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85 judgments found.
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December 1981
Conviction for stealing by servant upheld where accounting records and managerial responsibility established despite documentary challenge.
Criminal law
— Appeal — conviction and sentence
— Documentary evidence — challenge to correctness and probative value
— Stealing by servant
— sufficiency of evidence — employer accounting records and managerial responsibility
30 December 1981
Appeal dismissed: convictions for possession of suspected stolen property and corrupt transaction upheld on sufficient evidence.
Criminal law — Possession of property suspected to be stolen
Criminal law — Prevention of Corruption Act (s3(2))
— corrupt transaction with an agent
— credibility of witnesses
— search and seizure
— sufficiency of evidence on appeal
15 December 1981
Convictions for forgery, uttering, obtaining by false pretences and bribery upheld; alibi and frame-up claims rejected.
Civil procedure — Appeal — Appellate court will not disturb trial court factual findings supported by contemporaneous evidence
Criminal law — Defence — Alibi and allegation of political frame-up inadequate where documentary and witness evidence contradict alibi
Criminal law — Forgery and uttering
— proof by possession and use
— Use of forged identity document with appellant's photograph constitutes at least uttering
Criminal law — Obtaining by false pretences and corrupt transaction — Marked money and trap evidence sufficient
7 December 1981
November 1981
Possession of stolen property shortly after a burglary supported conviction; the applicant’s appeal was dismissed.
Criminal law
— Burglary and stealing — doctrine of recent possession — Unexplained possession of stolen goods shortly after theft raises presumption of guilt
— sentencing — Concurrent versus consecutive sentences — Offences arising from same transaction ordinarily attract concurrent sentences
Criminal procedure — Right to call defence witnesses — Trial record as proof applicant was allowed to call defence witnesses
30 November 1981
Conviction for theft quashed where prosecution evidence was discrepant and failed to prove entrusted money was stolen.
Criminal law — conviction unsafe
— appeal allowed
— conviction quashed
Criminal law — Theft/stealing by servant
— discrepancies in prosecution case
— family witnesses
— Sufficiency and credibility of evidence
30 November 1981
Appellant’s meritless claim against uncle for preventing wife’s return dismissed; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure
— appeal on merits where primary memorandum lacks substance
— proper defendant in disputes over a spouse's refusal to return to marital home
Family law — domestic dispute alleging third-party interference with marital relations
24 November 1981
Bail denied for juvenile murder suspect; remand home detention ordered for the child's safety pending trial.
Criminal procedure — Bail — Juvenile accused of murder — Whether bail should be granted to protect child’s safety
Family law — Child welfare — Detention in remand home — suitability and safeguards against influence of hardened delinquents. Direction to prosecution to expedite preliminary inquiry and allowance of parental visitation. Application transferred where lower court lacked jurisdiction to decide bail for serious o
18 November 1981
Applicant granted leave to appeal out of time under section 314(b) after court found the affidavit reasons meritorious and unopposed.
Criminal procedure — Leave to appeal out of time — affidavit setting out meritorious reasons
18 November 1981
Appeal dismissed: convictions for theft by servant upheld on documentary and witness evidence.
Criminal law
— sentencing — Court will not interfere where sentence is within statutory framework and not excessive
— Theft by servant — Proof required where employee signs waybill acknowledging receipt of goods but store records show shortages
Evidence
— Previous inconsistent statements: contradictions explained on cross-examination may not destroy witness credibility
— Weight of documentary evidence (waybill) and corporate receiving procedure
13 November 1981
Rebuttable presumption under s.125(3) favours mother for custody of infants under seven; father failed to rebut; appeal allowed.
Family law — Custody of infants — Rebuttable presumption favouring mother for infants under seven — Welfare of children — Maintenance
3 November 1981
October 1981
Accused’s genuine apprehension of magistrate bias justified transfer and de novo hearing to protect fair trial rights.
Criminal law — Magistrates’ courts — Transfer of trial — Apprehension of bias
27 October 1981
Bail pending appeal is exceptional and was refused where the appeal did not show overwhelming prospects of success.
