Court of Appeal of Tanzania

This is the highest level in the justice delivery system in Tanzania. The Court of Appeal draws its mandate from Article 117(1) of the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania. The Court hears appeals  on both point of law and facts for cases originating from the High Court of Tanzania and Magistrates with extended jurisdiction in exercise of their original jurisdiction or appellate and revisional jurisdiction over matters originating in the District Land and Housing Tribunals, District Courts and Courts of Resident Magistrate. The Court also hears similar appeals  from quasi judicial bodies of status equivalent to that of the High Court. It  further hears appeals  on point of law against the decision of the High Court in  matters originating from Primary Courts. The Court of Appeal also exercises jurisdiction on appeals originating from the High Court of Zanzibar except for constitutional issues arising from the interpretation of the Constitution of Zanzibar and matters arising from the Kadhi Court.

Physical address
26 Kivukoni Road Building P.O. Box 9004, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.
2,252 judgments

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2,252 judgments
Citation
Judgment date
February 2025
The prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the appellant raped and impregnated the victim.
Criminal Law – Rape and impregnation of a minor – Evidence admissibility – Procedural irregularities in evidence collection – Insufficient witness testimony.
28 February 2025
Rape conviction quashed; substituted with grave sexual abuse, sentencing appellant to 20 years imprisonment.
Criminal law – Rape – Adequacy of evidence for penetration – Charge defects – Grave sexual abuse as substitute conviction.
28 February 2025
Court quashes armed robbery conviction due to flawed identification and insufficient proof beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law - Armed robbery - Visual identification reliability - Procedural irregularity in identification parade - Production of weapon and proof beyond reasonable doubt.
28 February 2025
Disciplinary letters within employment, when justified, are protected by qualified privilege against defamation claims.
Defamation - libel within disciplinary process - publication and qualified privilege of employer communications
28 February 2025
The Court upheld the conviction for unnatural offence, finding the case proved beyond reasonable doubt despite evidence challenges.
Criminal law – Admissibility of evidence – Proof of age in sexual assault cases – Victim identification accuracy – Standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.
28 February 2025
The failure to call a material witness in a rape case led to reasonable doubt and the appellant's acquittal.
Criminal law; rape; evidence of child witness; compliance with Evidence Act; material witness omission; reasonable doubt.
28 February 2025
Improperly admitting a cautioned statement invalidated a murder conviction due to insufficient circumstantial evidence.
Criminal Law - Murder conviction appeal - Admission of cautioned statements beyond legal time limits - Circumstantial evidence insufficiency.
28 February 2025
The court overturned equivocal guilty pleas and ordered the appellant's release due to procedural flaws and time served.
Criminal Law – Plea of Guilty – Equivocal Pleas in Burglary and Stealing – Legal Errors in Proceedings and Convictions – Habitual Offender Claims Unsubstantiated – Time Served Consideration for Immediate Release.
28 February 2025
The court quashed the robbery conviction due to a variance between the charge and evidence, leading to appellants' release.
Criminal law – armed robbery – variance between charge and evidence – requirement to amend charge under section 234(1) of the CPA.
28 February 2025
The appellant's rape conviction is upheld; the sentence for impregnating a schoolgirl is reduced from 30 to 5 years.
Criminal law – Rape – Statutory rape – Evidence of victim's age and penetration – Sentencing discretion for first offenders.
28 February 2025
High Court wrongly initiated revision and assessed appeal's merits; order for extension of time was set aside.
Criminal Procedure – Revision of judgments – High Court's powers – Extension of time for appeal
28 February 2025
Court grants stay of execution pending appeal, contingent on applicant providing bank guarantee within 45 days.
Application for stay of execution - Conditions for stay of execution - Substantial loss and security for due performance.
27 February 2025
The court quashed the rape conviction, citing unreliable evidence and procedural mishaps, ordering the appellant's release.
Criminal Law - Rape - Inconsistent medical evidence - Witness credibility - Failure to summon material witnesses - Adequate consideration of defense - Proof beyond reasonable doubt.
27 February 2025
Procedural errors led to expunging evidence, but remaining testimonies effectively upheld rape conviction.
Criminal Law – Rape – Admissibility of Extra-Judicial Statements – Requirements for display of credibility and procedural adherence in witness testimony.
26 February 2025
Appeal court reduced life imprisonment to 15 years for a guilty plea to manslaughter, citing unconsidered mitigating factors.
Criminal law - Manslaughter - Sentencing - Consideration of mitigating and aggravating factors - Excessive sentence on plea of guilty.
25 February 2025
Appellant's conviction quashed due to lack of cross-examination among co-accused; retrial ordered with fair trial emphasis.
