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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 2008 |
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Registration confers exclusive trademark rights; similar marks causing confusion constitute passing off and attract injunctions and damages.
Trade mark law – Registered trade mark confers exclusive right – Similarity and likelihood of confusion – Passing off – Registrar's refusal to register similar marks justified – Remedies: injunction, delivery up/destruction, special, general and punitive damages.
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15 December 2008 |
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Registration confers exclusive rights; use of "POA" by defendant constituted passing off and caused consumer confusion.
Trade marks – Registration confers exclusive right (s.31 Trade and Service Marks Act); similarity and likelihood of confusion in identical markets constitutes passing off; Registrar’s refusal lawful where marks are confusing; Rule 29 – failure to contest Registrar’s conditional acceptance deemed withdrawal; injunctive relief and damages (special, general, punitive) awarded.
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15 December 2008 |
| November 2008 |
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Extension of time refused where counsel's negligence caused defective decree and no sufficient reason or illegality was shown.
Civil procedure – extension of time – discretionary relief – applicant must show sufficient cause; negligence or blunder by counsel is generally not sufficient; compliance with Order XX R.1 and R.3 (decree date) essential; interests of justice and allegations of illegality required to justify enlargement of time.
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25 November 2008 |
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Interim injunction application pending arbitration was incompetent for non-compliance with Arbitration Act procedure; struck out with costs.
* Arbitration — interim measures — High Court's power to grant interlocutory orders pending arbitration.
* Procedure — Applications in aid of arbitration must follow Arbitration Act s.3 and Arbitration Rules (petition process).
* Civil Procedure — section 95 not a substitute where specific statutory procedure exists; section 97 cannot cure jurisdictional defect after preliminary objection.
* International law — UNCITRAL Rules not domesticated; cannot displace domestic statutory requirements.
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3 November 2008 |
| October 2008 |
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Claims for vehicle repairs failed where replacement agreement was unsigned, unstamped, and alleged damage was only normal wear and tear.
Commercial law – vehicle lease – whether lessee breached lease terms; evidence and admissibility of replacement agreement – unsigned and unstamped instrument invalid under Stamp Duty Act; repair claims based on invalid document incompetent; damages limited to proven loss beyond normal wear and tear; enforcement of partial settlement.
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31 October 2008 |
| September 2008 |
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30 September 2008 |
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30 September 2008 |
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Res judicata did not bar the defendant’s third‑party claim because the earlier suit involved different parties and a different cause of action.
* Civil Procedure — Res judicata — Section 9 Civil Procedure Act — requirements for res judicata (identity of parties, litigating title, same cause of action, competent court, finally decided issue).; * Distinction between causes of action — finance/lease agreements versus contract of hire.; * Third‑party practice — permissibility of third‑party claim where prior litigation did not involve the third party.; * Doctrine of estoppel raised as alternative but not determinative on preliminary objection.
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26 September 2008 |
| August 2008 |
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28 August 2008 |
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21 August 2008 |
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Applicants failed to show a prima facie case or status quo to justify a temporary injunction over a disputed trademark.
Trade mark disputes – temporary injunctions – Atilio v Mbowe three conditions – status quo at filing date – danger of pre‑judging merits in trademark matters – procedural impropriety of raising new objections in written submissions.
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20 August 2008 |
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Court permits commercial suit to recover Capital Gains Tax paid on seller’s behalf; preliminary objections dismissed.
* Jurisdiction — Commercial Division may hear claims for recovery of taxes (Capital Gains Tax) arising from business/land transactions when the dispute is essentially commercial rather than a substantive land matter.
* Res judicata — Earlier land litigation did not bar new claims where the tax liability issue was not directly or substantially in issue in the prior suit.
* Corporate capacity — Absence of a board/company resolution to sue is a factual/ evidential issue, not a pure preliminary point of law to dispose of the suit at pleading stage.
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19 August 2008 |
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15 August 2008 |
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Commercial court may appoint an arbitrator; arbitration clause is separable and survives lease termination.
