witness; corroboration by contemporaneous statement under s.155 Evidence Act. Evidence – Presumption of intent to murder where victim unaccounted for six months: s.235(2) Penal Code Act; omission from indictment not fatal where particulars suffice. Defence – Alibi: no burden to prove but court must evaluate competing evidence; rejection upheld. Procedure – Appellate review: duty of first appellate court to re-evaluate; second appellate review limited absent clearest cases. Sentencing – Appeal to Supreme Court against severity barred by Judicature Act.
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4 November 2005 |
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Appeal dismissed: conviction for kidnapping with intent to murder upheld; corroboration under s.155 and presumption under s.235(2) applied.
Criminal law – Kidnapping with intent to murder – elements and proof; presumption of intent where victim unaccounted for (s.235(2) Penal Code). Evidence – identification by a single witness and corroboration by contemporaneous statement (s.155 Evidence Act). Criminal procedure – sufficiency of particulars in indictment; omission of statutory subsection not necessarily fatal. Defence – alibi: no burden to prove but open to rejection on evaluation. Appeals – scope of appeal against sentence limited by Judicature Act.
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4 November 2005 |
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4 November 2005 |
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4 November 2005 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law|Burden of Proof|Evaluation of Evidence
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1 November 2005 |
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Circumstantial and post‑mortem evidence upheld manslaughter, but rape conviction quashed for lack of proof of non‑consent.
Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence – sufficiency to prove a defendant inflicted fatal injuries – preference for pathologist's post‑mortem findings over hurried clinical assessments. Criminal law – Rape – proof of non‑consent/force – need for nexus between injuries and sexual intercourse; conviction unsafe if based on speculation. Sentencing – constitutional requirement to take remand period into account – omission may be cured where no miscarriage of justice results.
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1 November 2005 |
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Criminal law|Evidence Law|Evaluation of Evidence
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1 November 2005 |
| September 2005 |
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Conviction for defilement upheld on credible identification and medical corroboration; sentence reduced to account for remand.
Criminal law – Defilement – Proof beyond reasonable doubt – Complainant’s evidence corroborated by medical report. Identification – Single identifying witness known to accused – daytime incident – reliability of identification. Evidence – Hearsay and minor inconsistencies – immaterial where core testimony and medical evidence consistent. Defence – Alibi and impotence rejected; irregular reliance on unproduced police statement did not render conviction unsafe. Sentencing – Duty to credit time spent on remand under constitutional provisions; appellate reduction of sentence.
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1 September 2005 |
| August 2005 |
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CL|Possession of Property|Estoppel|Fraud|Lease
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25 August 2005 |
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Conviction for murder upheld; alibi rejected and minor inconsistencies deemed immaterial; death‑sentence confirmation postponed pending constitutional appeal.
Criminal law – murder – credibility and re‑evaluation of evidence – acceptance of eyewitness testimony and rejection of alibi. Evidence – alleged contradictions between witness statements and post‑mortem – materiality test; minor inconsistencies not fatal to prosecution case. Criminal procedure – capital sentence – opportunity for mitigation and postponement of confirmation under Article 22(1) pending related constitutional challenge.
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24 August 2005 |
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Court upholds judgment ordering title rectification on grounds of original registration fraud despite procedural appeals.
Land law – fraud in land registration – validity of trial without a legal representative for deceased plaintiff – impact of alleged insanity of appellant.
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19 August 2005 |
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A voluntary, detailed repudiated confession may alone justify conviction if surrounding circumstances establish its truth.
Criminal law – Repudiated (retracted) confession – Admissibility and weight; corroboration desirable but not essential if surrounding circumstances satisfy the court of truth of confession – Voluntariness and torture allegations – Evaluation of evidence – Aiding and abetting; common intention (Penal Code ss.21,22).
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18 August 2005 |
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Mortgage and power of attorney invalid for lack of statutory formalities; no equitable mortgage; damages reduced to Shs.7,500,000.
Registration of Titles Act – formalities for execution and attestation of power of attorney and mortgage (ss.155–156) – invalidity for lack of witness attestation; equitable mortgage by deposit of title (s.129) – requires proprietor’s intent and caveat; proper pleading and proof of execution; assessment and reduction of general damages.
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18 August 2005 |
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Appellants must refund US$184,000 as money had and received; appeal dismissed with 20% interest.
Evidence – disputed handwriting – provenance of handwritten fax established by corroborative facts and credibility findings; Contract and restitution – money had and received – funds remitted for commercial venture recoverable in equity; Corporate liability – individual controller estopped from denying responsibility; Interest – commercial rate appropriate where defendant used plaintiff's funds.
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17 August 2005 |
CL|Fiduciary Duty of A Bank|Bank-Customer Relationship|Negligence
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17 August 2005 |
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Interlocutory rulings by a Chief Magistrate (prima facie case to answer) are not appealable to the Supreme Court; appeal dismissed.
Criminal procedure – Appeals – Interlocutory rulings of Chief Magistrates (prima facie case to answer) are not final judgments and not appealable to the Supreme Court under S.5(5) Judicature Act; S.204 Magistrates Courts Act; Fair trial (Art.28) does not confer right to immediate interlocutory appeal; Court of Appeal erred in treating revisional challenge as first appeal.
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3 August 2005 |
| July 2005 |
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Conviction upheld; confirmation of death sentence postponed pending resolution of the constitutional appeal on mandatory death penalty.
Criminal law – murder conviction – issues of self-defence, provocation and weight of dying declaration. Constitutional law – mandatory death penalty challenged (Susan Kigula) – entitlement to mitigation hearings. Interim relief – power to postpone confirmation of death sentence under Article 22(1) pending determination of related constitutional appeal.
