|
Citation
|
Judgment date
|
| October 2021 |
|
|
Failure to record and present assessors' opinions vitiated DLHT proceedings, requiring nullification and retrial.
Land Disputes Courts – Tribunal composition – assessors must give written opinions before judgment and those opinions must be on the record and available to parties; failure to do so vitiates proceedings and necessitates retrial; procedural irregularities v. incurable irregularity; sale of mortgaged property and valuation/statutory compliance (s.133 Land Act) raised but not decided.
|
21 October 2021 |
|
|
20 October 2021 |
|
|
20 October 2021 |
|
|
18 October 2021 |
|
|
15 October 2021 |
|
|
11 October 2021 |
|
|
8 October 2021 |
|
|
8 October 2021 |
|
|
8 October 2021 |
|
|
8 October 2021 |
|
|
8 October 2021 |
|
|
8 October 2021 |
|
|
7 October 2021 |
|
Valid sponsorship contract; special damages proved; loss of business unproven; general damages reduced.
Contract law – validity and sanctity of in‑service sponsorship agreement; Evidence – admissibility and proof of documentary exhibits; Trustees/companies – capacity to contract via officers; Damages – special damages require strict proof; Loss of business must be proved on balance of probabilities; General damages discretionary — appellate reduction for excess; Limitation – cause of action and six‑year period.
|
5 October 2021 |
|
Conviction quashed where accused was denied right to be heard; retrial refused due to unavailable victim.
Criminal procedure – right to be heard – denial of opportunity to present defence – fundamental breach of natural justice vitiating conviction; retrial discretionary where key witness/victim absconds; preliminary objection on time-limitation not determinative when fundamental irregularity exists.
|
5 October 2021 |
|
|
5 October 2021 |
|
|
5 October 2021 |
|
|
4 October 2021 |
|
|
1 October 2021 |
| September 2021 |
|
|
|
30 September 2021 |
|
|
29 September 2021 |
|
|
23 September 2021 |
|
|
23 September 2021 |
| August 2021 |
|
|
|
31 August 2021 |
|
Applicant granted extension to appeal revocation of Primary Court letters of administration on jurisdictional and procedural grounds.
Extension of time to appeal; jurisdiction of District Court to nullify Primary Court letters of administration; procedural fairness/ex parte revocation; compliance with Primary Courts (Administration of Estates) Rules (notice requirement).
|
31 August 2021 |
|
Appeal dismissed as time-barred for lack of application and affidavit to extend the statutory appeal period.
Land Disputes Courts Act s.38 — Sixty-day appeal period; extension under s.38(2) requires application and affidavit showing good cause; time limit is jurisdictional; appeal filed out of time is incompetent.
|
26 August 2021 |
|
A District Court exceeds its review powers when it rehears an appeal and substitutes judgment instead of correcting clerical errors.
Civil Procedure — Review — Scope of review limited to correction of apparent errors — Appellate court cannot rehear or substitute its judgment under guise of review; Procedure — Order XLII r.3 and Order XXXIX r.1(1) — review applications must follow appeal form; Jurisdiction — s.78 Civil Procedure Code inapplicable where court sits in appellate jurisdiction.
|
26 August 2021 |
|
Conviction upheld where appellant’s confession led to recovery and victim identified stolen property; search found lawful.
Criminal law – proof beyond reasonable doubt; confession leading to recovery of stolen property; legality of search and seizure witnessed by third parties; identification of property in absence of receipts; sentence review.
|
23 August 2021 |
|
Appellant lacked locus standi to sue for the cooperative absent Board authorisation; proceedings nullified and appeal dismissed.
Locus standi – Cooperative societies – Representation in legal proceedings requires Board authorisation (Cooperative Societies Act s.68(1); Third Schedule rules) – Lack of authorisation is a jurisdictional defect rendering proceedings null.
|
21 August 2021 |
|
Concurrent factual findings upholding the landowner’s title were affirmed; an invitee cannot exclude the owner, appeal dismissed.
