High Court of Tanzania

This is the second level in the Judiciary justice delivery hierarchy. It has both appellate and original powers on civil and criminal matters. It also hears appeals from the Courts of Resident Magistrate, the District Courts, and the District Land and Housing Tribunals in exercise of their original, appellate and/or revisional jurisdiction. The High Court is divided into Zones and specialized Divisions. 

Physical address
24 Kivukoni Road, P O Box: S.L.P. 9004
7,846 judgments

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7,846 judgments
Citation
Judgment date
December 2024
Appeal allowed: prosecution failed to prove rape beyond reasonable doubt due to credibility issues and missing witnesses.
Criminal law – Rape – burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt; Evidence – victim as best witness under s.127 Evidence Act but not immune from credibility testing; Contradictory evidence – discrepancies going to root v. minor inconsistencies; Failure to call important witnesses – adverse inference; Corroboration – medical/PF3 and police evidence insufficient to remove reasonable doubt.
31 December 2024
Registration as wrong High Court appeal type was fatal; appellant allowed 21 days to refile correctly.
* Family law – Appeals from primary courts – Requirement under Section 80 LMA and Rule 37(1) to commence appeal by Memorandum of Appeal. * Civil procedure – Competence – Effect of filing a Petition instead of a Memorandum and when defects are curable. * Court administration – Correct High Court registration of appeals originating in Primary Courts (PC Civil Appeal) per Chief Justice Circular No.2/2021. * Overriding objective / Article 107A – limits on curing non-compliance with mandatory procedural requirements.
31 December 2024
Failure to account for each day of delay and lack of facial illegality warranted refusal of extension of time.
Extension of time; Law of Limitation Act s.14(1); requirement to account for each day of delay (Lyamuya test); technical delay (eCMS reference number) not proved by evidence; alleged illegality must be apparent on the face of record to justify extension.
31 December 2024
Where hearing is concluded, a court may pronounce judgment despite a party's subsequent death; appeal dismissed.
Matrimonial law — effect of death after conclusion of hearing — abatement; applicability of Order XXII, Rule 6 CPC; evidential burden to prove death notification in trial record; adoption of deed of settlement.
31 December 2024
Conviction against the applicant quashed where visual identification was unreliable and the arresting officer was not called.
* Criminal law – Armed robbery – Visual identification – Recognition evidence must be watertight: account of lighting, distance, duration and description required (Waziri Amani principles). * Criminal procedure – Failure to call material witnesses/arresting officer – adverse inference may be drawn and prosecution case weakened. * Standard of proof – Prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt; suspicion insufficient.
31 December 2024
Applicant sought restoration of appeal but withdrew; court dismissed application and awarded costs to respondent.
Civil Procedure — Costs; Costs follow the event — Applicant’s voluntary request to dismiss without costs insufficient to displace general rule; Dismissal for want of prosecution; Discretion to award costs — authoritative guidance.
31 December 2024
Extension of time to file defence granted where delay was accounted for and an apparent illegality on the record justified discretion.
Civil procedure – Extension of time to file written statement of defence under Order VIII r.3 CPC; requirements of "good cause" (Lyamuya criteria); accounting for delay; illegality apparent on face of record as sufficient ground to grant extension; court to avoid adjudicating substantive merits at extension stage.
31 December 2024
Extension denied where applicant failed to account for each day of 277-day delay; application dismissed with costs.
* Civil procedure – Extension of time – Section 11(1) AJA – Applicant must account for each day of delay – Lyamuya principles applied; delay of 277 days inadequately explained. * Requirement – Diligence and full accounting for days of delay; general/evasive explanations insufficient. * Merits – Prospects of success of intended appeal are not a proper ground for granting extension of time.
31 December 2024
The applicant failed to rebut registry evidence of an earlier valid offer and sale; appeal dismissed.
* Land law – proof of title – validity of letter of offer; re‑survey and renumbering of plots (Plot No. 999 BB = Plot No. 1 CC). * Burden when alleging registration fraud – necessity of cogent evidence and joining issuing authority. * Priority principle – earlier valid acquisition and sale confer superior interest over later-obtained title. * Gifts and alienation – once title passes by gift it cannot later be revoked by the donor.
