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116 judgments found.
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November 2024
An apparent illegality on the record, e.g. an undetermined jurisdictional issue, can justify extension of time to appeal.
Civil procedure
— Requirement to act diligently and account for delay — Economic/COVID-19 difficulties not decisive where apparent illegality exists
— extension of time — illegality apparent on face of record as sufficient cause — Appellate Jurisdiction Act s 11(1)
Criminal law — Criminal appeal — jurisdiction — Failure to decide jurisdictional ground constituting apparent illegality
29 November 2024
Resignation clause made loans immediately repayable; default notice and auction were valid, but decretal amount reduced.
Contract law
— Costs — discretion, costs follow the event
— General damages — compensatory award and appellate re-assessment
— Interest — court rate (7%) on proven decretal sum
— Sale of mortgaged property — advertisement, valuation and auction
— Service of default notice — notice to guarantor and postal copy
— staff loan agreement — repayment on resignation
29 November 2024
Applicant granted leave to seek judicial review after court found locus, timeliness and arguable grounds (jurisdictional and procedural defects).
Judicial review — Administrative decision
— excess of jurisdiction, denial of hearing (audi), imposition of liability on non-party
— Shipping/port authority regulatory decisions
Judicial review — leave to apply — requirements: locus/interest, six-month limitation, and prima facie/arguable case
29 November 2024
Failure to enter a formal conviction was curable; arson conviction upheld and life sentence reduced to thirty years.
Criminal law — Circumstantial evidence — Sufficiency of circumstantial evidence to support a conviction
Criminal procedure
— High Court revisional powers under s.373(1)(a) CPA — variation of illegal sentence and ordering release
— omission to enter conviction before sentence — consequences and remedies (remittal, retrial, appellate curative powers)
29 November 2024
Applicant failed to aver mandatory Rule 5(3) conditions in affidavit; stay of execution dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure
— Security
— Stay of execution
— no unreasonable delay
Evidence — Evidence versus submissions — Submissions are not evidence
29 November 2024
Cautioned statements taken outside the statutory four‑hour period without lawful extension are inadmissible.
Criminal law — Cautioned statement — delay in recording violates s.50(1)(a) CPA — Police General Order compliance
Evidence — voluntariness and admissibility of cautioned statements — Voluntariness of repudiated confessions — Prosecution bears onus to prove voluntariness
29 November 2024
Accused acquitted where prosecution evidence was contradictory, uncorroborated, and failed to prove causation beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law — Manslaughter — causation and proof beyond reasonable doubt
Criminal procedure — Burden of proof — Prosecution duty to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt
Evidence — Witness credibility — Interested witnesses — Need for corroboration of relatives' testimony
29 November 2024
Appellant failed to prove breach due to absent independent expert evidence; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — Judgment writing — mandatory requirement to state points for determination, decision and reasons — Costs follow the event — s.30(2) CPC
Contract law — breach of contract — Evaluation of evidence in proving breach — Burden of proof
Evidence — Expert evidence — Expert report — Adverse inference from non-production of inspection report
29 November 2024
Inaction by prison officers in forwarding inmates’ petitions can constitute good cause for extension of time to file an appeal.
Criminal procedure
— Extension of time to file appeal — Whether custodial status and prison administrative delay constitute sufficient cause for enlargement of time — Criminal Procedure Act s 361(2)
— prisoners’ appeals — notice of appeal given to officer‑in‑charge of prison within statutory time deemed filed in time — Criminal Procedure Act s363
Evidence — affidavits — Certified prison affidavits — Sufficiency of prisoner’s affidavit where respondent does not contest and officer affidavit unlikely
28 November 2024
High Court cannot revise interlocutory ex parte subordinate-court orders; application challenging phone-access order struck out as incompetent.
Civil procedure — Competence of applications — omnibus applications and related-prayers exception
Criminal procedure — Revision — Whether High Court may revise interlocutory/ex parte orders of subordinate courts
28 November 2024
Applicant failed to account for delay and did not show illegality apparent on the face of the record; extension refused.
Civil procedure
— Civil revision — Whether alleged illegality must be apparent on the face of the record to justify extension of time
— extension of time — duty to account for each day of delay
28 November 2024
Appeal concerned charge defect, probate jurisdiction overlap, sufficiency of theft evidence, and illegality of imposed fine.