Land law – proof of ownership/occupation – purchase evidence and vendor corroboration – invitee cannot exclude owner. Appellate review – second appeal limited; concurrent findings of fact will not be disturbed absent misapprehension, miscarriage or legal/procedural error. Credibility – material contradictions in witness testimony undermine claims.
|
19 August 2021 |
|
Conviction on an unequivocal guilty plea and a 12‑month sentence for escape were upheld as within the trial court’s discretion.
Criminal law – escape from lawful custody – conviction on an unequivocal guilty plea – validity of conviction where accused admits facts. Sentencing – Section 35 Penal Code – imprisonment up to two years or fine or both – 12‑month sentence within statutory limits. Appellate review of sentence – interference only where misdirection, irrelevant consideration, or failure to consider relevant factors (Mbogo v Shah principle).
|
12 August 2021 |
|
A primary-court default judgment without proof of service or lawful striking of defence is unlawful and set aside.
Primary Courts procedure; default/ex parte judgment; service of summons; Order VIII r.14 Civil Procedure Code; Magistrate's Courts (Civil Procedure in Primary Courts) Rules; setting aside ex parte decree; striking out written statement of defence; miscarriage of justice.
|
12 August 2021 |
|
|
12 August 2021 |
|
The court recorded the applicant and respondent's land settlement as its decree, disposing of their appeal.
Civil procedure – Settlement of pending appeal – Deed of Settlement adopted and recorded as court decree; Land law – partition of disputed land by mutual agreement and demarcation on locus in quo; Effect – settlement conclusively determines dispute between settling parties; Costs – parties agree each bears own costs; Procedural effect – withdrawal of claims against co-respondent and no execution of tribunal decree.
|
11 August 2021 |
|
Appellate court remitted record to trial court to cure defective/conflicting judgments and nullified them.
Criminal procedure – Appeal competency – presence of two inconsistent judgments and a defective typed judgment attached to appeal renders appeal incompetent; remedial dispatch of record to trial court for proper judgment. Judicial remedies – nullification of conflicting judgments and direction to compose a single legally recognized judgment within a set time. Custody – remand pending correction of trial court record.
|
11 August 2021 |
|
An appeal filed beyond the 45‑day limit without an extension is jurisdictionally incompetent and dismissed.
Criminal appeals — time limit for filing — forty-five (45) days — jurisdictional effect of delay; requirement to apply for extension of time; incarceration does not automatically excuse delay; appeal dismissed as time-barred.
|
11 August 2021 |
|
|
10 August 2021 |
|
Breaking was not proved; recent possession upheld theft convictions for two appellants, third appellant acquitted of stealing.
Criminal law – breaking into premises – insufficiency of evidence to prove breaking; Criminal law – theft – doctrine of recent possession (s.312(1) Penal Code) – recent possession and inadequate explanation justify presumption of guilt; evidentiary sufficiency regarding possession and conduct of exchanging currency.
|
9 August 2021 |
|
Convictions for rape and unnatural offences upheld; improperly admitted PF3s expunged and life sentences reduced to 30 years concurrent.
Criminal law – Rape and unnatural offences against minors – proof beyond reasonable doubt; corroboration by medical evidence; improperly admitted PF3 reports expunged; admissibility of extra-judicial statement; inadmissibility of cautioned statement recorded in breach of s.50(1)(a); sentence reduction for first offender.
|
9 August 2021 |
|
Appellant’s land recovery claim barred by the 12‑year limitation; Ward Tribunal composition was valid.
Land law — recovery of land — limitation period (Law of Limitation, Item 22) — adverse possession/long uninterrupted possession — Ward Tribunal composition and quorum — administrative signatures do not vitiate proceedings.
|
6 August 2021 |
|
Appeal allowed: tribunal misdirected on execution sale under Primary Court order; its judgment quashed and set aside.