31 December 2024
Claims dismissed: Mining Commission ordered suspension and demolition; plaintiffs failed to prove defendant caused losses.
Mining law – suspension of operations for safety – admissibility and effect of Mining Commission letters; civil liability – burden of proof for demolition and damages; hearsay and lack of documentary proof undermining damages claims; reinstatement refused where safety and contractual basis unproven.
31 December 2024
Revision dismissed for improper joinder of a non-party bank to execution proceedings; no order as to costs.
Matrimonial proceedings — Revision against subordinate court execution orders — Joinder of non-party (bank) in revision — Locus standi and improper impleading — Preliminary objection dispositive; dismissal of application.
31 December 2024
Conviction for statutory rape upheld; unlawful cautioned statement expunged and life sentence substituted with 30 years.
* Criminal law – Statutory rape – elements: penetration and age – victim’s testimony as primary evidence and corroboration by medical evidence. * Evidence – Child/victim credibility – failure to cross‑examine implies acceptance; s127(6) Evidence Act. * Procedure – Non‑compliance with s9(3)/s10(3) CPA not fatal absent shown prejudice. * Evidence admissibility – cautioned statement recorded outside statutory time expunged (s50 CPA). * Sentencing – life sentence reserved for victims under ten; substitution with fixed term where applicable.
31 December 2024
Omission to record members' gender in some minutes did not invalidate a properly constituted ward tribunal.
Land law — Ward Tribunal composition — statutory coram requirements and female membership — effect of omissions in tribunal minutes — when omission vitiates proceedings; distinction from cases with complete absence of gender records; requirement of prejudice/jurisdictional defect for nullity.
31 December 2024
An appeal against a compounding decision lacking the required proceedings, judgment or order is incompetent and struck out.
Criminal procedure — Appeal — Requirement that petition be accompanied by copy of proceedings, judgment or order (s.362 CPA) — Payment receipt insufficient as substitute — Competence — Compounding orders under Wildlife Conservation Act not adjudicated due to procedural non-compliance.
31 December 2024
Oral sales of land under a right of occupancy are inoperative; payer of consideration is entitled to refund, and occupier must pay rent.
Land law – disposition of land under right of occupancy – section 64(1)(a)–(b) Land Act – requirement of written signed contract for enforceability; Oral sale inoperative but not void – restitution where purchaser paid consideration; Credibility and balance of probabilities in civil proof; Occupation rent recovery.
31 December 2024
Tribunal wrongly held Primary Court awarded disputed land to respondent; matter remitted for further evidence and rehearing.
* Matrimonial property — construction of Primary Court decree — whether disputed farms/plots formed part of jointly-acquired properties. * Evidence — proper assessment of Exhibit P1 and necessity to identify claims made in matrimonial proceedings. * Appellate powers — reception of additional evidence under section 76(1)(d) CPC and Order XXXIX rules 27–29. * Procedural fairness — consequences of ex parte proceedings and lacunae in evidence in land ownership disputes.
31 December 2024
Circumstantial and forensic defects, plus untested confession, defeated the prosecution's case; accused acquitted.
Criminal law – Murder – Circumstantial evidence – Standard: must irresistibly exclude other hypotheses – Oral confession and cautioned statements – admissibility and reliability – Search and seizure irregularities – Chain of custody and admissibility of DNA/forensic evidence – Adverse inference where prosecution omits material witnesses.
31 December 2024
Court upheld conviction: child's promise recorded, hearsay corroborated, and minor contradictions insufficient to overturn conviction.
Evidence — child witness competence and promise under s.127(2) Evidence Act; Hearsay and corroboration; Proof beyond reasonable doubt; Minor contradictions non‑fatal; Afterthought grounds not entertained on appeal.
31 December 2024
Proceedings resumed after dismissal without restoration are nullities, nullifying ensuing judgments and appeals.
