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Citation
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Judgment date
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| May 2020 |
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Uncontested medical evidence of illness and delay in obtaining a certified copy justified an extension of time to appeal.
Civil procedure – extension of time – sufficient cause – illness supported by medical evidence and delay in obtaining certified copy may constitute sufficient cause; Requirement for parties to file counter-affidavits to contest factual assertions; Procedural irregularity – incorrect citation of statute not fatal where no failure of justice shown; Application of Benedict Mumello test for sufficient cause.
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29 May 2020 |
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Uncorroborated oral claim of a gift failed against a signed sale agreement; appeal dismissed with costs.
Land law – proof of title – alleged gift by verbal conveyance versus documentary sale agreement; burden of proof on claimant. Evidence – weight of oral uncorroborated testimony compared to signed documentary evidence. Civil procedure – appellate deference to trial tribunal’s factual findings where record supports them.
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29 May 2020 |
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Appellant estopped from re‑raising abandoned grounds; lack of valuation or record support leads to dismissal of land appeal with costs.
Appeal and procedure – abandonment of grounds at lower court – estoppel from re‑raising abandoned grounds on appeal. Civil procedure – appellate scope – Court will not entertain new grounds not raised or decided below. Land law – jurisdiction of Ward Tribunal – burden to prove value exceeds pecuniary limit (valuation evidence required). Proper party – absence of record of institutional claim means individual defendant may be properly sued.
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26 May 2020 |
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Applicant granted 30-day extension to file appeal after earlier appeal was struck out for being incompetent.
Land law – extension of time to file appeal – previous appeal struck out as incompetent – layperson seeking legal assistance – good cause for extension – discretion to grant leave – no order as to costs.
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26 May 2020 |
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Court set aside striking‑out order where counsel’s traffic delay from a government motorcade amounted to sufficient cause.
Civil procedure – Application to set aside order striking out defence – Order VIII Rule 20(2) and section 95 CPC – "sufficient cause" – delay due to government motorcade/traffic obstruction – right to be heard – costs in the cause.
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26 May 2020 |
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Application to be joined as deceased's legal representative was time-barred and struck out.
Civil procedure — Order XXII r.3 and r.9 CPC — Joinder of legal representative after death; Limitation — First Schedule Part III Item 16 — 90-day period to apply to be made a legal representative; Time runs from date of death; Procedure — where 90 days lapsed applicant must first seek extension of time before applying to set aside abatement; Application struck out as time-barred.
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26 May 2020 |
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Plaintiff, as registered transferee from a bank auction, is lawful owner entitled to possession and damages.
Land law – mortgage enforcement – public auction following default – validity of sale and transfer. Transfer and registration – protection of bonafide purchaser for value under section 135, Land Act. Civil procedure – summary suit (Order XXXV) – ex parte proof where defendant fails to defend. Remedies – declaration of ownership, vacant possession, award of general damages and costs.
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26 May 2020 |
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An earlier valid sale prevailed over an alleged later will; appeal dismissed with costs.
Land law – competing title – priority in time (qui prior est tempore potior est jure); validity and effect of wills vis-à-vis prior alienation; admissibility and weight of sale agreements; procedural effect of donor and donee both testifying after issuance of power of attorney.
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26 May 2020 |
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Appeal allowed: tribunals erred by deciding merits despite respondent’s failure to prove locus standi and ownership.
Locus standi – failure to prove inheritance or transfer; burden of proof in civil land disputes – Section 110 Evidence Act; balance of probabilities (Hemedi Said principle); unsurveyed/customary land – requirement for proof of transfer; appellate review of tribunal's evaluation of evidence.
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26 May 2020 |
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Unperfected sale cannot defeat a subsequent bona fide purchaser; plaintiff's remedy lies against the original seller.
Land law – competing sales – effect of unperfected sale agreement; bona fide purchaser for value; administrative resolution and transfer; failure to call material witness and adverse inference.