* Arbitration law – separability of arbitration clause – arbitration clause survives termination or repudiation of main contract. * Jurisdiction – Commercial Division may hear petitions to appoint arbitrators where arbitration clause is of commercial significance. * Procedure – pending or struck-out land proceedings involving different parties do not bar Commercial Division jurisdiction. * Security – court declined to order irrevocable bank guarantee under section 95; such matters are ordinarily for arbitrators. * Court power – appointment of arbitrator under Arbitration Act (s.8) and Arbitration Rules (rr.5–6).
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7 August 2008 |
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The applicant bank recovered outstanding sums after the respondent’s dishonoured cheques breached the direct credit facility.
Banking law – direct credit facility – indemnity deed – dishonoured cheques causing irregular overdraft – breach of facility – justified cancellation – recovery of outstanding sums and interest; general damages not proved.
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5 August 2008 |
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Advocate's failure to sign a plaint as required by O. VI r.14 is a procedural defect curable by amendment, not striking out.
* Civil procedure – Pleadings – Order VI r.14 – Requirement that both party and advocate sign pleadings – Advocate's signature must follow closing of statements; mere "Drawn and Filed by" at document end insufficient. * Procedural defect – Non-compliance with signature rule curable by amendment where no prejudice; not jurisdictional. * Preliminary objections – Misjoinder objection abandoned/unargued.
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1 August 2008 |
| July 2008 |
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Court allowed amendment of a defective affidavit and declined to decide fact‑dependent preliminary objections, permitting the suit to proceed.
* Trade mark dispute – alleged fraudulent registration of trade name and interlocutory injunction application. * Civil procedure – preliminary objections – distinction between pure points of law and issues requiring factual inquiry. * Affidavits – verification requirements under Order XIX r.3(1); representative capacity and omnibus verification clauses. * Amendment – court's discretion to allow withdrawal/filing of fresh affidavit where defect not incurable, especially where fraud alleged. * Joinder/administrative remedies – role of Registrar and statutory opposition procedures (not finally determined at preliminary stage).
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29 July 2008 |
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An appeal lacking the mandatory copy of the decree under Order XXXIX r.1(1) is incompetent and will be struck out.
• Civil procedure – Applicability of Civil Procedure Act to appeals from Commissioner for Minerals under the Mining Act; • Appeal formalities – Mandatory requirement under Order XXXIX r.1(1) to attach copy of decree/drawn order; • Preliminary objection – Wrong citation of statute not fatal if point of law otherwise discernible; • Judicial notice – Court may take judicial notice of written laws and decide pure legal points at any stage.
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25 July 2008 |
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A taxing master may judiciously depart from prescribed scales; court upheld doubled instruction fee and taxed bill.
Costs — Taxation — Conflict between Advocates' Rules scales and s.30 Civil Procedure Act — Taxing master's wide discretion — Interference only for error in principle or manifestly excessive award — Doubling of instruction fee and allowance for copying and engrossing justified by circumstances.
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16 July 2008 |
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15 July 2008 |
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Taxing officer allowed Tshs 10,000,000 instruction fee, struck out specified items, and taxed total bill at Tshs 10,514,000.
* Taxation of costs – assessment of instruction fees – reasonableness in light of claim value and case complexity.
* Taxation of costs – items subsumed in professional fees where no rates exist under Advocates Remuneration and Taxation of Costs Rules GN No. 515.
* Taxation of costs – allowance of disbursements and attendances where uncontested.
* Secretarial/direct costs – requirement of receipts and judicial determination of reasonable amount.
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10 July 2008 |
| June 2008 |
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Application to restrain company meetings dismissed as res judicata due to prior adjudication of shareholding and directorship issues.
* Companies law — application under s.137(1)&(2) for interlocutory relief restraining company meetings. * Civil procedure — res judicata (Section 9 Civil Procedure Act) — prior adjudication of shareholding and directorship disputes bars re-litigation. * Declaratory relief — earlier judgment found no fraud; status quo on shareholding/directorship maintained. * Miscellaneous procedure — improper fragmentation of proceedings; costs awarded.
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25 June 2008 |
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16 June 2008 |
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12 June 2008 |
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Leave granted to amend defence to add counter-claim under Order VI r.17; time limits in Order VIII r.1(2) not shown to bar amendment.
Civil procedure – amendment of pleadings (Order VI r.17) – whether time limits for filing defence (Order VIII r.1(2) as amended) bar amendments – amendments allowed to raise real questions and avoid multiplicity of suits – prejudice compensable by costs.
