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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 2018 |
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Appellate court affirmed eight-year manslaughter sentence despite generalized mitigation analysis due to brutal, disproportionate attack.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Sentencing – Mitigating factors must be considered specifically – Appellate interference limited where aggravating circumstances (brutal attack, lethal weapon, disproportionate force) justify sentence.
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30 December 2018 |
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Appellant failed to prove allocation of 300 acres on the balance of probabilities; appeal dismissed with costs.
* Land law – proof of allocation/ownership – claimant must prove allocation and size on balance of probabilities (Evidence Act ss.110–111). * Civil procedure – preliminary objection based on disputed facts is improper; factual disputes over service should be pursued under Rule 89(2), not as a pure preliminary point. * Evidence – documentary and oral evidence must be specific and coherent to establish land size and ownership.
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14 December 2018 |
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Appellant failed to prove allocation of 300 acres; appeal dismissed for insufficient evidence; costs awarded to respondent.
Land law – proof of ownership/allocation – burden and standard of proof in civil cases (s.110–111 Evidence Act) – documentary evidence insufficient to establish 300 acres – preliminary objection based on service dates involves facts and should be pursued under Rule 89(2).
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14 December 2018 |
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Sentence reduced after trial judge failed to consider appellant's mitigating factors and time already served.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Mitigating factors – First offender and pre-trial custody – Appellate interference where sentence is manifestly excessive – R v. Mohamed Ali Jamal applied.
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14 December 2018 |
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Appellate court reduced a manslaughter sentence for failure to expressly consider material mitigating factors.
* Criminal law – Sentencing – Requirement for trial court to expressly consider and specify mitigating and aggravating factors – Generalised statements insufficient.
* Appellate review – Interference with sentence only where trial court acted on wrong principle or overlooked material factors.
* Mitigating factors – time in remand, plea of guilty and dependants as relevant considerations.
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14 December 2018 |
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Sentence reduced where trial judge failed to consider mitigating factors including guilty plea, youth and time served.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Mitigating factors – guilty plea, first offender status, time served and youth – appellate interference where trial court overlooks material mitigation.
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14 December 2018 |
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Sentence reduced where trial court failed to consider mitigating factors and evidence of self-defence.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Sentencing – Failure to consider mitigating factors individually – Evidence of provocation and self-defence – Appellate interference and reduction of sentence.
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14 December 2018 |
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Appellant failed to prove on the balance of probabilities allocation of the claimed 300 acres; appeal dismissed.
Civil procedure – Preliminary objections – factual dispute as to service of record of appeal cannot be treated as a pure point of law; should be pursued under rule to strike out. Evidence – burden and standard of proof in civil cases – plaintiff must prove on balance of probabilities. Land law – proof of allocation/ownership of land must be established by credible, particularized evidence; general or ambiguous documents insufficient.
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13 December 2018 |
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Failure to consider mitigating factors and self-defence evidence justified reducing an eight-year manslaughter sentence to immediate release.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Sentencing principles – requirement to consider mitigating factors individually; provocation and self-defence as mitigating circumstances; appellate interference where sentence is excessive.
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13 December 2018 |
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Court upheld ten-year manslaughter sentence despite trial judge’s generalized treatment of mitigating factors.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – sentencing – requirement that trial court expressly identify and consider mitigating factors and antecedents; guilty plea and remand time as mitigation; use of lethal weapon as aggravation; appellate interference standard.
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12 December 2018 |
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Appellant failed to prove BCG vaccination negligence or causation; appeal dismissed and retrial refused.
Medical negligence – causation – expert medical report indicating uncertain etiology of infection – hearsay evidence of defence medical officer – failure to prove negligence on balance of probabilities – refusal of trial de novo for afterthought failure to call witness.
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12 December 2018 |
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Unexplained delay in arrest undermines visual identification and supports appellant's alibi; convictions quashed.
Criminal law – Visual identification – Alibi – Unexplained delay in arrest – Prosecution must link identification to arrest; unexplained delay undermines reliability of identification; standard to interfere with concurrent findings of fact.
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12 December 2018 |
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Appeal allowed where trial judge ignored mitigating factors; sentence reduced to effect immediate release.