Criminal Law - Fair trial - Right to cross-examination among co-accused - Procedural irregularity - Retrial
25 February 2025
The Court of Appeal of Tanzania quashed a murder conviction due to unreliable identification and procedural irregularities in admitting evidence.
Criminal law – Murder – Reliability of eyewitness identification – Admissibility and legality of extra-judicial statements and cautioned statements.
25 February 2025
Application for extension of time dismissed due to insufficient explanation for delay despite medical claims.
Civil procedure - extension of time - medical reasons - failure to account for delay - sufficient cause for delay
25 February 2025
The appeal against the conviction for rape based on victim's delayed reporting and jurisdictional defects was dismissed.
Criminal Law – Rape – Credibility of victim’s testimony – Jurisdiction for trial location – Defective charge allegations.
24 February 2025
Appellants' failure to prove loan repayment leads to dismissal of appeal and confirmation of trial court's decision.
Civil Procedure – Loan Repayment and Evidence Evaluation – Admissibility of Exhibits in Loan Disputes.
24 February 2025
The conviction for rape was upheld despite procedural objections regarding the charge sheet and judgment structure.
Criminal law – Rape – Charge validity in absence of specific time – Points for determination in judgment.
24 February 2025
The court quashed murder convictions due to improper reliance on retracted confessions not introduced correctly at committal.
Criminal Law - Admissibility of confessions - procedural irregularity - invalid committal proceedings - reliance on uncorroborated confessions.
24 February 2025
Court quashes conviction due to insufficient corroboration of child victim's testimony, ordering release of appellant.
Criminal law - Rape - Defective charge - Evidence of child victim - Burden of proof and missing witnesses
21 February 2025
Court set aside rape conviction due to unreliable identification and procedural errors in taking testimony.
Criminal law - Rape - Identification reliability - Insufficient evidence - Age of witness - Procedural requirements for testimony.
21 February 2025
Court confirms statutory rape conviction, upholding life imprisonment for appellant given victim's age and credible evidence.
Criminal Law - statutory rape - statutory requirements for evidence in sexual offences - child witness credibility and testimonial requirements.
21 February 2025
The High Court's breach of natural justice in land dispute renders its proceedings null, remitting the case for rehearing.
Land Law – procedural fairness – High Court's decision in absentia of exhibits – assessors' opinions – breach of natural justice.
21 February 2025
The appellant's conviction was quashed due to an equivocal plea and discrepancies in dates and victim identity.
Criminal Law – Appeal – Plea of guilty – Requirement for unequivocal plea – Discrepancies between charge sheet and facts – Retrial ordered.
20 February 2025
The court quashed a manslaughter conviction due to an equivocal guilty plea based on inconsistent facts.
Criminal Law – Plea of Guilty – Equivocal plea; Legal inconsistencies in facts; Invalid plea in manslaughter conviction.
20 February 2025
Extension refused where applicant failed to account for a 41‑day delay and show sufficient cause.
Civil procedure – Extension of time – sufficient cause – applicant must account for each day of delay; unexplained 41-day delay fatal to application; diligence required. Authorities: Bushiri principle on accounting for each day; Lyamuya test on factors to consider.
20 February 2025
Court overturns a rape conviction due to unadmitted evidence, improper identification, and insufficient proof.
Criminal Law – Evidence – Admission and reliance on exhibits – Identification of appellant – Standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.
19 February 2025
A High Court judgment failing to address grounds for revision rendered it a nullity, prompting a remand for fresh judgment.
Failure to address grounds for appeal - Judgments must resolve grounds presented - Nullity of incomplete judgments
14 February 2025
January 2025
Stay of execution granted with condition due to applicant's potential irreparable loss and constructive interest.
Civil Procedure – Application for stay of execution – Consideration of ownership and substantial loss – Rule 11 of the Tanzania Court of Appeal Rules.
30 January 2025
Tanzania Court of Appeal grants stay of execution pending appeal, requiring applicant to deposit cash security.
Stay of execution - requirements under Tanzania Court of Appeal Rules - substantial loss - furnishing security for performance.
17 January 2025
December 2024
A criminal trial conducted by a court lacking proper jurisdiction due to a DPP’s certificate is a nullity and must be set aside.
Criminal procedure – economic offences – jurisdiction – requirement of DPP's certificate – trial conducted by wrong court – nullity of proceedings – mandatory observance of jurisdictional requirements in criminal trials involving economic offences.
27 December 2024
Section 160(2) LMA does not allow division of property after cohabitation where presumption of marriage is rebutted due to an existing monogamous marriage.
Family law – cohabitation – presumption of marriage – division of property – section 160(2) of the Law of Marriage Act – inapplicability where one party already in monogamous marriage – remedies available through civil claim for contributions, not matrimonial law.
23 December 2024
The appellate court quashed a conviction for rape due to unreliable evidence and material inconsistencies in the prosecution case.
