Results.
89 judgments found.
Citation
Sort by Citation ascending
Judgment date
Sort by Judgment date ascending
February 2024
Interpleader: registered owner confirmed; adjusted decree awards rent arrears to the fifth defendant; costs to be taxed.
Civil procedure
— Costs — plaintiff and successful claimant entitled to taxed costs
— Interpleader suit — competing claims to rent arrears
— Proof — insufficiency of third and fourth defendants’ evidence to establish entitlement
— reliefs — adjusted decree in separate Land Case conferring entitlement to rents
— Title evidence — ownership of Plot No 747/39 established by certificate of title
29 February 2024
Insurance disputes under TZS40,000,000 must first be referred to the Insurance Ombudsman; courts lack jurisdiction.
Civil procedure — Procedure
— Extrajudicial forum exhaustion required
— prohibition of legal representation consistent with Ombudsman’s purpose
Civil procedure — Remedies
— Ombudsman competence to determine bodily injury and death/funeral claims
— role of guidelines
Civil procedure — Statutory interpretation
Insurance law — Insurance Ombudsman — Jurisdiction — Pecuniary threshold of TZS 40,000,000 — mandatory referral before court
29 February 2024
Applicant failed to show sufficient cause for extension of time due to inconsistent and incomplete medical evidence.
Civil procedure — extension of time — sufficient cause
29 February 2024
Objections on registry naming, misjoinder, cause of action and absence of board resolution dismissed; suit held competent.
Civil procedure
— Competence of suit
— Joinder of parties — non-joinder/misjoinder of statutory manager
— Pleadings — sufficiency of plaint to disclose cause of action
Company law — requirement of board resolution to institute suit — applicability where suit is against third party (Simba Papers precedent)
28 February 2024
Whether the applicant established sufficient cause to restore an application struck out for want of prosecution.
Civil procedure — Representation — Duty of party and advocate to follow up and ensure representation
Civil procedure — Restoration of dismissed application — Sufficient cause
— CPC Order IX r 3
— Law of Limitation Act s 19(2)
28 February 2024
Accused convicted of murder after locking victim inside and setting house alight; malice inferred from conduct.
Criminal law
— Admissibility of statements — extra‑judicial and caution statements admissible where voluntariness established and objections raised late
— Identity of deceased — family and witness identification sufficient despite no DNA
— malice aforethought — inferred from locking victim and setting fire
— Murder — death by burning — causation proved by post‑mortem and witness evidence
— witness credibility — omissions in police statements do not necessarily discredit in‑court testimony
28 February 2024
Child's credible testimony, supported by guardian and medical PF3, upheld rape conviction; "diverse dates" and amended s.127 sufficed.
Criminal law — Amendment of s.127 Evidence Act
— Corroboration by guardian and medical PF3
— Identification not required where victim familiar with accused
— Promise to tell truth replaces voire dire
Criminal law — Sexual offences involving children — Evidence
28 February 2024
Applicant failed to show good cause or apparent illegality to justify extension of time to appeal.
Civil procedure
— extension of time — good cause
— Procedural delays and multiplicity of applications — effect on extension applications
27 February 2024
Judgment entered after defendant failed to enter defence is ex parte and may be set aside under Order IX r9.
Civil procedure
— Ex parte judgment — setting aside ex parte judgment and remittal for inter partes hearing — Order IX r 8 and r 9 CPC
— Setting aside ex parte judgment — discretionary test: sufficient cause and bona fide intention to defend — Order IX r 9 CPC
27 February 2024
A clear written withdrawal of a CMA dispute precludes arbitration; High Court confirmed arbitrator’s striking out and dismissed revision.
Labour law — CMA procedure — withdrawal of complaint by letter
Labour law — ex parte awards
— interpretation of withdrawal notices
— preliminary objections
— setting aside
27 February 2024
High Court cannot exercise revisional jurisdiction over a subordinate court's striking-out order that did not finally determine the suit.
Civil procedure — Revision — s79 Civil Procedure Code & s44 Magistrates' Courts Act
— High Court lacks jurisdiction to revise such orders
— no revision against interlocutory/preliminary orders unless they finally determine the suit
— striking out for non-payment of filing fees is not a final determination
27 February 2024
Plaintiff’s ex‑parte claim of misuse of business name and forgery dismissed for lack of documentary and admissible evidence.
Civil procedure — proof on balance of probabilities — Ex‑parte proof and requirement to prove allegations on balance of probabilities (higher standard for fraud)
Company law — separate legal personality — lifting corporate veil — Piercing the corporate veil
Evidence — admissibility of documentary evidence — Hearsay and documentary evidence — BRELA searches and documentary exhibits required
26 February 2024
A company reduced to a single director after a director’s death was wound up as just and equitable.
Company law — winding up
— Just and equitable ground — Companies Act s279(1)(a),(e) and s282(1)-(2)(b), Companies (Insolvency) Rules GN 34 of 2014
— Number of members falls below two — Companies Act s279(1)(c)
26 February 2024
Dismissal of an unhearing incompetent application was improper; appellate court substituted a strike-out order.