Criminal law — Defective charge — omission of subsection — curable if no prejudice
Criminal law — Jurisdiction — distinction between criminal prosecution and probate remedies
Criminal law — sentencing
— illegality of imposing a fine where statute prescribes imprisonment
— restitution as remedy
Criminal law — Theft — elements of theft and standard of proof
28 November 2024
Applicant granted 14-day extension to seek leave for judicial review after accounting for a short, reasonable delay.
Civil procedure
— extension of time — application for leave to apply for judicial review — whether sufficient cause shown under Lyamuya criteria
— remedy — competence of judicial review to be assessed at leave stage, not on extension application
28 November 2024
High Court granted bail under EOCCA where prosecution did not oppose, imposing substantial financial and reporting conditions.
Criminal law
— Bail conditions — Security equal to half per‑accused liability (cash or title deed) and promissory bond by sureties — Application of ss 36(5) and 36(6) EOCCA
— Bail pending trial — principles for setting bail conditions — Application of ss 36(5) and 36(6) EOCCA
Criminal procedure — Jurisdiction — Economic offences triable by High Court — High Court competence where alleged proceeds exceed trial court monetary limit
26 November 2024
Insurance disputes within the Ombudsman’s monetary remit must ordinarily be filed with the Ombudsman, ousting court jurisdiction.
Insurance law — Insurance Ombudsman
26 November 2024
Investigator owed duties to the employer, appellant failed to prove negligence on balance of probabilities; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — Procedural fairness — right to be heard
— later disciplinary hearing may suffice
— No automatic right to be interviewed during an investigation absent scope or terms requiring it
Evidence — Civil evidence — burden and standard of proof
Insurance law — Utmost good faith and disclosure — Relevant to fact-finding where misrepresentation/non-disclosure alleged
Tort — Negligence — Existence of legal duty of care — Investigator engaged by employer owes duty to employer, not to third-party employee
26 November 2024
Applicant failed to show good cause for extension of time; counsel's negligence and ignorance do not justify delay.
Civil procedure — extension of time
Civil procedure — Good cause
— counsel's negligence, ignorance of law or busy schedule are not sufficient
— Inordinate delay and discretionary refusal to extend time
26 November 2024
Application for interim injunction restraining sale of mortgaged assets dismissed for failure to show irreparable harm.
Civil procedure — Temporary injunctions — Requirements of triable issue, irreparable harm and balance of convenience — Mortgage and lender’s right to recover — Dispute over interest calculation does not alone establish irreparable injury where monetary compensation is available
26 November 2024
Death of an administrator renders letters of administration inoperative, permitting the court to issue fresh letters to beneficiaries.
Probate law — Revocation of letters of administration — letters may be revoked if they have become useless or inoperative — Probate & Administration Act s49(1)(d), s49(2)
26 November 2024
Application to revoke letters of administration struck out as functus officio due to prior time-bar and res judicata rulings.
Administrative law — Locus standi — heirs' standing to challenge administration of estate (raised but not determinative once functus officio found)
Civil procedure
— Abuse of process — repeated identical applications and constructive res judicata
— Pleadings — name discrepancies and jurisdictional objections — matters of pleading/fact
— res judicata and functus officio
Probate law — Revocation of letters of administration
25 November 2024
Insufficient identification, lack of PF3 and uncorroborated, retracted confession made the armed robbery conviction unsafe.
Criminal law — Armed robbery
— admissibility/weight of retracted caution statement recorded by investigator
— habitual-offender status and sentence enhancement
— visual identification
25 November 2024
Application to set aside ex-parte judgment dismissed as time-barred; correction under section 96 does not stop limitation.
Civil procedure — limitation — application to set aside ex-parte judgment — Item No.5, Part III Law of Limitation Act (30 days) — date of judgment pronouncement versus date of correction under section 96 CPC
25 November 2024
Non‑endorsement of DPP consent and jurisdiction certificate deprived the subordinate court of jurisdiction, quashing conviction and ordering retrial.
Criminal procedure — Jurisdiction
— DPP's consent and certificate conferring jurisdiction
— Endorsement/acknowledgement in subordinate court proceedings mandatory
— Mere presence in court file insufficient
— Recent Court of Appeal authority (Emmanuel Mark Nyambo) followed
— Proceedings, conviction and sentence quashed
— Retrial ordered
25 November 2024
A judgment omitting the offence and statutory provision of conviction is a nullity and must be re-composed by the trial court.