Criminal law - Sentencing - Appellate interference where trial judge acted on wrong principle or sentence manifestly excessive; mitigation - first offender status, guilty plea, time on remand; manslaughter.
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12 December 2018 |
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Failure to specify mitigation justified reducing a fifteen-year manslaughter sentence to eight years.
* Criminal law – Sentencing – Requirement for trial courts to specify which mitigating and aggravating factors were considered when imposing sentence – Generalised consideration insufficient.
* Criminal law – Appellate review of sentence – Court may interfere where trial court acted on wrong principle or overlooked material factors.
* Manslaughter – Sentence reduction where mitigating factors (guilty plea, pre-trial custody, dependants) were not expressly weighed.
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12 December 2018 |
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Appeal allowed and sentence reduced where trial judge failed to expressly weigh mitigating factors including plea, remorse and time served.
* Criminal law – Manslaughter – Plea of guilty – Acceptance of plea supported by post-mortem and statements. * Sentencing – Need for trial court to expressly consider mitigating factors (first offender, plea, remorse, time served, youth). * Appellate review – Interference where trial court overlooks material factors or imposes manifestly excessive sentence.
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12 December 2018 |
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Failure to invite objections to assessors and unsigned testimonies vitiated the trial; convictions quashed and retrial ordered.
* Criminal procedure – assessors – accused must be invited to state objections to proposed assessors before trial – failure vitiates trial.
* Criminal procedure – recording of evidence – presiding Judge must authenticate testimony by signing – omission is incurable irregularity.
* Criminal procedure – assessor absent for most of trial – an assessor who did not hear all evidence cannot give opinion; doing so renders trial nullity.
* Retrial – application of Fatehali Manji principles – retrial ordered where trial was illegal or defective and interests of justice require it.
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11 December 2018 |
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The appellant's ten-year manslaughter sentence was upheld despite the trial Judge's generalized treatment of mitigating factors.
* Criminal law – Sentencing – Manslaughter – Requirement for trial Judge to expressly consider and record mitigating factors – appellate interference only where sentence is excessive in light of offence circumstances. * Use of lethal weapon and unlawful motive as significant aggravating features.
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10 December 2018 |
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A defective charge sheet citing wrong statutory provisions nullified convictions; appellate court quashed proceedings and ordered release.
* Criminal procedure – Framing of charge – Statement of offence must refer to the section creating the offence – Misdescription of statute in charge fatal.* Criminal law – Firearms offences – Wrong statutory reference in charge sheet vitiates proceedings.* Appellate jurisdiction – Revisional powers invoked to nullify proceedings where charge is incurably defective.* Retrial discretion – No retrial where defect is attributable to the prosecution.
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10 December 2018 |
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Failure to articulate mitigation was not fatal; ten-year manslaughter sentence upheld and appeal dismissed.
Criminal law – Sentencing after plea of guilty to manslaughter – Requirement to consider and state mitigating factors – Appellate interference where sentence is manifestly excessive – Use of excessive force as aggravating circumstance.
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7 December 2018 |
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Where ownership of land is disputed, civil determination must precede criminal prosecution for trespass or malicious damage.
Criminal law; trespass and malicious damage — disputed ownership of land — where ownership or boundary of private land is in dispute, the issue must be determined in civil proceedings before criminal prosecution for trespass/malicious damage can succeed; appellate review — reversal where second appellate court failed to recognise ownership dispute.
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7 December 2018 |
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Court upheld a ten-year manslaughter sentence despite the trial Judge’s inadequate recital of mitigating factors.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Sentence – Mitigating factors (first offender, plea of guilty, lengthy remand) – Trial Judge’s duty to address mitigation – Appellate interference where sentence is manifestly excessive – Use of excessive force by person in authority as aggravating factor.
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6 December 2018 |
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Where ownership of land is disputed between the applicant and respondent, criminal prosecution must await civil determination.
Criminal law – Trespass and malicious damage – Where ownership or boundary of land is disputed, title must be determined in civil proceedings before criminal prosecution; conflicting testimony on ownership prevents criminal conviction; appellate correction where High Court failed to recognise need for civil determination.
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6 December 2018 |
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Appellate court affirms eight-year manslaughter sentence despite generalized mitigation consideration due to brutal, disproportionate attack.
