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Citation
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Judgment date
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| July 2021 |
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Applicant failed to prove the appeal was withdrawn by fraud or mistake; restoration denied and application dismissed.
Criminal procedure – restoration of withdrawn appeal under rule 77(3) – requirements: withdrawal induced by fraud or mistake and interests of justice; Evidence – burden on applicant to prove withdrawal by fraud or mistake with supporting evidence; Procedural relief – consequential orders dependent on successful restoration of appeal.
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15 July 2021 |
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Night-time visual identification by moonlight was unsafe; convictions quashed and appellants released.
Criminal law – Robbery with violence – Visual identification at night by moonlight; reliability and Waziri Amani factors; single-witness evidence; need for corroboration; adverse inference for omission to call available witnesses; failure to connect arrests to charged offence.
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14 July 2021 |
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Failure to serve the written request for certified High Court proceedings invalidated the certificate of delay; appeal was time-barred and struck out.
Civil procedure – Appeals – Time limit for instituting appeal – Rule 90(1) & (3) Tanzania Court of Appeal Rules – Certificate of delay; requirement that application for certified proceedings be in writing and served on respondents – Failure to serve invalidates certificate – Jurisdictional nature of sixty-day rule – Overriding objective cannot cure mandatory procedural defects.
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14 July 2021 |
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Seven‑year delay and unsubstantiated record‑tampering claims failed to show good cause for extension to seek revision.
Extension of time — Rule 10 Court of Appeal Rules — good cause and Lyamuya guidelines; inordinate delay; revision versus appeal — revisional jurisdiction not alternative where appeal remained available; alleged illegality/tampering must be apparent on face of record; counsel’s mistake and change of advocate not good cause.
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14 July 2021 |
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A court’s suo motu decision on limitation without hearing parties violates the right to be heard and renders the judgment null.
Civil procedure – right to be heard (audi alteram partem) – court raising and deciding limitation suo motu while composing judgment without affording parties opportunity to address – such judgment a nullity. Constitutional law – natural justice – right to be fully heard as fundamental right. Appellate jurisdiction – revisional powers – nullification and remittal for rehearing.
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14 July 2021 |
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Victim’s credible evidence and medical corroboration upheld rape conviction; charge‑sheet defect cured and appeal dismissed.
Criminal law – Rape of a child – Evidence of victim under age eight – penetration and identification as primary proof. Criminal procedure – Defective charge sheet – omission of statutory subsection curable under s.388 CPA where particulars give sufficient notice. Appeals – Second appeal jurisdiction – new grounds not raised in first appeal are inadmissible. Evidence – Corroboration and medical examination as supporting proof; alibi failing to discharge burden.
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14 July 2021 |
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Court dismissed appeal, holding child’s sworn testimony and mother’s independent inspection sufficed for conviction.
Criminal law – Evidence of child witness – Voire dire: once a child understands oath and duty to speak truth, no separate intelligibility test required. Evidence – Child witness credibility – Unsuspended credible child testimony may suffice for conviction under section 127. Evidence – Parent's non‑expert inspection – A parent may give eyewitness evidence of physical signs without being an expert and can corroborate a child witness. Criminal procedure – Alibi – Where prosecution establishes accused's presence, unsupported alibi is insufficient. Appellate procedure – New factual grounds not raised below are not entertainable by the Court of Appeal.
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13 July 2021 |
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Trial nullified for inadequate summing up on malice aforethought and alibi; retrial ordered.
Criminal procedure – Duty to authenticate witness testimony – presiding judge must append signature at end of a witness's testimony (after all stages of examination and any judicial/assessor questions). Criminal procedure – Trials with assessors – mandatory duty to sum up and explain vital points of law to assessors, including malice aforethought and alibi; failure renders trial unfair and a nullity. Remedy – retrial before a new judge and different assessors.
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13 July 2021 |
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Second‑appeal allowed: child identification and procedural defects rendered conviction unsafe; judgment and sentence quashed.