Appellate practice — Written submissions — Failure to file written submissions equating to non-appearance and appellate court entitlement to proceed under Rule 17(3) — Ex-parte determination of appeal
Criminal procedure — Judgment must specify offence and statutory provision (s.312(2) CPA) — Failure to state statutory section renders conviction a nullity — Criminal Procedure Act s.312(2)
Evidence — Child witness (tender age) — Section 127(2) Evidence Act — Requirement of prior promise to tell the truth for unsworn evidence
25 November 2024
Appellate court upheld armed robbery conviction, finding night recognition reliable and the alibi unpersuasive.
Criminal law
— Armed robbery — Elements required to prove armed robbery — Elements: stealing, being armed, use or threat of violence
— Evidence — visual identification — Waziri Amani factors (lighting, distance, duration) required to render identification watertight
— Identification parade — not required where in-scene identification and corroborative evidence are reliable — Role and necessity of identification parade where witnesses knew suspect
25 November 2024
Delay in filing appeal caused by late supply of judgment/decree by tribunal justified a 14-day extension to file the appeal.
Civil procedure
— computation of time — Land Disputes Courts Act s41 — period excludes time to obtain copies. Requirement of diligence — prompt action upon receipt of documents supports grant of extension
— extension of time — Law of Limitation Act s14 — good cause — delay caused by tribunal in supplying judgment/decree deemed excusable
25 November 2024
Confession corroborated by DNA and last-seen testimony established murder beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law — Murder — confession and corroboration — DNA and last-seen evidence — Penal Code ss.196-197
Criminal procedure — admissibility of cautioned statements — trial‑within‑a‑trial, voluntariness and requirement to give reasons before admission — Corroboration requirements
25 November 2024
Applicants and respondents settled DAB dispute; court recorded settlement, ordered payment and full release of claims.
Civil procedure — Arbitration/adjudication — DAB awards challenged
Civil procedure — Consent judgment — recording settlement
Civil procedure — Costs
— each party bears own costs
— Non-admission and enforcement clauses
Civil procedure — Settlement terms — payment schedule, release and discharge of claims
25 November 2024
Whether a sale contract existed and the respondent is liable for supplying a defective vehicle and must remedy it.
Contract law — Sale of goods
— Partly written and implied contract — Sales of Goods Act s 5(1)
— implied condition of fitness for purpose — Sales of Goods Act s 16
Damages — Civil remedy — Replacement vehicle and general damages — Interest and costs
23 November 2024
Applicant entitled to security for costs: plaintiffs found resident abroad without sufficient immovable property; TZS 100,000,000 bank guarantee ordered.
Civil procedure
— remedy — Bank guarantee fixed as appropriate form and TZS 100,000,000 as quantum of security
— security for costs
Company law — Company law/pleadings — Discrepancy between plaintiffs named in plaint and locally registered entity relevant to residence and assets inquiry
22 November 2024
22 November 2024
Court allowed rectification of letters of administration to correct an erroneous cause number under Section 48 PAEA.
Probate law — Rectification of Letters of Administration — Power to amend or correct grants under Section 48 PAEA — Correction of erroneous cause number — Incorrect statutory citation in process not fatal
22 November 2024
Court grants administrators a 30-day extension to file estate inventory and accounts under section 107(2).
Civil procedure — Estate administration — Long-term lease and formation of family trust, and heirs residing abroad, may constitute sufficient cause for extension
Probate law
— extension of time
— Probate procedure — no legal effect
22 November 2024
The plaintiff's unpaid commission claim failed for lack of proof; specific damages require strict pleading and proof.
Contract law — Commission agreements
Damages — Special damages
— Requirement of strict pleading and proof
— refusal to award unproven specific or general damages
Evidence — burden of proof in civil cases — balance of probabilities
22 November 2024
Employer held liable for TZS 708,893,356.81 for unremitted social security contributions, penalties, interest, and costs.
Employment law — Employer’s duty to remit statutory social security contributions — Liability for unremitted statutory contributions and penalties — PSSSF claims, admissions and demand notices
Evidence — Burden of proof — civil standard (balance of probabilities) — Effect of documentary evidence and admissions on the plaintiff’s onus (s.110 CPC)
22 November 2024
21 November 2024
Failure to raise triable issues in a summary suit led to judgment for unpaid service levy with interest and costs.
