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1,207 judgments found.
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September 2025
Appeal allowed: failure to hear a lodged preliminary objection violated right to be heard, vitiating subsequent proceedings.
Civil procedure
— preliminary objection
— Revision vs appeal — Revision
Constitutional law — right to be heard (Article 13(6)(a)) — procedural breach that goes to root of case
12 September 2025
Failure to hear the applicant's preliminary objection violated the right to be heard and vitiated subsequent proceedings.
Civil procedure
— Procedure — Preliminary objection — Obligation to determine preliminary objections before hearing merits
— right to be heard (Article 13(6)(a)) — Court record and presumption of accuracy — Revision
12 September 2025
11 September 2025
Extension of time to appeal granted where applicant demonstrated diligence and fully accounted for a short delay after appeal was struck out.
Civil procedure — extension of time — sufficient cause — Diligence in prosecuting appeal — Delay not inordinate
10 September 2025
Failure to account for delay and abandoning an appeal justified refusal to extend time to set aside dismissal.
Civil procedure — Abuse of process — Appeal commenced without appellant’s genuine intention to prosecute — Failure to prosecute disentitles applicant to relief
Civil procedure — extension of time
— application to set aside dismissal for want of prosecution — adequacy of explanation
— sufficient cause — negligence or mistake of previous counsel not a valid ground
9 September 2025
Probate petition struck out: deceased domiciled in Morogoro and Iramba, not Dar es Salaam; court lacked jurisdiction.
Probate law
— Evidence — Temporary residence versus domicile — Ownership or occasional stays do not establish domicile
— letters of administration — Domicile of deceased — Determination of jurisdiction to grant letters of administration
4 September 2025
3 September 2025
Accounts of estate failed to follow the will; court vacated confirmation and ordered amended Inventory and Accounts.
Probate law — validity of Accounts of Estate — Executor’s fiduciary duty and duty to notify court of material events — Compliance with testamentary dispositions (specific bequests, contingent gifts, life assurance held on trust, residual estate) — Vacation of confirmation and requirement to amend Inventory and Accounts
3 September 2025
Technical delay from withdrawal of an earlier appeal justified extension of time to appeal in a probate matter.
Civil procedure — extension of time
— Application for leave to appeal out of time
— Judicial discretion in extension applications
— Technical delay due to withdrawal of earlier appeal
— Sufficient cause for extension
— Threshold for material illegality as ground for extension of time
1 September 2025
August 2025
Alleged illegality not apparent on record and unexplained delay failed to justify extension of time.
Family law — Division of matrimonial property — application not pleaded in divorce proceedings — alleged error requiring examination of pleadings/evidence not an apparent illegality
Limitation law — extension of time — exception where illegality is apparent on face of record — s.14(1) Law of Limitation Act
29 August 2025
Probate court held sole‑named assets form the estate; administrator must precisely account shares and include funeral liabilities.
Probate law — Administration of estates — Duty to exhibit accounts and distribute estate
— Accurate computation and rounding conventions
— administrator’s duty to account precisely for statutory shares
Probate law — inventory and accounts filing — Distinction between inventory (Form 80) and accounts (Form 81) — Funeral and related expenses as liabilities
Probate law — matrimonial property — Whether assets in deceased’s sole name are removed from estate administration
29 August 2025
Maintenance and education orders set aside for lack of verified income assessment; matter remitted for further inquiry.
Evidence — social inquiry reports — Necessity of verification and opportunity to test social welfare evidence before basing maintenance orders
Family law — Child maintenance — assessment of income and wealth — Law of the Child Act ss. 43 — 44 and Rule 84(2)
29 August 2025
29 August 2025
High Court: district court wrongly dismissed probate appeal as a revocation application; matter remitted for fresh hearing.
Probate law
— Appellate procedure — characterisation of appeal
— jurisdiction — proceedings conducted after superior court directive and their potential nullity
— Probate and succession law — closure of probate proceedings — effect on rights of appeal
— Procedural law — parties bound by pleadings — courts cannot decide extraneous matters
— Remedy — remit for rehearing by another magistrate
29 August 2025
Applicant failed to prove good cause for extension of time to appeal a juvenile custody ruling.
Civil procedure — Extension of time to appeal — good cause and diligence required — Accounting for each day of delay
Evidence — Proof of illness — documentary evidence required where illness is relied on to justify delay — Must be supported by clear, specific and credible medical documentation
Family law — Child custody — Best interests of the child — Alleged illegality must be apparent on the face of the record and not self‑induced by the applicant
29 August 2025
26 August 2025
Court revoked administrator’s grant for failure to administer estate and appointed the applicant as administrator.
Probate law
— Administrator's duties — fiduciary duty to collect, account for and distribute estate to real dependants
— Revocation of letters of administration — Grant may be revoked where it has become useless or inoperative under s.49 PAEA
26 August 2025
Recusal of a trial magistrate is interlocutory; premature appeal struck out and matter remitted for trial.
Civil procedure — Appeals — interlocutory orders — Civil Procedure Code s 84(2)
Family law — Appeals in matrimonial proceedings — governed by Section 80, Law of Marriage Act and Matrimonial Proceedings Rules — Law of Marriage Act s 80(3)
25 August 2025
A registered owner’s title prevails over an unexecuted sale order in a probate inventory, excluding the property from the estate.
Civil procedure — Probate and administration
— enforceability of unexecuted court decrees in estate administration
— appeal pending effect on estate interest
— estate assets
— legal versus equitable interest
— conclusive effect of certificate of title
— meaning of ownership for inclusion in estate inventory
22 August 2025
22 August 2025
The High Court set aside conflicting appellate judgments and ordered a retrial due to fundamental procedural irregularities.