Evidence — Child witness — compliance with section 127(2) Evidence Act — promise to tell truth as substantial compliance. Criminal procedure — substitution of charge — duty to inform accused of right to recall witnesses; triviality where amendment merely corrects date. Criminal procedure — succession of magistrates — pretrial participation does not invoke section 214(1) requirements where one magistrate conducted trial. Practice — reminding accused of charge before defence is not a legal requirement. Evidence — documentary exhibits must be read out in court; failure is fatal — exhibit expunged. Identification — visual identification by a child must eliminate all reasonable possibilities of mistaken identity; failure to call material witnesses and improperly rejecting alibi renders conviction unsafe.
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13 July 2021 |
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Failure to read admitted documentary exhibits to the accused is fatal, warranting expungement and quashing of conviction.
Criminal procedure – Documentary exhibits must be cleared, admitted and read over to the accused; failure to read admitted exhibits is fatal – Expungement of exhibits – Sufficiency of remaining oral evidence to prove possession of Government Trophy – Revisional powers under s.4(2) AJA to quash conviction and set aside sentence.
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12 July 2021 |
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Refusal to waive one‑third deposit for filing an objection is not appealable to the Tax Appeals Board; appeal dismissed.
Tax law – Appealability – Whether refusal to waive the one‑third deposit for lodging an objection is a tax or objection decision appealable to the Tax Appeals Board; statutory interpretation (TAA and TRAA) – ejusdem generis and literal approach; jurisdiction of Tax Appeals Board; Rule 6 and limits on appealable decisions.
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9 July 2021 |
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Failure to take a plea to an amended charge vitiated the trial; conviction quashed and no retrial ordered; appellant released.
Criminal procedure – Amendment of charge – Mandatory requirement to call accused to plead to new/altered charge under section 234(2)(a) – Failure renders trial a nullity. Evidence – Identification – Dock identification and identification parade – requirements and consequences of improper handling/absence of proper description. Retrial – Application of Fatehali Manji criteria – retrial not ordered where prosecution evidence has material weaknesses and retrial would risk injustice. Revisional powers – Court of Appeal invoking section 4(2) AJA to nullify proceedings and quash conviction.
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9 July 2021 |
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Eyewitness identification in daylight and hot pursuit can sustain armed robbery convictions despite non-production of stolen items.
Criminal law – armed robbery – identification in daylight and hot pursuit; Evidence Act s.143 – prosecution discretion on witnesses; non-production of stolen property goes to weight not admissibility; cautioned statements recorded outside statutory period expunged.
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8 July 2021 |
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Retracted confessions need corroboration; actual, not mere constructive, possession proved possession of elephant tusks.
Wildlife offences – unlawful hunting, possession and dealing in government trophy; retracted cautioned statements require corroboration; constructive possession versus actual possession; defective particulars of offence (unlawful dealing) – acquittal; exhibits not read aloud to be expunged; charging under repealed statute is fatal; curable mis-citation of sentencing provision under Wildlife Conservation Act.
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8 July 2021 |
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Visual and voice identification, supported by medical and circumstantial evidence, upheld murder convictions and death sentences.
Criminal law – visual identification – application of Waziri Amani safeguards; voice identification – approached with caution but admissible if witness familiar; autopsy report not indispensable where medical and eyewitness evidence prove death and cause; alibi – burden to prove; malice aforethought – established by brutal, premeditated attack (matricide).
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8 July 2021 |
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Review dismissed: no patent error or denial of hearing; review cannot be used to re‑argue the appeal.
Criminal procedure – Review under Rule 66(1) – manifest error on the face of the record – post-mortem report anomaly treated as 'slip of the pen' – alleged omission of pages in record of appeal – right to be heard – review is not a rehearing of appeal; finality of litigation.
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6 July 2021 |
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Appeal dismissed: identification found reliable, facilitator liable under section 22(1), and 30-year sentence mandatory under section 287A.