Civil procedure — competence of filings — preliminary objection based on improper affidavit — dismissal — appellate substitution of incorrect orders (dismissal substituted with strike out)
26 February 2024
26 February 2024
26 February 2024
Court granted extension to file notice of appeal due to lack of notification and prompt filing by the applicant.
Civil procedure — extension of time — Discretionary relief
— non-notification of judgment can constitute sufficient cause
— promptness in filing after knowledge relevant
— sufficient cause determined by reasons for delay, diligence, prejudice and any illegality
23 February 2024
Preliminary objection on cause of action involving facts cannot be decided as pure law; contract clause showing independent contractor binding.
Civil procedure
— preliminary objection — requirement that a preliminary objection raise a pure point of law — Cause of action as mixed question of law and fact, preliminary disposal inappropriate
— Written submissions — Failure to consider written submissions — Ground for setting aside striking out plaint
Contract law — enforcement of express contractual terms — Consultancy versus employment — Effect of contractual clause designating independent contractor
23 February 2024
Criminal procedure — Illegal Search — Search conducted without warrant Criminal procedure — Evidence — Admissibility of evidence Constitutional Law — Fundamental Rights and Freedoms- Right to privacy
23 February 2024
Court appointed the applicant as next friend for a person of unsound mind based on medical evidence and statutory authority.
Civil procedure — Civil procedure code order 31
— appointment of next friend/guardian for person of unsound mind
— medical evidence of incapacity
— suitability of caregiver as next friend
23 February 2024
A technical delay from an appeal struck out as incompetent can justify extension of time to file a fresh appeal if no prejudice arises.
Civil procedure
— extension of time
— Technical delay — where original appeal was timely but struck out as incompetent — can constitute good cause for extension. Negligence in filing incompetent appeal already penalized by striking out and does not automatically bar extension. Short delay (nine days) and absence of prejudice are factors favoring extension
23 February 2024
Extension of time refused where applicants failed to account 69-day delay and did not plead illegality apparent on record.
Civil procedure
— Affidavit requirement — court will not act on explanations raised only from the bar
— extension of time — duty to account for each day of delay
— Illegality as ground for extension
— Technical delay doctrine (fortunatus masha) — accounts days up to striking out but does not cover subsequent days
23 February 2024
Accused acquitted: DNA linked suspect to scene but lack of deceased comparative sample left reasonable doubt.
Criminal law
— Cautioned and extra‑judicial statements — admissibility and compliance with JP/CJ directions
— forensic evidence/DNA — chain of custody and necessity of comparative samples from deceased
— Identification parade — procedure and corroboration
— Murder — elements (actus reus, mens rea)
— variance in charge particulars — when not fatal
23 February 2024
A respondent’s preliminary objection alleging the applicant lacks locus stand fails where ownership issues raise mixed facts and law.
Civil procedure — preliminary objection — locus stand — ownership dispute
— mixed questions of fact and law
— where pleadings raise factual issues (ownership/capacity), matter must proceed to trial
23 February 2024
Quashed conviction alone does not establish malicious prosecution; malice and lack of reasonable cause must be proven.
Tort
— Malicious prosecution — Elements: prosecution, favourable termination, absence of reasonable and probable cause, and malice
— reasonable and probable cause — honest belief based on reasonable grounds
23 February 2024
An appeal filed after the prescribed period is time‑barred despite electronic filing rules absent evidence of timely submission.
Civil procedure
— Electronic filing
— jurisdiction — preliminary objection that appeal is time‑barred — may be raised at any stage and may be re‑raised if previously struck out for non‑appearance
— Procedural law — burden of proof on appellant to show compliance with filing deadlines when challenged
— Time limits for filing appeals — date of filing and payment of court fees
22 February 2024
Inordinate unexplained delay defeats extension to set aside ex‑parte judgment; alleged illegality and advocate negligence unproven.
Civil procedure — extension of time — Application to set aside ex‑parte judgment — affidavit technicalities not decisive — alleged illegality and counsel negligence require evidence to justify extension
22 February 2024
Court excluded accused’s extra-judicial confession for lack of proof of voluntariness amid torture allegations.
Criminal law
— Evidence — Extra-judicial confessions — Voluntariness and admissibility — Burden on prosecution
— Torture allegations — Visible injuries
Criminal procedure — Witnesses — Adverse inference against prosecution
22 February 2024
21 February 2024
21 February 2024
High Court lacks jurisdiction over Defence Force employment claims where internal remedies under Defence Regulations were not exhausted.
Jurisdiction — military employment disputes
— limitation of ordinary courts where special statutory forum exists
— preliminary objections on jurisdiction and non-exhaustion sustained
21 February 2024
No medical negligence found where exploratory laparotomy for suspected ectopic pregnancy was a reasonable treatment choice.
21 February 2024
Court granted administrators six months to file estate inventory after delay locating scattered, previously unknown assets.
Probate law — Administration of estates — Extension of time to file inventory and accounts — Probate and Administration of Estates Act s.107 & Rules r.109
21 February 2024
Extension of time granted where delay was due to obtaining judgment copy, excluded under Limitation Act s19(2).