* Criminal law – Sentencing – appellate intervention limited to wrong principle, overlooked material factors, or manifestly excessive sentence. * Sentencing – mitigating factors must be considered individually rather than generally. * Aggravating circumstances – viciousness of attack, use of a lethal weapon, and extent of injuries from post-mortem. * Manslaughter – plea of guilty and pre- and extra-judicial confessions relevant but do not preclude substantial sentence when force used is disproportionate.
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6 December 2018 |
| November 2018 |
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A charge citing a non-existent provision denied the applicant a fair trial, warranting quashing of conviction and release.
Criminal law – charge sheet requirements – statement of offence must describe offence and cite correct provision (s.135 CPA) – defective citation of non-existent provision – incurable defect – unfair trial – nullity – Court of Appeal revisional powers (s.4(2) AJA) to quash conviction and set aside sentence.
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30 November 2018 |
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A charge sheet citing wrong statutory provisions is incurably defective and vitiates convictions; no retrial if prosecution's fault.
Criminal law – Charge sheet – Statement of offence must reference correct statutory section (s135(a)(ii)) – Misdescription of offence citing irrelevant provisions renders charge incurably defective – Proceedings and conviction vitiated – Revisional jurisdiction (s4(2) AJA) to nullify proceedings – No retrial where defect attributable to prosecution.
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7 November 2018 |
| October 2018 |
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Survey-driven subdivision and allocation that disregard prior customary occupation without compensation are invalid; appeal dismissed.
Land law – customary occupation and title – validity of successive surveys and subdivision; reallocation of customary land without compensation void; limitation/adverse possession – requirement of uninterrupted possession for statutory period; non-joinder of land authority – not necessarily fatal to determination between present parties.
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12 October 2018 |
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The court upheld the respondent's customary title, found the subdivision and allocations illegal, and dismissed the appellant's appeal.
* Land law – customary occupation and right of occupancy – successive surveys and subdivisions – allocation of part of customary land without compensation invalid.
* Civil procedure – non‑joinder of municipal authority – not fatal where rights between parties can be determined (Order I r.9 CPC).
* Limitation – adverse possession requires uninterrupted statutory period; possession from 1996 did not reach twelve years when suit was filed.
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12 October 2018 |
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Registrar’s certificate valid once appellant is notified copies are ready; time to appeal runs from that notification, not physical collection.
Civil procedure — computation of time for appeal under Rule 90(1) — certificate of delay — effect of Registrar's notification that copies are ready for collection; time runs from appellant's awareness; Kantibhai Patel distinguished.
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12 October 2018 |
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Appeal dismissed for lack of a valid High Court certificate on points of law under section 47(2) LDCA.
Land disputes; Ward Tribunal-originated appeals; requirement for High Court Certificate under s.47(2) Land Disputes Courts Act; Appellate Jurisdiction Act s.5(2)(c) inapplicable; necessity for reasoned Ruling identifying certified point(s) of law; dismissal for lack of valid certificate.
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11 October 2018 |
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Waiting for certified court copies constitutes good cause for extension of time to file a revision application.
Civil procedure – extension of time (Rule 10 Court of Appeal Rules) – delay due to awaiting certified copies – Rule 65(4) sixty-day period for revision – service refused by respondent; refusal not a ground to delay hearing.
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11 October 2018 |
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Appellant failed to prove wrongful registration or pursue statutory indemnity; appeal dismissed with costs.
* Land law – title registration – extract from Land Register as conclusive evidence of title; evidential weight of registration.
* Civil procedure – pre‑trial determinations – effect of predecessor judge’s ruling and limits on re‑deciding concluded issues by trial judge.
* Statutory remedy – Land Registration Act s.100(1)–(6) – indemnity for loss from register errors must be sought from Registrar (s.100(6)) before court action.
* Evidence – hearsay and conjecture cannot rebut documentary Land Register proof.
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11 October 2018 |
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Appeal dismissed: fraud allegation was a new matter; labour appeals limited to points of law and new issues not permitted.
* Labour law – execution of CMA consent decree – entitlement to repatriation, transport and daily subsistence allowances.
* Set-off – unilateral deduction of alleged employee loan from terminal benefits without agreement or award.
* Appealability – section 57 Labour Institutions Act: appeals to Court of Appeal from Labour Court limited to points of law.