Civil procedure – dismissal for want of prosecution – requirement to restore or file fresh proceedings (Rule 28) – continuation of a dismissed matter without restoration renders subsequent proceedings and judgments nullity; mis-citation of enabling rule not necessarily fatal; appellate court’s duty to notice procedural nullity suo motu.
30 December 2024
A constitutional petition challenging government action, not legislation, is vexatious where alternative remedies are available.
Constitutional procedure — competence of petition — vexatious and frivolous petitions under BRADEA Rules; distinction between challenging governmental action and Acts of Parliament; alternative remedies and forum non conveniens (Fair Competition Commission/ judicial review); locus standi of corporate entities in basic rights petitions; admissibility and propriety of affidavits (Order XIX Rule 3 CPC).
30 December 2024
An appeal dismissed by the High Court cannot be refiled there; duplicate refiling is incompetent and struck out.
* Civil procedure – competence of appeal – effect of prior dismissal by High Court – dismissal closes matter and precludes refile in same court. * Civil procedure – registry/e‑filing errors – do not cure jurisdictional defects caused by a prior dismissal. * Civil procedure – overriding objective – cannot be used to circumvent final dismissal or fundamental procedural requirements. * Abuse of court process – refiling identical appeal after dismissal amounts to abuse.
30 December 2024
Whether the applicant was lawfully married to the respondent and thus entitled to divorce, property division and child maintenance.
*Family law – existence and proof of marriage – presumption (dhana) of marriage – inapplicability where a prior valid marriage exists. *Family law – admissibility and weight of documentary evidence purporting to dissolve prior marriage – credibility and independent proof required. *Family law – matrimonial property – section 114 applies only to spouses; no 50/50 division absent proven marriage. *Children law – parentage and maintenance – jurisdiction of the Juvenile (Children’s) Court; parentage may be determined by DNA evidence.
30 December 2024
Court exercised discretion under the Court Fees Rules to remit filing fees after a paid suit was withdrawn without service.
Court Fees – remission/exemption of filing fees – discretionary power under Judicature and Application of Laws (Court Fees Rules) G.N.247/2018 – Rule 6(3),(4) – withdrawal of suit with leave to refile – entitlement to remission when fee paid but service not enjoyed.
30 December 2024
Appeal filed after statutory 30‑day period is time‑barred; preliminary objection sustained and appeal dismissed.
Appeal — limitation — section 25 Magistrates' Courts Act — statutory 30‑day filing period — e‑CMS filing entries — administrative/system errors not an automatic excuse — Law of Limitation Act Cap 89 RE 2019 — time‑barred appeal dismissed.
30 December 2024
Formatting defects cured by overriding objective; offensive affidavit paragraphs expunged, application proceeds to merits.
* Civil procedure — Electronic filing — Rule 11(2) and 3rd Schedule — formatting non‑compliance — cured by overriding objective where no prejudice. * Interpretation of Laws — Section 64 ILGCA — inapplicable to schedule/format deviations. * Evidence — Affidavits — must contain facts only; legal argument, conclusions or prayers are extraneous — Ex parte Matovu; offending paragraphs expunged. * Application for extension of time — remaining affidavit paragraphs sufficient to support the application. * Costs to follow the event.
30 December 2024
Leave for judicial review struck out for failure to exhaust statutory extra‑judicial remedies.
Administrative law — judicial review (leave stage) — requirement to exhaust available extra‑judicial remedies — requisition of general meeting under Law Society Act — prematurity — application struck out.
30 December 2024
Court granted letters of administration to two family members after caveat withdrawal and statutory compliance.
* Probate and Administration – grant of letters of administration – compliance with section 56 and publication requirements. * Caveat – withdrawal and joinder of caveator as co-petitioner – effect on grant of administration. * Documentary requirements – death certificate, Gazette and newspaper citation, verification of originals. * Duty of administrators – administer according to law and file inventory and final accounts.
29 December 2024
27 December 2024
High Court found no proved non-joinder, quashed the first appellate decision and reinstated the trial court judgment for the appellant.
Civil appeal — non-joinder of necessary parties — partnership not proved; absence of partnership deed/exhibit — evaluation of evidence on appeal — misdirection by appellate court — reinstatement of trial court judgment; award for supply of mining equipment.