Civil procedure — Consolidation of appeals — issuance of conflicting judgments and decrees — Revision
20 August 2025
Extension granted where technical registration errors caused delay though original appeals were lodged in time.
Civil procedure — Extension of time to appeal — electronic filing mistakenly made in wrong registry may constitute technical delay and good cause for enlargement of time — Sufficient cause for extension
19 August 2025
19 August 2025
15 August 2025
Revocation of letters of administration requires proof of material untruth; court remitted inventory issues for further evidence.
Civil procedure — Probate and administration — revocation of letters of administration
15 August 2025
13 August 2025
A second appellate court ordered equal division of certain properties as matrimonial assets based on evidence of joint acquisition.
Family law
— Appellate review of factual findings — Determination of parties’ contributions to asset acquisition
— Matrimonial assets — Division of matrimonial property — Evidence of joint acquisition — Standard for second appellate court interference
13 August 2025
Court granted letters of administration after finding compliance with statutory requirements, proof of death and citation.
Civil procedure — Notice/Citation — Publication in newspapers as citation — Rule 76 14‑day notice and absence of caveat
Probate law
— Grant of letters of administration — Compliance with s.56 PAEA and Probate Rules (39, 63, 73, 76)
— Proof of death — Death certificate and alternative affidavits under amended Rule 63
12 August 2025
Appellate court held that continuity of care and children's independent views outweighed unproven financial capacity to justify changing custody.
Family law — Child custody
— Best interests and continuity of care govern custody — Continuity of care and stability in custody decisions
— Best interests of the child — Application of section 39 and section 26 of the Law of the Child Act
— weight of child's independent views — Juvenile Court Rules / Social inquiry
12 August 2025
Court upheld award of custody to mother based on best interests of child and proper observance of custody procedures.
Family law — Child law
— access orders
— appellate procedure
— best interests of the child
— custody
— evaluation of evidence
— presumption in favor of maternal custody for children under seven
— social inquiry reports
7 August 2025
5 August 2025
5 August 2025
4 August 2025
1 August 2025
1 August 2025
July 2025
High Court remitted consolidated appellate file for fresh judgment due to duplicated, confusing first appellate decision.
Appellate practice
— Appeals — Consolidation of appeals — Proper recording and effect of consolidation
— Appellate error — Duplication of appellate judgment — Remittal for fresh judgment
Judicial review — High Court jurisdiction — Supervisory powers under s 44(1)(a) MCA — Calling records and giving directions
31 July 2025
A technical delay caused by procedural court errors justified the extension of time to file an appeal in probate proceedings.
Civil procedure — extension of time — technical delay
31 July 2025
E-filing is effective on control-number/payment date; late reply without leave was expunged.
Appellate practice — Stare decisis — Binding effect of Court of Appeal interpretations on electronic filing rules
Civil procedure
— Electronic filing — Operative filing date is payment/control-number generation, not mere electronic upload — Judicature and Application of Laws (Electronic Filing) Rules, 2018
— Scheduling orders — Effect of late filing without leave
30 July 2025
Court rejects Power of Attorney due to legal deficiencies; orders appeal to proceed with submissions.
Power of Attorney – Legal sufficiency – Compliance with statutory registration and attestation requirements
30 July 2025
A co‑wife must be afforded the right to be heard before matrimonial property in a polygamous marriage is finally divided.
Civil procedure — Right to be heard (audi alteram partem) — Failure to afford hearing vitiates decision and justifies retrial
Family law — Matrimonial property — Polygamous marriage — Right of co‑wife to be heard before division of matrimonial assets — Law of Marriage Act s114
30 July 2025
Petition for letters of administration granted where petitioner met statutory requirements and no caveat was lodged.
Probate law
— Grant of letters of administration — Compliance with s.56 PAEA and Probate Rules (39, 63, 73, 76) — Documentary and procedural requirements
— Grant of probate where citation published and no caveat lodged — Statutory citation and 14-day lapse with no caveat — Effect on grant of administration
30 July 2025
An appeal from a Primary Court was dismissed as filed beyond the statutory 45-day period without leave to extend time.
Appellate practice — Appellate review — correctness of District Court’s computation and dismissal for being time-barred
Civil procedure
— Computation
— Late filing
— Requirement to attach copy of judgment — not mandatory for appeals originating from Primary Courts
29 July 2025
Court clarifies child custody access order in parental dispute, maintaining mother's custody and defining clear access terms.
Family law — Child custody — modification of access orders — best interest of child — custody based on age and welfare
28 July 2025
First appellate court failed to conduct proper proceedings, denying fair hearing.
Civil procedure — appellate court's duty — conduct of fair trial in appeal
28 July 2025
28 July 2025
25 July 2025
The court dismissed a second appeal challenging asset division in a matrimonial dispute, upholding lower court decisions.
Family law — Matrimonial law — Division of matrimonial assets — Admissibility of Electronic Evidence — Procedural Fairness in Appeals
24 July 2025
Revocation of letters of administration dismissed for failure to prove statutory grounds under section 49(1).
Probate law
— Family/clan meeting minutes — matter of practice, not a legal prerequisite for grants
— Probate — Jurisdiction — paternity and matrimonial validity not determined in revocation applications
— Probate Rules — mandatory forms (Form No. 45 affidavit as to domicile) and distinction between domicile and place of death
— Revocation of grants
23 July 2025
23 July 2025
21 July 2025