* Appellate principle – new matters not raised or decided below will not be entertained on appeal.
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11 October 2018 |
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A belated challenge to Ward Tribunal pecuniary jurisdiction, unsupported by valuation evidence, was an afterthought; appeal dismissed.
* Land law – Ward Tribunal pecuniary jurisdiction – statutory limit TZS 3,000,000 – necessity of evidence to establish value of land.
* Civil procedure – jurisdictional challenge – may be raised at any stage but timing and proof are material; late objections after close of evidence may be treated as afterthoughts.
* Limitation and possession – long, continuous occupation may extinguish rival title claims.
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10 October 2018 |
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Omission to record which member presided did not vitiate Ward Tribunal proceedings absent any failure of justice; appeal dismissed.
Land law – Ward Tribunal composition – omission to record presiding member – quorum compliance – procedural irregularity cured by absence of failure of justice under section 45 LDCA; Appeals – mandatory High Court certificate and conformity of grounds to certified points of law.
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10 October 2018 |
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Notice of appeal not struck out where Registrar-caused delay occurred and respondents later lodged the appeal.
Civil procedure — Strike out notice of appeal — Rule 89(2) — "essential steps" to pursue appeal — certified copy of High Court proceedings — Certificate of Delay — delay attributable to Registrar — application overtaken by events.
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10 October 2018 |
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An extension application must plead and prove good cause accounting for each day of delay; a jurat containing the attester’s name complies with section 8.
Civil procedure — Extension of time under Rule 10 — 'Good cause' required and must be proved; applicant must account for each day of delay; affidavit jurat must contain attesting officer's name per section 8 (Cap. 12) — unpleaded facts cannot be relied on orally at hearing.
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9 October 2018 |
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Use of a road reserve under statutory permit does not create an easement; malicious prosecution requires lack of probable cause and malice.
* Roads law – road reserve – statutory exclusivity of use under Roads Act s.29(1) – temporary private use by permit under s.29(2).
* Property law – easement – an easement cannot be asserted over a road reserve protected for road use; adjoining landowner lacks standing to restrict licensed use.
* Tort – malicious prosecution – ingredients: institution by defendant, absence of reasonable and probable cause, malice, and termination in plaintiff's favour; nolle prosequi not necessarily a favourable termination.
* Civil procedure – appellate re-appraisal of evidence — Court of Appeal entitled to re-evaluate evidence subject to deference to trial court's advantage of witnessing witnesses.
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9 October 2018 |
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A direct 'second‑bite' leave application is premature if the applicant did not first obtain High Court extension of time.
* Appellate procedure – leave to appeal – Rule 45(b), Rule 47 & Rule 10 Court of Appeal Rules – requirement to first apply to the High Court for leave or extension of time before a 'second bite' application to the Court of Appeal.
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8 October 2018 |
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Omission of mandatory interlocutory proceedings and trial exhibits from the record renders an appeal incompetent and subject to striking out.
Civil Procedure – Appeals – Record of appeal – Mandatory inclusion of primary/core documents and interlocutory proceedings under Rule 96 – Omission of documents admitted at trial (including proof of locus standi) renders appeal incurably defective and incompetent; Preliminary objections – sufficiency of notice under Rule 107(1).
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5 October 2018 |
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Whether the respondent's land claim was time‑barred — court held accrual occurred in 2010; appeal dismissed.
Limitation of actions — Law of Limitation Act, item 22 and section 9(2) — accrual of right of action on dispossession/discontinuance; adverse possession vs invitee occupation; scope of appeal on certified points of law; pecuniary jurisdiction of Ward Tribunal not entertained on third appeal.
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5 October 2018 |
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Applicant granted fourteen days to file appeal documents after illness and good‑faith review efforts; respondents' affidavit struck out as defective.
* Civil procedure – extension of time/condonation – factors: length of delay, reasons (ill‑health), diligence, prejudice, point of law (illegality).
* Affidavits – jurat/attestation – compliance with section 10 of the Oaths and Statutory Declarations Act; defective jurat renders affidavit fatally defective and liable to be struck out.
* Labour law – appeals and leave to appeal – procedural compliance and timeliness.
* Court discretion – review applications pursued in good faith may justify condonation of subsequent delay.