27 December 2024
High Court quashed DLHT res judicata finding for improper ward tribunal composition and denial of right to be heard.
Land law – res judicata; competence of tribunal – mandatory Ward Tribunal composition (s.11 Land Disputes Courts Act); natural justice – right to be heard (Art.13(6)(a)); revisional jurisdiction of High Court (s.43(1)(b) Land Disputes Courts Act).
27 December 2024
Applicant’s sickness and alleged illegality not shown; failure to account for delay and lack of diligence — extension denied with costs.
* Civil procedure – extension of time under s.11(1) Appellate Jurisdiction Act – requirements: account for every day of delay, show diligence, avoid inordinate delay. * Grounds for extension – sickness: must be proved and account for the period of delay; illegality: must be apparent on the face of the record (jurisdictional or similar defect). * Public interest in finality of litigation (interest republicae ut sit finis litium) – court will not reward inaction or negligence.
27 December 2024
27 December 2024
Temporary injunction expired without extension; alleged disobedience and damages must be pursued before the issuing tribunal, not a different court.
Civil procedure – Temporary injunctions – Order XXXVII Rules 2–3 CPC – life span and extension; Land Disputes Courts Regulations v. CPC – section 51(2) LDCA; jurisdiction to enforce tribunal orders – enforcing tribunal is proper forum; cause of action requires proof of timing of alleged disobedience.
27 December 2024
Appeal allowed where prosecution failed to prove ownership, entrustment or tender of the alleged stolen motorcycle.
Criminal law – Stealing by agent – elements of offence – ownership, principal‑agent relationship, entrustment and intent to permanently deprive – burden on prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt; Evidence – proof of ownership via vehicle registration and transfer documents; failure to call registered owner and to tender alleged stolen property as exhibit is fatal; Appeal – first appellate court’s duty to rehear and re‑evaluate evidence.
27 December 2024
Applicant failed to obtain interim injunction over alleged matrimonial property; respondent protected as bona fide purchaser.
* Civil procedure – interlocutory injunction – application of Atilio v. Mbowe principles (prima facie case, irreparable loss, balance of convenience). * Property law – matrimonial property – spouse’s status and marriage certificate not conclusive proof of ownership; documentary proof required. * Property transactions – protection of bona fide purchaser for value following mortgage sale. * Burden of proof – vague assertions of irreparable harm are insufficient; damages may be adequate remedy.
27 December 2024
Court declared purchasers of unsurveyed customary parcels lawful owners and ordered municipal defendant to vacate or compensate.
Land law – ownership of unsurveyed customary parcels purchased by private parties; evidentiary weight of local leaders and town-planning inspection; departure from pleadings invalidates inconsistent defence evidence; failure to call material witnesses (compensation beneficiaries) draws adverse inference; reliefs: declaration of ownership, vacant possession or alternative land, survey and registration, general damages, interest and costs.
27 December 2024
Revision against interlocutory dismissal of preliminary objections was incompetent and the application was struck out.
Land — Revision — Interlocutory orders — Preliminary objections dismissed for want of prosecution — Revision not competent under section 79(2) CPC unless order finally determines suit — Proper remedy may be application to set aside under Regulation 11(2) GN No. 174/2003 — Competence raised suo motu — No costs ordered.
27 December 2024
27 December 2024
Application under s372 struck out because applicant’s counsel unlawfully administered oath, rendering supporting affidavit defective.
* Criminal procedure – Revisionary powers – Section 372(1) Criminal Procedure Act – High Court may examine regularity of subordinate court proceedings even without a final order, finding or sentence. * Notary Public and Commissioners of Oaths Act s7 – prohibition on commissioners who are advocates administering oaths in matters where they represent a party – breach renders affidavit defective and application incompetent. * Preliminary objection – competence of proceedings – effect of defective supporting affidavit; striking out and leave to re-institute.
24 December 2024
Labour revision dismissed: oral evidence and compliance orders established employment and unlawful termination; CMA award upheld.