Criminal law – armed robbery – visual identification – factors for reliable identification: duration, proximity, lighting, prior acquaintance, immediate mention to police, corroboration. Criminal law – parties to offence – section 22(1) Penal Code – facilitator, abettor or aider treated as principal offender. Appellate jurisdiction – Court will not entertain new grounds not raised/determined on first appeal. Sentence – section 287A(1) mandatory minimum sentence.
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5 July 2021 |
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The Tax Appeals Board has exclusive jurisdiction over civil disputes arising from administration of revenue laws, including damages claims.
Tax Revenue Appeals Act s.7 – Board’s sole original jurisdiction over civil proceedings arising from revenue laws; s.7A and s.12 – procedural requirements for tax assessments, not limits on jurisdiction; inclusion of Cap.124 in TRA Act First Schedule; jurisdictional ouster of ordinary courts for revenue-law disputes; relief sought does not determine forum.
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5 July 2021 |
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Armed robbery conviction quashed where prosecution failed to prove use of a weapon and recent-possession presumption was rebutted.
Criminal law – Armed robbery – Elements: theft and use of dangerous/offensive weapon – Insufficient proof of weapon vitiates armed robbery; Recent possession – prerequisites and rebuttal by credible explanation; Charge validity – omission of amending Act does not render charge defective (Interpretation of Laws Act s.12(1)).
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5 July 2021 |
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Failure to explain vital legal points to assessors rendered the trial a nullity and convictions were quashed due to insufficient evidence.
Criminal procedure — High Court trials with assessors — duty to sum up facts and law to assessors; inadequate summing-up renders trial a nullity; visual identification and identification parade requirements; admissibility and procedural formalities for extra-judicial statements; retrial vs. quashing conviction where evidence insufficient.
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5 July 2021 |
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Whether service irregularity and a wrongly dated decree warrant striking out an appeal or allow rectification by supplementary record.
Civil procedure — Preliminary objection — requirement that a preliminary objection raise a pure point of law — factual disputes on service require evidence and cannot be disposed of on objection. Court of Appeal Rules, r.97(1) — duty to serve memorandum and record of appeal within seven days where respondent has given address for service. Decree — must bear date of pronouncement of judgment; discrepancy renders decree defective (Order XXXIX r.35(1) CPC). Overriding Objective (ss.3A–3B AJA) and r.96(7) — Court may allow supplementary record to cure defects rather than striking out appeal.
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5 July 2021 |
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Court upheld murder convictions, finding identification reliable and domicile discrepancies immaterial.
Criminal law – Murder – Identification evidence – familiarity with accused, adequate lighting (solar bulbs and moonlight), sufficient observation time – minor inconsistencies not fatal. Post‑mortem report – evidential purpose is cause of death, not domicile. Delay in arrest – explained flight of suspects; delay did not vitiate identification.
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5 July 2021 |
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The Court affirmed an eight-year sentence for attempted murder, finding mitigating factors were considered and the term was not excessive.
Criminal law – Attempted murder – sentence – whether eight years imprisonment excessive; consideration of mitigating factors (first offender, youth, guilty plea, time in custody); appellate interference with sentence limited to specific grounds.
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5 July 2021 |
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An appeal from a High Court revisional order in a land matter is incompetent without statutory leave and is struck out with costs.
Land law – Appeals from High Court exercising revisional jurisdiction – Requirement of leave under section 47(2) Land Disputes Courts Act. Civil procedure – Revision under section 43(1)(b) LDC Act and section 79 CPC – classification of proceedings as revisional. Appellate jurisdiction – Limits of Court of Appeal’s powers under section 4(2) AJA where appeal is not properly before the Court. Remedy – appeal requiring leave lodged without it is incompetent and should be struck out with costs.
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2 July 2021 |
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Appellant allowed to lodge supplementary record to rectify defective decree and certificate; hearing adjourned, costs shared.
Civil procedure — defective decree (date variance) — Order XX Rule 7 CPC; defective certificate of delay — vitiation and rectification; Rule 96(7) Court of Appeal Rules — leave to lodge supplementary record; Appellate Jurisdiction Act (ss.3A,3B) — overriding objective; costs — parties to bear own costs where defect attributable to court registry.
