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Citation
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Judgment date
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| July 2024 |
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Rape conviction upheld for proven penetration and age; conviction for impregnating a schoolgirl quashed for lack of proof of paternity.
* Criminal law – Statutory rape – proof of penetration and age as essential elements; identification at night where victim knew the accused. * Criminal law – Impregnating a schoolgirl – prosecution must prove accused caused pregnancy; corroboration may be necessary. * Criminal procedure – Delay in naming accused may be excused by reasonable explanation. * Criminal procedure – Alibi requirements under section 194 CPA; compliance with section 210(3) CPA regarding reading evidence.
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30 July 2024 |
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Where a municipal offer of occupancy involves state interest, the Attorney General must be joined and the High Court has jurisdiction.
Land law; jurisdiction of subordinate tribunals; municipal grant/offer of right of occupancy; joinder of Attorney General and Municipal Council as necessary parties under the Government Proceedings Act; forum non conveniens between District Land and Housing Tribunal and High Court; nullity of proceedings for want of jurisdiction.
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29 July 2024 |
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Conviction for grievous harm upheld; identification and medical evidence sufficient despite judgment pronouncement irregularity.
Criminal law – grievous harm – identification at night – medical evidence of injury – judgment pronounced in accused's absence – section 311(4) Criminal Procedure Act – evaluation of defence evidence – admissibility and reliability of relatives' testimony.
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25 July 2024 |
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Applicant's unexplained delay and failure to account for each day warranted dismissal of extension of time to appeal.
Extension of time – discretion to grant extension – requirement to account for each day of delay; Land Disputes Courts Act s.41(2) – 45‑day appeal period from District Land and Housing Tribunal; insufficiency of affidavit/evidence to justify delay; res judicata context.
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24 July 2024 |
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Stay of execution granted where application was timely, security furnished (bank guarantee) and appeal has prima facie prospects.
Civil procedure – Stay of execution pending appeal – Conditions: reasonable time, risk of substantial loss, security for due performance – bank guarantee as security – rectification of defective guarantee.
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24 July 2024 |
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Conviction quashed where the central exhibit was inconsistently identified and prosecution conceded the appeal.
* Criminal law – unlawful possession of firearm part – adequacy of identification of exhibits – inconsistent descriptions undermine admissibility and proof. * Criminal procedure – prosecution concession – acceptance of concession where central exhibit is not properly identified – conviction quashed.
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22 July 2024 |
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Alleged failure to read assessors' opinions not established; appellant's appeal dismissed and tribunal decision upheld.
Land law; District Land and Housing Tribunal procedure; assessors' opinions — requirement to solicit and read assessors' written opinions before judgment; procedural irregularity and prejudice; distinguishing authorities where opinions were not recorded.
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22 July 2024 |
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Raising and deciding a new issue without recalling parties violated the right to be heard, rendering the execution decision null.
Land law – Execution proceedings – Tribunal raising suo motu issue on Ward Tribunal composition during judgment drafting – Right to be heard/fair hearing – Non‑compliance renders decision a nullity – Correct statutory provision on Ward Tribunal composition.
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22 July 2024 |
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Court overruled functus-officio objection and ordered the variation application to be heard inter partes.
Civil procedure — preliminary objection — must be pure point of law based on ascertained facts; not to touch judicial discretion or merits. Court jurisdiction — functus officio — Court not automatically barred from revisiting interim orders; vacating akin to review. Stay of execution — applicant must show irreparable loss not compensable by damages.
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22 July 2024 |
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Extension of time to appeal denied for failure to show good cause, diligence, and admissible evidence.
Criminal procedure – extension of time under s.379(2) CPA; good cause and diligence required; request for copies versus notice of intention to appeal; hearsay in enlargement applications – material persons must swear affidavits; ignorance of law and poor inter-office communication not good cause.
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19 July 2024 |
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Dismissal for overrunning speed track quashed; court extended speed track and remitted matter for trial.
Speed track disposal — Order VIII Rule 41 CPC (amendment 2022) — dismissal vs extension of speed track — withdrawal of advocate and amendment of pleadings — court/mediator absences and adjournments — requirement to evaluate root causes and proof of adjournments — remedy: quash dismissal and extend speed track.
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17 July 2024 |
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Appellant proved village land ownership on balance of probabilities; tribunal decision quashed for insufficient evaluation and wrongful document exclusion.
* Land law – proof of ownership of village land – burden of proof on the party alleging title – standard: balance of probabilities.
* Evidence – no fixed number of witnesses required; weight and credibility govern proof.
* Evidence – admissibility of local/village allocation letters; documents may be tendered by person in possession.
* Procedure – assessors’ opinions to be filed/read before judgment in land tribunals.
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16 July 2024 |
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Applicant failed to account for delay and to prove alleged illegality, so extension of time to appeal was refused.
Extension of time – requirement to show sufficient cause and account for each day of delay; illegality in impugned decision may alone justify extension but must be proved; ex parte proceedings – consequences where respondent absent; duty to serve notice of judgment date; members' opinions and handling of member absence in tribunal judgments.
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16 July 2024 |
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A party lacking legal personality or authority has no locus standi to sue; such proceedings are incompetent and void.
