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Citation
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Judgment date
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| February 2026 |
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Appellant proved estate title; respondent failed due diligence, was not bona fide purchaser and is trespasser.
Land dispute – proof of title – burden of proof in civil cases – shift of evidential burden – bona fide purchaser for value without notice – duty to inquire (caveat emptor) – trespass – permanent injunction.
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10 February 2026 |
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Appellate court held leave to refile should be granted where counsel identifies a formal defect, allowing refiling.
Civil Procedure — Order XXIII Rule 1(2) — Withdrawal with leave to refile — Formal defect or other sufficient grounds required — Discretion of trial court — Duty to give reasons (Order XX Rule 6).
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10 February 2026 |
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Conviction for statutory rape upheld; medical and witness evidence proved age, penetration and identity; cautioned statement expunged but appeal dismissed.
Criminal law – Statutory rape – elements: age, penetration, identity – child witness credibility (s.127(6) Evidence Act) – admissibility of cautioned statement (four‑hour rule) – expungement where arrest time not shown – appellate re‑evaluation of evidence.
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9 February 2026 |
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Omission of the presiding officer's signature on each witness's evidence vitiated the tribunal proceedings and required a retrial.
Civil procedure — Order XVIII Rule 10 — presiding officer must sign each witness's testimony — omission vitiates proceedings; authentication of court record; land dispute — administratrix capacity, burden and limitation raised but not determined.
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6 February 2026 |
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Unsigned witness testimony renders the tribunal proceedings unauthentic and necessitates nullification and retrial.
Civil procedure — Land dispute — Mandatory requirement that presiding officer sign each witness's testimony (Order XVIII r.10 CPC) — Absence of signature vitiates proceedings — Proceedings nullified and retrial ordered.
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6 February 2026 |
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Appeal dismissed: respondent's ownership by clearing virgin land upheld; record-tampering and impersonation claims unproven.
Land law — proof of ownership by clearing virgin land — burden of proof on balance of probabilities; court records presumed authentic — allegation of record alteration must be proved; Ward Tribunal limited to mediation and certificate — trial tribunal reassesses evidence; alleged witness impersonation is a criminal matter and cannot substitute admissible civil evidence; minor contradictions do not vitiate credible testimony.
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6 February 2026 |
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Court granted interim Mareva injunction restraining auction of seized vehicle pending statutory notice and intended suit.
Mareva injunction; interim relief pending institution of suit; section 2(3) JALA; statutory 90‑day notice to sue; seizure of vehicle; alleged unlawful engine replacement; parking fees; irreparable loss; balance of convenience.
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5 February 2026 |
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Failure to join necessary sellers and lack of Primary Court jurisdiction nullify probate-originated land-ownership proceedings.
Probate and administration — jurisdiction — whether Primary Court can determine land ownership — Land Disputes Courts Act exclusion of ordinary courts; Civil procedure — non‑joinder of necessary parties — failure to join sellers is fatal and renders proceedings a nullity; Revisionary jurisdiction — nullification and striking out where trial court lacked competence.
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5 February 2026 |
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Extension of time refused for failure to account for over three-year delay despite alleging illegality.
Civil procedure—extension of time under Limitation Act—applicant must show sufficient cause and account for each day of delay; alleged illegality does not excuse failure to account; discretion to grant extension exercised judiciously.
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4 February 2026 |
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Victim’s unchallenged testimony and medical evidence proved statutory rape; appeal against conviction dismissed.
Criminal law — Statutory rape — Elements: victim underage, penetration, identification — Proof of age by victim/guardian — Best evidence from victim — Corroboration by medical examination — Delay in reporting not fatal to prosecution.
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4 February 2026 |
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Contradictory evidence on identity and arrest created reasonable doubt, resulting in the appellant's acquittal for attempted rape.
Criminal law – Attempted rape – Identification of accused – Contradictory prosecution testimony about arrest and identity going to the root – Benefit of doubt – Child witness competence/examination under Evidence Act.