Criminal law – rape – credibility of prosecution witnesses – standard of proof – inconsistencies in prosecution case – assessment of victim's evidence in sexual offence – appellate intervention on concurrent factual findings.
23 December 2024
Ignorance of the law and failure to account for each day of delay do not justify extension of time for revision.
Labour law – extension of time – sufficient cause for delay – accounting for each day of delay – ignorance of law – illegality not raised in the affidavit – dismissal of appeal.
19 December 2024
A conviction for impregnating a schoolgirl was quashed due to unreliable evidence and failure to prove the offence beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Standard of proof – impregnating a schoolgirl – credibility and reliability of witness testimony – failure to call material witnesses – adverse inference – quashing of conviction on failure to prove case beyond reasonable doubt.
19 December 2024
Failure to comply with committal procedures and admit only properly listed witnesses rendered murder conviction unsafe and appeal successful.
Criminal procedure – committal proceedings – admissibility of unlisted witnesses and exhibits – functus officio – identification evidence – reliability of single witness – standard of proof in criminal cases – fair trial rights.
18 December 2024
Convictions quashed where key evidence was improperly admitted and fair trial procedures were not followed, rendering the prosecution case unproven.
Criminal law – Doctrine of recent possession – Procedural fairness – Admission of exhibits – Section 34B Evidence Act – Non-compliance with committal and notice requirements – Exclusion of tainted evidence – Burden of proof – Right to fair trial.
18 December 2024
A claim for royalties must be strictly proved as to production from specific areas, and burden of proof rests with the claimant.
Contract—Interpretation—Royalties for gold production—Burden of proof—Time bar—Evidence—Civil procedure—Contractual freedom—Limitation periods—Contra proferentem—Proof of special damages—Burden not to be shifted by court—Dismissal for lack of proof.
18 December 2024
Appeal against incest convictions dismissed; credibility of child witnesses and proper evaluation of defence and evidence upheld.
Criminal law – incest – credibility of child witnesses – evaluation of contradictions in evidence – proper analysis of defence evidence – effect of failure to read out documentary exhibits – appellate review of concurrent findings.
12 December 2024
Procedural irregularities and alleged defects did not invalidate a statutory rape conviction upheld on credible evidence and fair trial principles.
Criminal procedure – statutory rape – procedural irregularities at preliminary hearing – defective charge sheet – delay in arraignment – proof of age of victim – expunging cautioned statement – sufficiency of evidence – non-calling of material witnesses – effect of procedural irregularities on conviction
11 December 2024
Failure to obtain a Marriage Conciliation Board certificate before filing for divorce renders all court proceedings and orders null.
Family law – Divorce – Mandatory reference to Marriage Conciliation Board – Failure to obtain certificate before filing petition – Jurisdiction of Primary Court – Nullity of proceedings for non-compliance with statutory preconditions.
10 December 2024
Court upholds murder conviction, finding cautioned statement and oral confession rightly admitted despite minor procedural irregularity.
Criminal law – Murder – Admissibility of cautioned statement recorded out of time – Proper exercise of judicial discretion under section 169 of the Criminal Procedure Act – Voluntariness and reliability of oral confession – Conviction based on confession evidence.
10 December 2024
The court held that reinstatement and compensation for unfair termination cannot be awarded together, but only as alternatives.
Labour law – Appeals to Court of Appeal – Points of law only – Section 57 Labour Institution Act – Procedural regularity in CMA proceedings – Remedies for unfair termination – Section 40(1) ELRA – Disjunctive application of reinstatement or compensation.
10 December 2024
Failure to tender a Marriage Conciliation Board certificate renders matrimonial proceedings a nullity due to lack of jurisdiction.
Family law – Matrimonial proceedings – Jurisdiction – Mandatory requirement to refer dispute to Marriage Conciliation Board and tender certificate – Failure to comply – Proceedings and judgments set aside as nullities.
10 December 2024
Conviction quashed as prosecution failed to comply with admissibility rules for deceased witness evidence, leaving insufficient proof.
Criminal law – Procedural irregularity – Admission of deceased witness statement under section 34B(2) of the Evidence Act – Requirements for admissibility – Reliance on retracted confession – Sufficiency of evidence – Proof beyond reasonable doubt.
10 December 2024
An appellate court must nullify lower court proceedings before ordering a retrial, or the entire process is a nullity.
Civil procedure – appellate court orders – retrial – requirement to first nullify, quash, and set aside lower court proceedings – procedural irregularity – nullity of retrial without proper orders.
10 December 2024
Minor contradictions and delayed reporting in rape cases do not undermine credible and corroborated prosecution evidence.
Criminal law – Rape – Credibility of victim witness – Minor contradictions – Delay in reporting – Number of witnesses – Burden of proof in sexual offences – Appellate review.
10 December 2024