Civil procedure
— Procedure — application for leave to defend — dismissal where no triable issues — basis for entering summary judgment
— Remedies — decretal sum, court interest and costs awarded
— Summary procedure
21 November 2024
Movement of property within the same house without dishonest intention does not constitute theft; appeal dismissed.
Appellate practice — Appellate review of factual findings — Interference with concurrent findings of fact — Requirements for interference (misdirection/non-direction/misapprehension of evidence)
Criminal law — Theft — Elements of theft (ownership, identification, asportation) — Movement within same premises may not constitute taking away
Criminal procedure — Evidence — improperly admitted inventory expunged — Right to be heard and natural justice
20 November 2024
20 November 2024
20 November 2024
Plaint filed out of time properly pleaded grounds for exemption; striking out was wrongful and legal aid beneficiary cannot be ordered to pay costs.
Civil procedure — limitation
20 November 2024
Applicant failed to show sufficient cause for extension of time to lodge appeal; application dismissed.
Criminal procedure — Lyamuya guidelines on sufficient cause — duty to account for each day of delay — explanations of manpower shortage and delayed withdrawal order held insufficient
20 November 2024
Reporting credible threats to police under section 7 CPA is not malicious absent proof of malice; appeal dismissed.
Tort — Malicious prosecution
— appellate re-evaluation of evidence
— elements: absence of reasonable and probable cause and malice
— reporting to police
— timing of report not determinative of malice
— whether reporting is protected when based on reasonable grounds
20 November 2024
Contingent contract linked to third‑party payment failed; court ordered respondent to pay outstanding balance directly.
Appellate practice — Revisionary powers — High Court may nullify non‑executable conditions in lower court decrees and substitute direct orders for payment
Civil procedure — Executability of decree — conditional judgment tied to non‑party performance may be inexecutible
Contract law — Contingent contract — agreement dependent on third‑party payment
20 November 2024
Court restored the applicant's suit dismissed for non-appearance, finding dismissal improper where matter was only for mention.
Civil procedure — dismissal for non-appearance — distinction between mention (to set pretrial conference) and hearing
19 November 2024
Trial court erred in awarding Tshs.2,000,000 without proof; appellant must pay remaining Tshs.2,750,000; appeal partly allowed.
Civil procedure
— Costs — court discretion and order that parties bear own costs
— Remedies — appeal partly allowed where award of unproven specific damages set aside
Contract law — Sale of land
— obligation to refund purchase price
— payment and refund when sale fails due to matrimonial proceedings
Evidence
— Admissibility of documents
— Expungement
19 November 2024
Applicant exhausted statutory appeals; court overruled objections that the matter was premature or non-final.
Administrative law
— Decision subject to review — Whether a decision is final where a Presidential appeal has been determined on the merits — Competence of subsequent remedial applications
— Judicial review — Exhaustion of administrative remedies — Requirement to exhaust appeal rights under the Public Service Act and Regulations before seeking prerogative remedies
19 November 2024
Statutory rape conviction quashed where prosecution failed to prove victim's age beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law — sexual offences against a child — Statutory rape — Proof of age beyond reasonable doubt — Documentary and parental evidence
Evidence
— Documentary evidence — Allegation of forgery — Requirement for corroboration before relying on oral testimony
— delay in reporting — delay in reporting an offence does not automatically discredit an eyewitness if a reasonable explanation exists
19 November 2024
Unreliable eyewitness identification and mere presence led to dismissal for lack of a prima facie case.
Criminal law — Distinction between presence and participation — Distinction between identification of presence and proof of participation
Criminal procedure — No case to answer — Prima facie test at close of prosecution’s case (ss.230–231 CPA)
Evidence — Visual identification — criteria for safe identification (Waziri Amani) — lighting, distance and obstructions
19 November 2024
Summary judgment granted for unpaid social security contributions despite a misnomer, where the correct defendant was served.
Civil procedure
— Pleadings — Misnomer/misjoinder — Non‑fatal where proof of service on correct defendant and substantive justice satisfied
— Summary judgment — defendant’s failure to obtain leave to defend
19 November 2024