Labour law – employment relationship – proof of employment without written contract; labour officer compliance orders as evidence; unfair (oral) termination and failure to follow disciplinary procedures; assessment of salary-deduction claims; computation of compensation per minimum wage order (GN No. 687 of 2022).
24 December 2024
Court allowed removal of caveat under s.78(4) after caveator failed to appear, no costs ordered.
Land registration – Caveat – Section 78(1) right to lodge caveat; Section 78(4) power to summon caveator and remove caveat – Ex parte removal where caveator, though served, fails to show cause; Bona fide purchaser invoking removal of caveat.
24 December 2024
Court allowed extension to apply to set aside ex parte judgment due to defective service and illegality.
Land law – extension of time to apply to set aside ex parte judgment; sufficiency of cause – diligence, accounting for delay; defective service/notice and compliance with Order XX Rule 1 CPC; illegality as sufficient cause (Devram Valambhia; Kalunga & Co).
24 December 2024
Application for extension struck out for citing a non-existent statute; minor jurat defects were overruled.
Civil procedure – Preliminary objections – affidavit jurat requirements (date, place, commissioner’s introduction) – misspelling/minor misnomer in jurat – citation of non-existent statutory provision – application struck out where substantive legal citation defect persists despite prior direction.
24 December 2024
Failure to frame and record issues before hearing vitiated the judgment and warranted quash and remittal for rehearing.
Civil procedure — Order XIV r.1(5) CPC — Mandatory duty to frame and record issues before hearing; omission may vitiate proceedings if it causes miscarriage of justice; remittal for framing and rehearing; appellate power to remit and permit additional evidence (Magistrates' Courts Act s.29(a)).
24 December 2024
Primary court reliance on improperly tendered electronic evidence renders its judgment a nullity; applicant may reinstitute proceedings.
Evidence — Electronic evidence — Jurisdiction of primary courts to deal with electronic evidence — Tendering, marking, admission and endorsement of exhibits — Exhibit Management Guidelines; Rule 4, Order XIII CPC — Documents not forming part of record — Judgment a nullity — Quashing proceedings and liberty to reinstitute.
23 December 2024
Whether a temporary injunction should preserve the status quo over disputed farmland pending the main suit.
Land law – Temporary injunction to preserve status quo – triable issues, irreparable harm (cultivation and imminent dispossession), balance of convenience; technical omission to annex plaint not fatal; threats of violence are criminal matters, not determinative in civil interlocutory relief.
23 December 2024
23 December 2024
Proceedings after a party's death without proof of administration violated the right to cross-examine, warranting nullification and retrial.
* Civil procedure – death of a party during proceedings – necessity of letters of administration before a representative may act for the deceased. * Evidence – right to cross-examine a party’s representative where testimony is material and not preserved. * Probate and Administration of Estates Act (ss.71,100) – administration appointment as legal requirement. * Relief – nullification and rehearing (de novo) where trial fairness is compromised.
23 December 2024
Second appeal upholds concurrent findings on child maintenance and division of matrimonial property; appeal dismissed.
* Family law — Divorce — custody, maintenance and division of matrimonial assets — maintenance assessed in light of the parent’s means and evidence at trial. * Matrimonial property — section 114(1) & (3) Law of Marriage Act — assets improved during marriage by spouse’s joint efforts become matrimonial assets. * Evidence — burden on party alleging ownership or contribution; failure to cross‑examine implies acceptance. * Appeals — second appeal will not disturb concurrent findings of fact absent misapprehension; new grounds or facts raised for first time on appeal are impermissible.
23 December 2024
High Court restored trial judgment, finding appellate court erred in disregarding a primary-court-admitted contract exhibit proving breach.
* Civil procedure – second appeal – appellate re-evaluation of primary court evidence and applicable standard under Primary Courts (Evidence) Regulations (G.N. No. 22/1964). * Contract – existence and breach – admitted written contract (Exhibit P1) and effect of partial performance and payments. * Evidence – contents of an exhibit admitted without objection are effectively proved; estoppel against denying admitted exhibit contents. * Contract law – whether time was of the essence and consequences of unjustified rejection of part delivery.
23 December 2024