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18 July 2005 |
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Referendum held under an invalid Act was valid under Articles 69 and 271; voice voting insufficient for constitutional amendments; prospective overruling unsuitable for constitutional validation.
Constitutional law – Referendum requirements under Articles 69 and 271 – validity of referendum despite invalid implementing statute; Parliamentary procedure – mode of ascertaining two‑thirds majority – voice voting insufficient, head‑count/division required; Committee of the whole House not a "standing committee" under Article 90; Prospective overruling – not generally applicable to validate acts under void statutes in constitutional cases; Declaratory relief – courts should not refuse remedies on extraneous consequence grounds.
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7 July 2005 |
| June 2005 |
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27 June 2005 |
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Whether correspondence and a proforma invoice created a binding contract for 30,000 telephone sets and whether claimed special damages were proved.
Contract law – formation of contract – proforma invoice and negotiating correspondence as offer to treat versus binding acceptance; Sale of Goods Act and assessment of damages – relevance of section 49(3) and need for strict pleading and proof of special damages; liability for third-party bank loan – requirement of clear guarantee or causal link.
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27 June 2005 |
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Interest on interconnection charges accrues from issuance/receipt of the reconciled invoice, not merely after 45 days.
Contract interpretation – interconnection agreement – Article 7 – reconciliation, invoicing and condition precedent to payment; Interest accrual – starts on invoice issuance/receipt after reconciliation, not automatically after 45 days; Dispute resolution – independent auditor/Commission envisaged; Costs – limited to disputed interest sum.
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23 June 2005 |
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22 June 2005 |
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Whether a police investigatory memorandum constituted conclusive proof under an indemnity enabling the bank to treat credited funds as an overdraft.
Deed of indemnity — meaning of "conclusive proof in writing" — police investigatory memo containing handwriting expert finding can constitute conclusive proof; no requirement to await conclusion of criminal prosecution in court; tendering of investigative memo by a party and absence of contrary evidence affects probative weight; bank's right to treat credited funds as overdraft and to succeed on counterclaim.
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22 June 2005 |
| April 2005 |
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Whether intoxication negates mens rea for murder and whether the court must consider defences disclosed by the evidence.
Criminal law – intoxication – s.13(4) Penal Code – intoxication may negate mens rea for murder; burden on prosecution to prove intent despite drunkenness; trial court duty to consider defences disclosed by evidence even if not raised; misdirection by appellate court material only if central to decision.
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13 April 2005 |
| March 2005 |
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Appeal dismissed: single identifying witness credible; minor procedural lapses and inconsistencies did not make convictions unsafe.
Criminal law – Identification evidence – Single identifying witness – Requirements for reliability and need for caution; corroboration where available. Criminal procedure – Evaluation of alibi and material inconsistencies – when delays or minor contradictions do not render conviction unsafe. Appeal – Procedural lapses in summing-up not necessarily fatal if evidence otherwise proves guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
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2 March 2005 |
| February 2005 |
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A third appeal from an interlocutory order is incompetent under S.6(2) of the Judicature Act and is struck out.
Civil procedure – Appellate jurisdiction – Third appeals to the Supreme Court – interlocutory orders excluded by S.6(2) Judicature Act; applicability of Civil Procedure Act (old Ss.74/75; now Ss.72/74) to the Court of Appeal; procedural rules (Rule 31(2)) regulate procedure but do not confer jurisdiction.
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22 February 2005 |
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Filing Company Form A8 unambiguously ended the appellant's membership, so he lacked locus standi to seek winding-up.
Company law — Effect of Company Form A8 (notification of change) — Whether completion and filing of Form A8 amounted to cessation of directorship and membership — Transfer of shares and compliance with Companies Act formalities — Locus standi to petition for winding up — Estoppel and corporate conduct.
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22 February 2005 |
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An unsigned or missing judgment can be proved by credible supporting evidence to validate resulting orders and administration changes.
Probate and Administration – Letters of Administration – revocation and regranting where judgment in pending suit ordered such relief. Proof of judgment delivery – sufficiency of supporting evidence where original signed judgment is missing; affidavits and signed decree may establish delivery. Appellate review – duty to re-evaluate totality of evidence before concluding no judgment was delivered.
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21 February 2005 |
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Absence of an affidavit of service on the record is an apparent error justifying review and vacatur of an ex parte judgment.
Civil procedure – Ex parte judgment – Review – Error apparent on the face of the record – Absence of affidavit of service – Mandatory nature of Order 5 r.17 (CPR) – Proof of service of hearing notices – Service on counsel/agent – Effectiveness of service – Trial de novo.
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21 February 2005 |
| January 2005 |
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A bank was held liable for negligence for allowing impostors to deposit and withdraw compensation payable to deceased beneficiaries.
Banking law – negligence – duty to verify identity of claimants depositing large negotiable instruments; Evidence Act s.106 – burden on party with special knowledge to prove facts; Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules, Order 6 Rule 1 – requirement to list witnesses/documents and consequences of failure to call them; Bills of Exchange Act – s.81/82 not a defence where bank fails to show due care; Interest – discretionary reduction of excessive appellate award.
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17 January 2005 |
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An ex parte judgment was set aside where the record lacked an affidavit proving service of the hearing notice.
Civil procedure – Ex parte proceedings – Service of hearing notice – Requirement to file affidavit of service on record – Error apparent on the face of the record – Review under Order 42 CPR and section 83 Civil Procedure Act – Failed exercise of discretion by trial judge – Remedy: setting aside ex parte judgment and trial de novo.
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1 January 2005 |