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10 June 2008 |
| May 2008 |
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30 May 2008 |
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Bankruptcy proving‑rules do not bar suit against a specified public corporation undergoing restructuring; preliminary objections dismissed.
* Bankruptcy Act s.37 and Second Schedule – scope and applicability to specified public corporations; proving debts by affidavit to official receiver
* Public Corporations Act – power of Commission to liquidate under Companies Act or to determine restructuring/privatization
* Companies Act vs Bankruptcy Act – liquidation/restructuring regimes for insolvent specified public corporations
* Civil procedure – preliminary objections; parties bound by pleadings
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28 May 2008 |
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Bankruptcy proof‑of‑debt rules do not automatically apply to a specified public corporation undergoing restructuring; preliminary objections dismissed.
• Civil procedure – preliminary objections – scope and nature: preliminary points must be questions of law capable of disposing of the suit.
• Bankruptcy Act – applicability to specified public corporations: Bankruptcy rules apply at declaration stage but not to post‑declaration restructuring.
• Proof of debts – affidavit requirement under Second Schedule: not automatically applicable to specified public corporations undergoing privatization.
• Companies (Winding‑up) Rules – applicable only where liquidation/winding up occurs, not where restructuring/privatization is intended.
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28 May 2008 |
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Application for arrest of foreign‑registered vessel dismissed for failure to prove imminent removal or risk of defeating execution.
Civil procedure — Arrest/attachment before judgment (O.XXXVI CPC) — Requirements to show intent to abscond or remove property — Prima facie claim insufficient — Mis‑citation of enabling provisions (O.XXXVII) may be cured where substantive justice requires.
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10 May 2008 |
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Court lacks jurisdiction to tax a bill of costs filed after the 60‑day statutory limit absent formal leave.
Civil procedure — Taxation of costs — Limitation — Bill of costs must be filed within 60 days (Section 21, Part III, Limitation Act); court lacks jurisdiction to tax an out-of-time bill absent formal leave to extend time.
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8 May 2008 |
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7 May 2008 |
| April 2008 |
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28 April 2008 |
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Disputes over commercial option to purchase mineral rights are not mandatorily referred to the Commissioner; defective verification is amendable.
* Mining law – Section 101 Mining Act – jurisdiction of Commissioner for Minerals limited to specified matters; commercial contracts (option to purchase mineral rights) not within s.101.(1)
* Land law – Definition of "land" excludes minerals (s.2 Land Act); disputes over minerals are not automatically land-division matters under s.167.
* Civil procedure – Order VI r15(3) CPC (verification clause) – omission of date/place is a curable procedural irregularity; amendment allowed under Order VI r17.
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23 April 2008 |
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17 April 2008 |
| February 2008 |
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12 February 2008 |
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5 February 2008 |
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5 February 2008 |
| January 2008 |
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An appeal from the Commissioner for Minerals must be accompanied by the decree; failure renders the appeal incompetent.
Mining law; appeals from Commissioner for Minerals to High Court – application of Civil Procedure Act; Order XXXIX r.1(1) mandatory requirement to annex a copy of the decree/order; competency of appeal; effect of incorrect statutory citation; preliminary objections of law may be raised at appellate stage.
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1 January 2008 |
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A suit against a specified public corporation is barred unless the creditor obtains leave and complies with statutory proof-of-debt requirements.
* Public Corporations Act – specification of public corporations – effect of specification – vesting of property in Consolidated Holding Corporation.* Bankruptcy Act – s.9(1) – leave of Court required before commencing or continuing proceedings against property vested in official receiver.* Bankruptcy Act – s.37 and schedule rules – creditor's obligation to prove debt before the official receiver.* Civil procedure – jurisdictional objections – may be raised at any stage; consent/delay does not cure lack of jurisdiction.
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1 January 2008 |
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1 January 2008 |
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Misjoinder objection dismissed; misjoinder should be remedied by strike-out under Order I r9, not by preliminary objection.
Trade marks appeal — Misjoinder of parties — Preliminary objection vs. strike-out — Mukisa test for preliminary points of law — Order I Rule 9 CPA remedy for misjoinder; Registrar may be amicus curiae.
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1 January 2008 |