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2 July 2021 |
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Notes to a VAT schedule cannot expand taxing provisions; ambiguity resolved for the respondent and the appeal dismissed.
VAT — Interpretation of s.10(1) and Second Schedule item 8(1),(2) — Effect of notes/explanations as internal aids — Strict construction of taxing statutes — Ambiguity resolved in favour of taxpayer — Validity of additional VAT demand on sale of land with buildings.
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2 July 2021 |
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Victim’s credible testimony and medical corroboration upheld rape conviction; date variance curable under section 234(3) CPA.
Criminal law – Rape – proof requires penetration and identity; victim’s testimony can suffice and may be corroborated by medical and witness evidence; hearsay distinguished from direct/corroborative evidence; variance in dates curable under section 234(3) Criminal Procedure Act; appellate review of defence consideration.
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2 July 2021 |
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Claims for salary arrears against a specified public corporation required court leave because they were debts provable in bankruptcy.
Bankruptcy Act s.9(1) — specified public corporations — necessity of court leave to sue; Bankruptcy Act s.35 — debts provable in bankruptcy include compensation for work and liabilities arising from obligations incurred before receiving order; creditor status — claims capable of computation are creditors; procedural consequence — suit struck out (not dismissed) where leave absent.
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1 July 2021 |
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Review alleging manifest error, defective charge and fraud/perjury dismissed; review cannot substitute for appeal.
Criminal procedure – Review of Court of Appeal judgment – Rule 66(1) grounds: manifest error on the face of the record; nullity; fraud or perjury; jurisdiction – Review not a substitute for appeal – territorial jurisdiction of trial courts within a region.
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1 July 2021 |
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Splitting the particulars of armed robbery into a separate grievous-harm count rendered the charge defective and the trial unfair.
Criminal law – Charge sheet and particulars – Improper splitting of armed robbery into armed robbery and causing grievous harm – Particulars must give clear information to accused – Section 132 Criminal Procedure Act – Section 388 CPA cannot cure fundamental defect – Revision jurisdiction under s.4(2) Appellate Jurisdiction Act – Miscarriage of justice – Quash conviction, set aside sentences.
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1 July 2021 |
| June 2021 |
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An erroneous Registrar’s certificate of delay cannot extend the appeal period; appeal struck out as time-barred.
Civil procedure – Appeals – Rule 90(1) Court of Appeal Rules; certificate of delay; when time for instituting appeal accrues; registrar’s notification vs collection date; evidential burden to prove receipt; defective certificate renders time exclusion ineffective.
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30 June 2021 |
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High Court lacked jurisdiction to extend time for appeal from a subordinate court with extended jurisdiction; appeal struck out.
Criminal appeal – jurisdiction – extension of time to file notice of appeal – Appellate Jurisdiction Act s.11(1) – subordinate court exercising extended jurisdiction has exclusive competence to extend time – High Court lacked jurisdiction – defective notice of appeal – Court of Appeal’s revisionary powers under s.4(2) AJA – appeal struck out.
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29 June 2021 |
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Court upheld murder conviction, expunged unlisted exhibits, and dismissed the appeal.
Criminal law – murder – proof beyond reasonable doubt; committal procedure – section 246(2) CPA – exhibits read at committal; notice to call additional witness – section 289 CPA; late amendment of information – minor amendment; accused’s rights to be addressed – section 293 CPA; alibi – section 194 CPA and judicial discretion; identification by recognition versus identification parade.
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28 June 2021 |
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Inadequate summing up and unreliable cautioned statement led the court to quash conviction and order appellant's release.
Criminal procedure – trials with assessors – duty to direct assessors on essential points including ingredients of offence, common intention, circumstantial evidence, alibi and cautioned/confessional evidence; inadequate summing up nullifies proceedings. Evidence – cautioned statement – voluntariness and proper timing; prosecution’s duty to prove absence of torture; repudiated/confessed statements must be corroborated and proven voluntary before admission. Revision – invocation of revisional powers (s.4(2) AJA) to quash conviction where proceedings are a nullity and remaining evidence is insufficient; retrial refused where prosecution’s case is deficient.