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5 October 2018 |
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Respondent’s land claim was not time-barred; accrual occurred on dispossession in 2010 under section 9(2).
* Land Law – limitation: 12-year limitation under Item 22, First Schedule to the Law of Limitation Act. * Limitation accrual – section 9(2): right accrues on dispossession or discontinuance of possession. * Adverse possession v. invitee occupancy – building and paying rent do not automatically establish title. * Concurrent findings of fact by trial and first appellate tribunals respected on third appeal. * Pecuniary jurisdiction determined from pleadings; burden to prove excess lies on alleging party.
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4 October 2018 |
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Respondent's land claim was within 12-year limitation; limitation accrued on dispossession in 2010, appeal dismissed.
Land law – limitation of actions – Item 22 Part I, First Schedule to the Law of Limitation Act – 12-year period to recover land; Accrual of right of action – section 9(2) (date of dispossession or discontinuance); Adverse possession – continuous occupation as invitee, building and payment of rent do not necessarily constitute dispossession; Civil procedure – pecuniary jurisdiction of Ward Tribunal – matter of pleadings and not a fresh point on second/third appeal.
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4 October 2018 |
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Appellant lacked statutory mining licence; disputed ridge lawfully allocated to respondent under SML 45/1999.
Mining law – Minerals vested in the State; mineral rights require statutory licences (Prospecting/Special/Primary) – possession or sub‑contracting and administrative promises do not confer mineral rights – interpretation and application of Special Mining Licence SML 45/1999 to determine lawful allocation.
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3 October 2018 |
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An appeal filed beyond the statutory sixty-day period, despite a delay certificate, is incompetent and struck out.
Limitation of appeals – Rule 90(1) Tanzania Court of Appeal Rules, 2009 – Registrar’s certificate of delay – exclusion of certified period from computation of time – effect of instituting appeal out of time – incompetence and striking out of appeal – exercise of revisionary powers under s.4(2) Appellate Jurisdiction Act – inability to make substantive/consequential orders where appeal is incompetent.
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3 October 2018 |
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The appellant's appeal was struck out as time‑barred; no consequential orders or costs were made.
Appeal — time limits — Rule 90(1) Court of Appeal Rules — registrar’s certificate of delay — competence of appeal — striking out time‑barred appeals — exercise of revisionary powers under s.4(2) Appellate Jurisdiction Act — consequential orders and costs where time issue raised suo motu.
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3 October 2018 |
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Application for extension of time denied: delay inadequately explained and alleged illegality not particularized.
* Civil procedure — extension of time under Court of Appeal Rules, Rule 10 — requirement to show good cause; factors: length of delay, reasons, diligence, prejudice, and point of law (illegality) apparent on record.
* Applicants must account for each day of delay; ignorance of law or lack of counsel is not good cause.
* General, unparticularized allegation of illegality is insufficient to found extension of time.
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3 October 2018 |
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Appeals from the Labour Court require no leave but must be confined to points of law under section 57 LIA.
Labour Court appeals – s.57 Labour Institutions Act – right to appeal on point of law only; appeals from Labour Court do not require leave under s.5(1)(c) AJA even if proceedings arose under CPC; factual grounds incompetent; revisional jurisdiction cannot cure factual grounds.
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3 October 2018 |
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Failure to hear an affected party in judicial review vitiates the decision and requires remittal for a fresh hearing.
Administrative law – Judicial review – Failure to implead or hear an affected party breaches audi alteram partem and Article 13(6)(a) – Decision made without hearing is nullity – Remittal for fresh hearing; Labour law – procedural fairness in review of ministerial labour decisions.
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2 October 2018 |
| September 2018 |
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Failure to state reasons for transfer of a partly heard trial under section 299(1) CPA vitiates the subsequent proceedings.
* Criminal procedure – Succession of judge – Section 299(1) Criminal Procedure Act – Requirement to state and record reason for transfer of a partly heard trial.
* Jurisdiction – Failure to state cause for transfer – Successor judge lacks jurisdiction; proceedings vitiated.
* Remedy – Nullification of irregular proceedings, quashing of conviction and sentence, remittal for retrial before another judge with original assessors or de novo.
* Right of accused – Entitlement to be informed of right to resummon witnesses under s.299(1).
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28 September 2018 |