* Civil procedure – Locus standi – capacity to sue – business/group name without legal personality cannot sue in its own name – necessity of legal identity or incorporation.
* Civil procedure – Representative suits – individual must demonstrate authority to represent group members or guarantors; nebulous interests insufficient.
* Civil procedure – Misnaming of parties – improper naming may render proceedings incompetent and decree inexecutable.
* Remedies – Proceedings and judgments instituted by a party lacking legal or natural personality are nullities and liable to be quashed.
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15 July 2024 |
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Extension of time granted where delay was technical, caused by tribunal's late supply of the decree.
* Civil procedure – extension of time – applicant must account for each day of delay – delay caused by tribunal’s failure to supply decree can constitute acceptable technical delay – diligence and prompt filing after supply of decree weighed in applicant’s favour.
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15 July 2024 |
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Extension of time granted where delay was caused by trial court's late supply of the judgment; appeal to be filed within 30 days.
Criminal procedure – extension of time to file appeal – section 361(1)(a),(b) and 361(2) Criminal Procedure Act – delay due to non-supply/delay in furnishing copy of judgment – applicant accounting for delay – consent/support by State Attorney – extension granted.
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15 July 2024 |
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Failure to renew a fixed‑term contract after suspension and acquittal amounted to unfair termination; complaint was timely.
Labour law — fixed‑term contract — failure to renew as termination under s.36(a)(iii); limitation — when time starts to run upon communication of non‑renewal; burden of proof on employer; allegations imputing criminality require higher standard of proof; remedy — 12 months' salary compensation and terminal benefits.
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12 July 2024 |
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Interpreter’s unsworn evidence expunged but rape conviction upheld on credible victim testimony.
Criminal law – Rape – Proof beyond reasonable doubt; Evidence – credibility and corroboration of complainant; Procedure – requirement that court interpreters be sworn; Unsound interpreter evidence expunged; Conviction may stand despite expunged medical evidence if victim testimony is credible.
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11 July 2024 |
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Revision cannot be invoked as an alternative to appeal where an appellate remedy exists; appeal struck out as incompetent.
* Civil procedure — Revision vs appeal — Revisional jurisdiction not to be used as alternative to appellate jurisdiction when an appeal lies.
* Limitation/extension of time — Section 14(1) Law of Limitation Act — procedural competence where alternative remedy exists.
* Remedies against Ward Tribunal decisions — appeal to District Land and Housing Tribunal or application to set aside ex-parte judgment, not revision.
* Competency of appeal — court may strike out appeals seeking to clear way for improper procedural routes.
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10 July 2024 |
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Failure to notify a party of an ex-parte ruling's delivery vitiates the decision; retrial ordered.
Land procedure — ex-parte proceedings — duty to notify absent party of date of delivery of judgment — failure to inform vitiates decision; re-hearing inter partes before another chairperson ordered.
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9 July 2024 |
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Application for extension of time struck out for failure to join the Attorney General when suing local government bodies.
Government Proceedings Act s.6(3)-(4) – non-joinder of Attorney General – vitiation of proceedings; Civil procedure – competence of suit when suing local government bodies; Party joinder – requirement to sue correct legal person.
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8 July 2024 |
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Appeal allowed where visual identification evidence was insufficient under Waziri Amani; appellant ordered released.
* Criminal law – Burglary and stealing – reliance on visual identification; Waziri Amani principles (light, duration, proximity, prior knowledge). * Identification parade – necessity of corroboration and investigator’s evidence. * Standard of proof – prosecution must exclude reasonable doubt on identity. * Sentencing – correct maximum for night burglary under s.294(2) is 20 years.
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8 July 2024 |
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5 July 2024 |
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Ward tribunals' post-2021 mediation role precludes res judicata barring DLHT adjudication of land title.
* Civil procedure – Res judicata – requires former decision to be by a court competent to try the subsequent suit.
* Land law – Ward Tribunal jurisdiction – 2021 amendments limit ward tribunals to mediation in land disputes; they lack competence to adjudicate title without required certification.
* Evidence – tribunal must base decisions on properly admitted and supported evidence; where prior judgment was relied upon but rendered by an incompetent forum, it cannot bar adjudication on merits.
* Remedy – nullification of judgment based on jurisdictional error and remittal for fresh decision on merits before competent chairperson.
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5 July 2024 |
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Conviction upheld on corroborated confession and medical evidence; DNA excluded and life sentence reduced to 30 years.
* Criminal law – Unnatural offence – proof beyond reasonable doubt; corroboration of confession and medical evidence.
* Evidence – Human DNA (Regulation) Act – mandatory sampling procedures (s.30) and admissibility; exclusion of unlawfully obtained DNA evidence.
* Evidence – Caution/confessional statements – timing, absence of contemporaneous objection, voluntariness and weight.
* Procedure – omission to cite statutory provision in judgment – curable irregularity under s.388 Criminal Procedure Act.
* Sentencing – necessity to prove victim's age when it affects sentence severity.
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2 July 2024 |
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Non-parties to an executed decree may sue to establish land ownership; preliminary objection for lack of cause of action overruled.
Land law – cause of action – preliminary objection – execution of decree – non-parties entitled to sue to establish title – plaint amendment vs striking out.
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1 July 2024 |