Criminal procedure — Bail pending appeal — Application under section 321 Cr.P.C — Bail an exceptional remedy requiring overwhelming prospects of success — Trial magistrate’s credibility findings and alleged discrepancies in prosecution evidence considered and held not to justify bail
24 October 1981
Appellate court upheld robbery conviction, finding eyewitness identification reliable and rejecting the appellant's alibi.
Criminal law — Robbery with violence — Visual identification — Corroboration of eyewitnesses and assessment of alibi
23 October 1981
Appeal dismissed: identification and recovered stolen property sufficiently proved burglary and theft.
Criminal law — Burglary — Sufficiency of evidence — Identification at scene — Recovery of stolen property
22 October 1981
Appeal dismissed: documentary and witness evidence of recurring shortages upheld convictions for stealing by servant.
Criminal law — Stealing by servant — Proof by documentary records and testimony of recurrent shortages — Entrustment, remittance chits and receipts — Sufficiency of evidence to sustain conviction
8 October 1981
September 1981
Court refused to set aside an appellate ex parte judgment where counsel failed to show lack of notice or reasonable diligence.
Civil procedure
— Appeals — hearing and deciding appeals in absence of parties — Setting aside ex parte appellate judgment
— Service and notice — Ex parte hearing for defaulting party — Failure to show notification may vitiate ex parte judgment
25 September 1981
A child born during a subsisting marriage is presumed legitimate and the husband is presumed father despite marital separation.
Family law
— access rights
— child born during coverture presumed to be husband’s
— marriage presumed to subsist until dissolved by court
— Presumption of legitimacy
— separation by one spouse walking out does not dissolve marriage
25 September 1981
High Court set aside dismissal for non-incorporation of amended plaint, restored suit, and directed it be heard on merits.
Civil procedure — Revision
— Restoration of suit and hearing on merits
— setting aside order dismissing suit for material irregularity where amended plaint had been filed but not reflected in record
Civil procedure — Stay of execution
17 September 1981
Appellate court upheld lower courts: respondent proved ownership of disputed developed land; appeal dismissed with costs.
Land law
— appellate review of concurrent findings of fact
— evaluation of oral testimony and witness credibility
— ownership of developed land
17 September 1981
Court upheld divorce where impotence, extramarital conception and lack of maintenance showed irreparable marital breakdown.
Family law — Divorce — Irreparable breakdown of Marriage — Impotence, extramarital conception and failure to maintain — Primary Court factual findings upheld on appeal
17 September 1981
A court cannot compel a spouse to cohabit; prolonged desertion may justify dissolution under Law of Marriage Act s.140.
Matrimonial law; Law of Marriage Act 1971 s.140; prohibition on compelling cohabitation; desertion; irretrievable/irreparable breakdown as ground for dissolution.
17 September 1981
A woman cohabiting two years has statutory rights to matrimonial assets; tribal custom cannot defeat the Marriage Act.
Family law
— Division of matrimonial assets
— entitlement of woman cohabiting two years or more to share jointly acquired assets
17 September 1981
Appellant liable for uprooting respondent's maize; appeal dismissed based on credible eyewitness evidence.
Tort — Damage to growing crops — Proof by eyewitnesses of ploughing and uprooting of maize
Appellate practice — Appeal procedure — Trial court misdirection by reliance on irrelevant personal matters — Appellate reversal justified
Evidence — Weight and credibility — Eyewitness testimony establishing damage and entitlement to damages
16 September 1981
The applicant's convictions for possession of suspected stolen property and corrupt transaction were upheld and sentences affirmed.
Criminal law — Corrupt transaction with an agent
Criminal law — Possession of suspected stolen property
Criminal law — sentencing
— application and appropriateness
— concurrent sentences
9 September 1981
Applicant failed to prove cruelty under section 107(1)(c); judicial separation and maintenance application dismissed with costs.
Family law
— Ancillary relief — Maintenance contingent on grant of judicial separation
— Matrimonial law — Judicial separation — Requirement of cruelty
— Procedural — Repetitive or unsubstantiated litigation following prior unsuccessful divorce proceedings
8 September 1981
8 September 1981
The appellant failed to prove payment of bridewealth; appeal dismissed and refund of seized cattle ordered.