Land law – execution sale – validity of sale by Ward Executive Officer pursuant to Primary Court order – evidentiary weight of Exhibit evidencing execution. Civil procedure – finality of court orders – enforceability of court orders until set aside and limited jurisdiction to revise lower court decisions. Appellate review – misdirection and failure to analyze material evidence warrant quashing of trial tribunal judgment. Reliefs – improper declaratory finding regarding ownership attributed to a deceased and absence of pleaded relief.
|
6 August 2021 |
|
High Court quashed tribunal decision for misapprehending evidence and improperly undermining a Primary Court execution sale.
Land law – Execution of Primary Court orders by Ward Executive Officer; public auction sale – evidentiary effect of exhibit proving execution sale; limits on revising Primary Court orders (only District Court revision); appellate intervention where tribunal misapprehends or fails to analyse primary documentary evidence; incompetence of declaring a deceased as owner of land.
|
6 August 2021 |
|
Appellant failed to prove pre-marital ownership; lower courts rightly treated disputed items as matrimonial assets and custody decision was proper.
Family law – matrimonial property – proof of pre-marital ownership – burden of proof; failure to produce receipts or witnesses. Evidence – failure to cross-examine – adverse inference and acceptance of witness evidence. Family law – division of matrimonial assets – assessment of contribution. Family law – custody – children’s wishes under s.125(2)(b) and taking additional evidence on appeal.
|
6 August 2021 |
|
The respondent failed to show sufficient cause for condonation of an overly delayed labour referral, so the CMA award was set aside.
Labour law — time limits for referral to CMA (Rule 10(1) GN No.64/2007) — condonation power under Rule 31 — discretion must be reasonably exercised — requirement to account for delay with satisfactory, particularised explanation.
|
3 August 2021 |
| July 2021 |
|
|
|
28 July 2021 |
|
A limitation preliminary objection is inappropriate where the date of accrual and negotiations are disputed and require evidence.
• Civil procedure – preliminary objection – limitation plea – whether a limitation plea is a pure point of law when accrual date is disputed.• Limitation law – accrual of cause of action – date of accrual is a question of fact requiring evidence.• Extension of time – ongoing negotiations/communications may be relevant to delay and require factual proof.• Mukisa principle – preliminary objections inadmissible where facts must be ascertained or judicial discretion exercised.
|
23 July 2021 |
|
Failure to show Ward Tribunal jurisdiction and to record quorum/gender renders proceedings and appeal a nullity.
Land law – Ward Tribunal jurisdiction – pecuniary limit and requirement to record value; procedural compliance – recording quorum, member identities and gender representation; failure to satisfy jurisdictional and record-keeping requirements renders proceedings a nullity; appellate duty to address jurisdictional and procedural defects.
|
20 July 2021 |
|
Appeal dismissed: prosecution failed to prove abuse of office and theft by public servant beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Corruption – Abuse of position under s.31 Prevention and Combating of Corruption Act – ingredients required: intentional abuse, breach of law, undue advantage. Criminal law – Theft by public servant – ss.258(1)(2)(a), 270 Penal Code – elements of actus reus and mens rea, and enhanced liability. Evidence – cautioned statement and documentary exhibits – necessity of clear admission and probative weight. Credibility findings – trial court’s assessment of witnesses and acceptance of opposing testimony can dispose prosecution case.
|
19 July 2021 |
|
Appeal allowed: conviction quashed due to misapplied statutory provisions, material inconsistencies and inadequate proof beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Unnatural offence (sodomy) against a child; charge-sheet particulars and curability (s.388 CPA); mandatory judgment content (ss.235, 312 CPA); inconsistencies in prosecution and inconclusive medical evidence; failure to evaluate defence – conviction quashed.
|
19 July 2021 |
|
Applicants previously on bail and with no breach were granted bail pending trial subject to specified conditions.
Criminal procedure – Bail pending trial – Prior admission to bail and compliance as factor favouring grant of bail – Conditions for release: cash or property deposit, sureties, surrender of travel documents, reporting and verification of sureties.
|
15 July 2021 |