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25 June 2021 |
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Appeal allowed: trial court erred by relying on unadmitted annexures; plaintiff failed to prove breach of contract.
Commercial law – Marketing Licence Agreement – admissibility of documents – annexures to pleadings and witness statements not evidence unless tendered and admitted – burden of proof to tender contract and prove breach – Rule 67 (Commercial Court Rules) delay in judgment does not vitiate judgment absent miscarriage of justice.
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25 June 2021 |
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Inadequate summing‑up to assessors on circumstantial evidence and recent possession rendered the trial a nullity; retrial refused due to weak prosecution.
Assessors—insufficient summing‑up on circumstantial evidence and recent possession; trial rendered a nullity; Criminal Procedure Act ss.265, 298; committal procedure—s.289(1) non‑compliance and expunction of evidence; failure to call material witnesses—adverse inference; retrial principles—Fatehali Manji; appellate power under AJA s.4(2) to quash and set aside.
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22 June 2021 |
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Retracted cautioned confessions admissible if judicially warned and corroborated; JP-recorded confession vitiated for non‑compliance.
Criminal law – Murder – Reliance on retracted cautioned statements – Trial judge must warn herself of dangers and be satisfied of truth; extra-judicial statements by Justices of the Peace must comply with Chief Justice's Instructions; corroboration by independent evidence and autopsy may validate retracted confessions.
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21 June 2021 |
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Conviction quashed because night-time visual identification and inconsistent prosecution evidence made the conviction unsafe.
Criminal law – Visual identification – Waziri Amani guidelines – need for sufficient light, proximity, duration and particular features to exclude mistaken identity. Evidence – credibility and consistency of prosecution witnesses; hearsay and contradictions undermining identification. Criminal appeal – interference with concurrent findings where there is misapprehension of evidence or miscarriage of justice. Criminal Procedure Act (s.210(3)) – reading evidence to witnesses requirement and record compliance.
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17 June 2021 |
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Material variance between charge particulars and evidence (tricycle vs motorcycle) warranted quashing the conviction.
Criminal law – Variance between particulars in charge sheet and evidence (motor tricycle v. motorcycle) – Amendment under s.234 Criminal Procedure Act required – Failure to amend fatal to prosecution – Conviction quashed.
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17 June 2021 |
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Change and abandonment of assessors during trial rendered the proceedings and judgment null, and the matter was remitted for rehearing.
Civil procedure – land matters – assessor‑assisted trials – mandatory requirement to sit with same assessors throughout trial unless statutory exceptions apply. Change or abandonment of assessors mid‑trial – procedural irregularity rendering proceedings and judgment a nullity. Remedy – nullification and remittal for rehearing; parties bear own costs.
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16 June 2021 |
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Court held challenged grounds are points of law; defective certificate may be rectified, hearing adjourned.
Labour law – appeal to Court of Appeal from Labour Court – section 57 LIA: appeals on points of law only. Jurisdiction – whether CMA referral form was duly filed and served under section 86 ELRA. Employment law – whether employer proved valid reason for termination under section 37 ELRA. Procedural – completeness of record under rule 96(1) and validity of certificate of delay under rule 90(1); requirement of three clear days' notice under rule 107(1).
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15 June 2021 |
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Bias in a case-to-answer ruling and failure to explain section 231(1) rights vitiated the trial; conviction quashed and release ordered.
Criminal procedure – Ruling on a case to answer – Judicial bias where court states prosecution proved case before defence heard; non-compliance with section 231(1) CPA – rights of an accused to be informed and to call witnesses; visual identification – reliability and investigative irregularities; revisional powers under section 4(2) AJA; retrial and interests of justice.
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15 June 2021 |
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Amendment removing dismissal for missing written submissions was not applied retrospectively; single Justice properly exercised discretion.