Civil procedure — appeal against factual findings
Civil procedure — Evidence
— burden of proof in bridewealth disputes
— requirement of witnesses to prove payment of cattle
— restitution of wrongly seized property
3 September 1981
Leave to appeal is discretionary; unexplained maintenance order amount is reviewable by the trial court.
Appellate practice — leave to appeal — arguable points of law deserving Court of Appeal consideration — Appellate Jurisdiction Act s.4(c)
Family law — Maintenance — assessment of maintenance — Requirement for reasons and factual basis — Reviewability when record is silent
1 September 1981
Applicant failed to prove adultery; reliance on hearsay was inadmissible and appeal was dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — Appeal — appellate courts entitled to uphold lower courts where evidence is insufficient
Criminal law — Admissions — spouse's admission admissible against herself but not against third parties (see MTJA v HLIMISI)
Evidence
— Civil evidence — adultery — burden of proof in claims for compensation for adultery — no direct evidence
— hearsay inadmissible to establish adultery
1 September 1981
August 1981
Disputed land held to belong to respondent’s father; maternal uncle had no authority to divide it, appeal dismissed.
Land law — Appellate review
— High Court affirms paternal ownership
— Primary Court and District Court conflicting findings
Land law — Customary authority — validity of maternal uncle's division under Kiluguru customary law
Land law — Customary succession — whether property descended from respondent's father or from parties' mother
Land law — ownership dispute over cultivated land (shamba) — determination of root of title
21 August 1981
Leave to appeal out of time granted due to advocate’s delay; appeal to be heard on merits.
Civil procedure
— leave to appeal out of time — Reasonable cause for delay — Excusable delay and relief from time bar
— Res judicata — Whether prior judgment bars subsequent suit — Proper assessment of prior judgments and distinct causes of action
18 August 1981
Criminal Practice and Procedure-Failure of an appellate court to re-evaluate evidence and to consider material issues involved therein-Procedure to followed on appeal
11 August 1981
Proceedings under the Rent Restriction Act must be commenced as civil suits under the Civil Procedure Code; affidavit-only injunctions are improper.
Land law — Rent restriction act s.11C(1) — commencement of claims as civil suits
11 August 1981
Evidence of cruelty and the respondent's second marriage established irretrievable breakdown; appeal dismissed.
Family law
— Divorce — Cruelty — Physical violence and abandonment supporting irretrievable breakdown
— Matrimonial causes — Association and subsequent union with another woman — Effect on continuation of marriage
1 August 1981
Appellate court upholds Primary Court finding of irretrievable breakdown due to cruelty and second marriage, dismissing the appeal.
Family law — Divorce — irretrievable breakdown of marriage — Cruelty and corroborative neighbour evidence
1 August 1981
July 1981
Second appeal dismissed; concurrent findings upheld that purchaser lawfully acquired disputed land from the deceased.
Land law — ownership dispute — Evidence of sale by deceased to purchaser — Concurrent findings of lower courts on title upheld — Appeal dismissed
31 July 1981
First defendant vicariously liable for employee's negligent tree-felling; court denied payment for reusable iron sheets but awarded proven transport, labour, furniture and rental losses.
Tort — Quantum
— proven outlays (transport, labour, furniture) and loss of rent awardable
— refusal to award cost of materials retained/used elsewhere (prevents unjust enrichment)
Tort — Reparability — tenant departure and site inspection evidence relevant to whether damage was repairable
Tort — Vicarious liability
30 July 1981
Appellate court upheld stealing convictions based on handwriting identifications and corroborating circumstantial evidence.
Criminal law — Theft by agent — Sufficiency of proof where identification of signatures on payment vouchers is contested — Use of circumstantial evidence (unrecorded vouchers, unexplained shortages, admissions, and conduct) to infer appropriation
Evidence — Document and signature identification by witnesses familiar with accused’s handwriting — appellate deference to trial court credibility findings
29 July 1981
An appellate court must respect a Primary Court’s site inspection and unchallenged findings in land trespass disputes.