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4 February 2026 |
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Broken chain of custody and unconsidered defence undermined prosecution’s drug-trafficking conviction despite lawful search.
Drugs Control and Enforcement Act — s.34 written authority for search — night searches; Criminal Procedure Act distinctions; Evidence — chain of custody — requirements in narcotics cases; Evaluation of defence — appellate court stepping into trial court’s shoes when defence not considered; Proof beyond reasonable doubt — broken custody + defence raises reasonable doubt.
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2 February 2026 |
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Accused convicted on guilty plea of manslaughter; lenient sentence of 12‑month conditional discharge due to provocation and first‑offender status.
Criminal law – Manslaughter vs murder – provocation and self-defence – sentencing – application of Sentencing Guidelines 2023 – plea of guilty and first offender leniency.
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2 February 2026 |
| January 2026 |
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High Court quashed District Court judgment for failing to determine all material grounds and remitted the case for fresh judgment.
Civil procedure — Appellate review — Duty to address grounds of appeal — Appellate court may decide fewer grounds where sufficient, but must resolve material complaints that could affect the outcome — Remittal for fresh judgment where first appellate court failed to determine key grounds.
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30 January 2026 |
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Appellants failed to prove heirship; post-filing birth certificates insufficient without corroborative evidence.
Probate law — proof of heirship — recognition by deceased — documentary evidence obtained after suit — need for corroborative oral evidence and material witnesses — appellate interference limited to misapprehension of evidence or legal error.
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29 January 2026 |
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Cause of action accrues at dispossession; later appointment of an administrator does not revive a time‑barred land claim.
Limitation of actions – accrual of cause of action on dispossession (s.9(2) Law of Limitation Act) – time-bar under item 22 of Schedule – preliminary objection on limitation is a pure point of law – appointment of administrator does not postpone accrual – overriding objective cannot defeat limitation periods.
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28 January 2026 |
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Failure to sign each witness's testimony vitiated the tribunal proceedings; retrial ordered before a different chairman.
Civil procedure — mandatory requirement to sign each witness's testimony (Order XVIII Rule 10 CPC) — failure to sign renders proceedings unauthentic and vitiates record — overriding objective cannot cure mandatory procedural breaches — retrial ordered before different chairman and assessors.
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27 January 2026 |
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Restoration application filed outside Regulation 11(2)’s 30-day limit; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — Restoration of dismissed suit — Regulation 11(2) GN.174/2003 — 30-day limitation — No requirement to attach dismissal order — Late filing without leave — Public holiday/exclusion of time argument rejected.
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26 January 2026 |
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Review dismissed as an improper substitute for appeal; court functus officio after granting withdrawal, so lacks jurisdiction.
Civil procedure — Review v. appeal — Review lies only for error apparent on face of record; cannot be used as an alternative to appeal or revision — Court functus officio after granting withdrawal — Preliminary objection on jurisdiction as pure point of law.
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26 January 2026 |
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Non‑joinder of guaranteed borrowers rendered the suit incompetent; lower courts' judgments nullified and suit struck out.
Civil procedure — Competence of suit — Non‑joinder of necessary parties (guarantors) — Right to be heard — Proceedings nullified and judgment set aside — Suit struck out — Fresh suit permitted.
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23 January 2026 |
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Appellate court set aside dismissal where tribunal failed to consider applicant's prior attendance in refusal to set aside dismissal.
Land disputes — Setting aside dismissal for non-appearance — Sufficient cause — Regulation 11(1)(b) DLHT Regulations 2003 — Appellate interference with discretion — Prior attendance as relevant factor — Rule 13(3) proof of advocate's appearance in superior courts.
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15 January 2026 |
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Extension granted where tribunal delayed supplying certified judgment and applicant proved sickness.
Land law — extension of time to appeal — duty of Tribunal Chairman to supply certified copies within 21 days (Rule 7(4)) — sickness as good cause for extension when supported by medical proof — submissions not evidence — illegality raised only in submissions inadmissible.
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15 January 2026 |