Civil procedure — extension of time
Civil procedure — Law of Limitation Act s.19(2)
— diligence in applying for documents and seeking legal advice
— discretion to grant extension
— exclusion of period for obtaining judgment copy
21 February 2024
Whether the mortgagee served statutory 60‑day notice before sale; court held notice served and sale lawful.
Land law — Mortgage law — section 127 Land Act (60‑day default notice)
20 February 2024
The respondent was justified in freezing the applicant’s account; the applicant failed to prove the prohibitory notices illegal or damages.
Banking law — Account freezing/prohibitory notices — legality of prohibitory notices from Attorney General/DPP
Civil procedure
— Joinder/non-joinder — cannot condemn non-party without hearing
— parties bound by pleadings
— submissions are not evidence
19 February 2024
Civil procedure — Execution — Bill of Costs Constitutional Law — Fundamental Rights and Freedoms — Right to be Heard
19 February 2024
Prior domain use and registration upheld; confusing similarity found; punitive damages set aside, other relief affirmed.
Intellectual property law — Domain names and trademarks — first use and prior domain registration
Intellectual property law — similarity and consumer confusion
— anti-dissection rule
— deregistration and injunctive relief for confusingly similar domains
19 February 2024
An interim cover note constituted valid fire insurance; insurer breached contract and must indemnify plaintiff.
Contract law — Damages and interest for breach of contract — aim of restitution in integrum
Evidence — Documentary and electronic evidence — Possessor with knowledge may tender exhibit, admissibility focuses on witness knowledge and chain of custody rather than immediate proof of authenticity
Insurance law — Fire insurance — Existence of cover note and beneficiaries
16 February 2024
Late payment interest rejected where plaintiff failed to tender proof of delivery; defendant liable for unpaid balances, demurrage, storage and general damages.
Contract law — breach for failure to supply agreed trucks — entitlement to demurrage, storage and general damages
Contract law — carriage of goods
— late payment interest unenforceable where claimant failed to satisfy condition precedent
— proof of delivery as condition precedent to payment and to accrual of late payment charges
16 February 2024
Court entered judgment on admission for USD 117,843 and reserved interest and damages for the remaining USD 1,800.
Civil procedure — judgment on admission — Application of Order XII r.4 CPC to enter judgment where defendant admits liability — Remaining claims (interest and damages) reserved for determination
16 February 2024
Revision cannot substitute for a remedy to obtain substantive relief not pleaded or declared; decree correction limited to clerical errors.
Civil procedure
— Abuse of process — repeated attempts to alter substantive relief
— Decree content — Order XX Rule 6 CPC
— Pleadings principle — party bound by pleadings
— Revision — limits of revisional power
16 February 2024
Summary judgment granted where respondent failed to obtain leave to defend claims for unpaid statutory pension contributions and penalties.
Civil procedure — Summary judgment — Defendant’s failure to obtain leave to defend deemed admission — Order XXXV CPC
Employment law — Employer’s duty to remit statutory social security contributions — Liability for unremitted statutory contributions and penalties — s.74A(2) National Social Security Fund Act
16 February 2024
Summary judgment granted for unpaid statutory pension contributions, penalties, interest and costs against the respondent employer.
Summary procedure — Order XXXV — Non-remittance of statutory pension contributions — Deeming of plaint’s allegations as admitted where no leave to defend granted — Reliefs available under summary suits — Interest at prescribed court rate and costs.
16 February 2024
Applicants failed to prove bad faith to lift the corporate veil or justify arrest and detention of company directors.
Company law — Execution — arrest and detention of judgment‑debtor
Company law — lifting corporate veil
Company law — Order XXI r.39(2) CPC
— arbitration clause waived by litigating in court
— consent settlements and enforceability
— requirement of bad faith beyond mere non‑payment
16 February 2024
Extension granted to the applicant to file Bill of Costs due to delay in obtaining certified copy of the costs order.
Civil procedure
— Advocates Remuneration Order 2015 — delay caused by late supply of certified copy — sufficient cause for extension
— Extension of time to file bill of costs
16 February 2024
Implied/oral consent to construction negated trespass, but no joint venture or entitlement to profits was proven.
Contract law — Contract formation — requirement of evidence as to terms and parties — Law of Contract Act s.10
Land law — possession and trespass — Oral/implied consent and conduct as defence to trespass — Evidence Act s.110
16 February 2024
16 February 2024
Omitting the affidavit named in a chamber summons renders the application incompetent and liable to be struck out.
Civil procedure — Chamber summons — Requirement that applications be supported by affidavits (Order XLIII r.2 CPC) — Failure to annex the affidavit named in the chamber summons renders the application incompetent
16 February 2024
Applicant’s delay awaiting internal approval and counsel’s negligence did not constitute sufficient cause for extension of time.
Civil procedure
— delay due to awaiting internal board approval and counsel’s negligence held insufficient — Judicial discretion to grant extension exercised judiciously despite respondent’s non-participation
— extension of time
16 February 2024