Civil procedure
— appeal from Primary to District Court — requirement of petition and appellate procedure
— Evidence — weight of Primary Court’s site inspection and assessors’ concurrent findings
Land law — boundary allocation, trespass and deference to uncontradicted allocation evidence
27 July 1981
Appeal dismissed; evidence (including handwriting analysis) upheld convictions for theft, forgery and obtaining goods by false pretence.
Criminal law
— Forgery (ss.333, 335, 337) — handwriting expert comparison evidence
— joint participation — liability of co‑participants
— Obtaining goods by false pretences (s.302) — supply pursuant to fraudulent LPOs
— Stealing by public servants — custody of local purchase order books and fraudulent appropriation
20 July 1981
Appeal allowed where prosecution failed to prove assault beyond reasonable doubt; conviction quashed and sentences set aside.
Criminal law — Offences against the person — Assault causing actual bodily harm — Proof beyond reasonable doubt required
Criminal procedure — Appeal — sufficiency of defence to raise reasonable doubt — Acquittal warranted where prosecution fails to exclude legitimate hypothesis of self‑defence
20 July 1981
Murder conviction upheld on credible eyewitness and corroborative admissions; minor sentencing phrasing error not fatal.
Criminal law
— Murder — Eyewitness identification and corroboration by post-offence admissions to third parties — Sufficiency of evidence for conviction
— sentencing — omission of exact formulation not fatal where intent and mandatory sentence clearly communicated
Criminal procedure — Unsworn statement of accused — Rejection where inconsistent with credible prosecution evidence
20 July 1981
Respondent proved unwritten entrustment of money on the balance of probabilities; appeal dismissed with costs.
Evidence — oral, unwritten entrustment of money
— adequacy of proof on balance of probabilities
— burden of proof in civil claims where transaction unwritten
— credibility findings and appellate interference with trial court's factual conclusions
14 July 1981
Appeal dismissed: tenant failed to prove payment, unstamped receipts inadmissible, vacant possession for 17 months' arrears upheld.
Land law — Landlord and tenant — non-payment of rent
— admissibility of affidavits where cross-examination required
— burden of proof of payment to previous landlord
— procedural fairness in granting adjournments and closing defence
— reasonableness of order for vacant possession after prolonged arrears
— unstamped receipts inadmissible
6 July 1981
June 1981
Appeal dismissed: appellant failed to prove claimed transport costs from alleged false complaints due to inconsistent, uncorroborated evidence.
Civil procedure
— Appeal — Sufficiency of evidence — Credibility and inconsistencies in witness testimony
— Costs — Insufficient receipts for disbursements — Requirement for official record or reliable proof
Evidence — Proof — Need for receipts or independent corroboration for claimed outlays
30 June 1981
High Court set aside divorce for lack of statutory grounds under section 107(3) of the Law of Marriage Act.
Family law — dissolution of Muslim marriage
26 June 1981
The applicant's failure to sign wage payment cards did not, by itself, prove non‑payment of wages.
Employment law — wage claims — evidentiary value of signed wage payment cards
23 June 1981
Appeal dismissed where appellant failed to show adequate excuse for non-appearance to set aside ex parte judgment.
Civil procedure — Ex parte judgment — application to set aside — Credibility findings and notice of hearing
23 June 1981
A company cannot own land before incorporation; a pre‑incorporation title is void and the injunction was lifted.
Land law — capacity to hold land
— a company has no capacity to own land before incorporation
— Certificate of Title issued to an unincorporated entity is void
— Interim injunction discharged
18 June 1981
Appellate court wrongly overturned locus‑visit findings on boundary and allocator authority; original judgment restored with costs.
Appellate practice — Appellate review of trial court's evaluation of evidence and credibility — Appellate court should not overturn trial findings of fact based on credibility and locus observations without proper site inspection
Customary law — Customary/village allocation — Allocation by village authority can confer superior right to develop land against later claimants — Authority of allocators and weight of evidence
Evidence — Locus in quo visit — Value of on-site inspection in resolving boundary disputes
11 June 1981