Civil procedure — Reference under Rule 62 — scope of full Court review of single-judge decisions; discretionary relief. Court of Appeal Rules, 2009, Rule 106 — requirement to file written submissions; Rule 106(9) (pre-amendment) sanction of dismissal for non-compliance; GN No. 362 of 2017 amendment removing dismissal sanction. Retrospectivity — procedural amendments generally retrospective unless injustice results; application of amended rule refused where decision made before amendment and matter not pending. Waiver of filings — inadvertence and non-complexity do not necessarily amount to exceptional circumstances to excuse non-compliance.
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14 June 2021 |
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Risk of eviction and a firm affidavit undertaking justified a conditional stay of execution pending appeal.
Civil procedure — Stay of execution (Court of Appeal Rules 11(3)–(7), 48(1)) — requirements of substantial loss and security; security for non-monetary decrees — bond to maintain status quo; affidavit undertaking may constitute sufficient security.
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11 June 2021 |
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The Court dismissed the appellant's appeal, upholding CMA awards for unfair termination and associated statutory payments.
Labour law – unfair termination – statutory entitlements on termination including payment for remaining contract period and subsistence allowance; Employment and Labour Relations Act – section 43 (repatriation and subsistence allowance) – repatriation not conditional on employee confirming date of departure; Evidence – admissibility of documents – copies excluded at CMA cannot form basis of appeal; Appellate procedure – appeals from Labour Court limited to points of law (s.57 Cap.300); Civil procedure – parties bound by grounds of appeal and written submissions (Rules 93 and 106 Court of Appeal Rules).
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11 June 2021 |
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The Court dismissed the appellants' appeal, refusing to consider new grounds and finding the respondent’s notice of appeal valid.
Criminal procedure – appellate jurisdiction – appellate court will not entertain grounds not raised in prior appeal; afterthoughts excluded. Criminal procedure – notice of intention to appeal – omission of statutory citation not necessarily fatal where requirements otherwise met. Evidence – variance in dates between charge and witness testimony – immaterial if not prejudicial to accused. Remedies – compensation for property loss by arson to be pursued in civil suit.
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11 June 2021 |
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Convictions quashed where key exhibits were unprocedurally admitted and prosecution failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Evidence – Improper admission of exhibits: cautioned statement read out before admission; exhibits tendered by prosecutor instead of a witness – identification of property (mobile phone) requiring particularisation (e.g., IMEI) – second appeal interference where misapprehension or procedural irregularity causes miscarriage of justice.
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11 June 2021 |
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Minor's unsworn testimony expunged, but medical findings plus witness confessions upheld the rape conviction.
Evidence Act s.127 (tender age witnesses) – promise to tell the truth required; failure to ensure understanding renders testimony valueless. Oaths and Statutory Declarations – form of recording "has sworn/has affirmed" curable and not fatal. Criminal Procedure – failure to read admitted exhibits (PF3, birth certificate) prejudicial and grounds for expungement. Confession – oral confession before reliable witnesses may suffice to support conviction; medical evidence can corroborate penetration. Preliminary hearing – must record disputed and undisputed facts properly though defects do not always require retrial.
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11 June 2021 |
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A limitation objection is a pure point of law; failure to plead statutory exemption renders a compensation suit time-barred.
Limitation of actions – Land/compensation claims – applicability of item 1, First Schedule to the Law of Limitation Act (12 months) ; Civil procedure – preliminary objection – point of law vs mixed question of fact; Pleading – Order VII r.6 CPC requires specific pleadings for exemption from limitation; Negotiations for settlement do not toll or exclude limitation period under the Law of Limitation Act.
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10 June 2021 |
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Review dismissed: disagreement with appellate conclusion and re‑evaluation of evidence are not grounds for review.
Criminal procedure — Review under Rule 66(1)(a) & (b) — manifest error on face of record; denial of opportunity to be heard — Review not to re‑evaluate evidence or serve as appeal. Criminal law — self‑defence — appellate scrutiny of defence and requirement for material evidence under s.18A Penal Code. Finality of litigation — review exceptional and limited to patent errors causing miscarriage of justice.
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10 June 2021 |