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25 May 2020 |
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Res subjudice does not bar a revision application where the revision and earlier suit are not directly and substantially the same.
Civil procedure — Res subjudice (s.8 CPC) — Applicability to revision applications; Revision proceedings versus ordinary land applications; Requirement that matter be "directly and substantially in issue"; Withdrawal of earlier suit does not necessarily render revision res subjudice.
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22 May 2020 |
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Application for extension to appeal struck out as incompetent for invoking the wrong provision and lacking proper supporting documents.
Civil procedure – Extension of time to appeal – Competency of application – Proper identification of decision appealed against and correct statutory provision to be invoked. Land Disputes Courts Act – Section 38(1) – Applicability limited to appeals against DLHT on appeal; wrong invocation fatal to application. Evidence – Affidavit and annexures must correspond to averments and identify the judgment sought to be appealed.
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22 May 2020 |
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Respondent declared lawful owner as bona fide purchaser; applicant's incomplete transfer claim dismissed, each party to bear own costs.
Land law — Ownership dispute over same parcel sold twice; incomplete transfer v. subsequent transfers; bona fide purchaser for value doctrine; effect of caveat and administrative resolution; adverse inference for failure to call material witness.
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22 May 2020 |
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Leave granted to appeal on whether limitation for an administrator's possession claim accrues at death or on adverse possession.
Land law – Limitation – Accrual of time for possession claim by an administrator – Interpretation of sections 9(1) and 35(1) of the Law of Limitation Act – Whether limitation accrues at predecessor’s death or on defendant’s adverse possession. Leave to appeal – Novel question of law warranting Court of Appeal determination.
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22 May 2020 |
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Extension granted to challenge a taxed bill where alleged illegality outweighs applicant's unexplained delay.
Advocates' Remuneration Order – extension of time to file reference; illegality in taxation of bill of costs; scales of advocates' fees; delay and negligence versus manifest illegality.
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22 May 2020 |
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An omnibus chamber summons is incompetent where combined prayers are incompatible and unsupported by the relevant procedural rule.
Civil procedure — omnibus chamber summons — compatibility of combined prayers; maintenance of status quo — effect on possession and rents; contempt remedies — limits of Order XXXVII Rule 2(2); striking out incompetent application; costs follow event.
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20 May 2020 |
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Proceedings and judgment entered against a known deceased without substitution are nullified; revision granted and costs awarded.
Land procedure – substitution of parties – where a party dies during proceedings the administrator of the estate must be substituted. Civil procedure – proceedings against a deceased person – judgment entered against a known deceased without substitution is a nullity. Revision – section 43(1)(b) Land Disputes Courts Act – power to nullify defective tribunal proceedings.
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20 May 2020 |
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Appellate court upheld tribunal finding of encroachment and compensation for demolished fence; appeal dismissed with costs.
Land law – trespass/encroachment – assessment of boundary disputes supported by locus in quo inspection. Evidence – credibility and timing of assertions; appellate deference to tribunal fact-finding. Remedies – compensation for demolished fence where tribunal findings support interference.
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20 May 2020 |
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Filing a Notice of Appeal divests the High Court of jurisdiction to hear related taxation references, save limited exceptions.
Appeal — Effect of filing a Notice of Appeal — High Court jurisdiction ceases in respect of the same matter once appeal initiated; Taxation reference under Advocates Remuneration Order — not exempt from appeal principle; Stay of proceedings pending appeal.
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18 May 2020 |
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Court set aside tribunal's valuation order and varied decree to specify the refund amount and interest.
Land law – Rectification of decree – Tribunal exceeded rectification by ordering valuation by non-party; documentary sale agreement establishes refund amount; appellate variation under s.43(b) of the Land Disputes Courts Act.
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18 May 2020 |
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Unproven counsel handover failures and prolonged inaction do not justify setting aside an ex‑parte dismissal.
Civil procedure — Setting aside ex-parte dismissal under Order IX Rule 9 — Sufficiency of cause — Alleged counsel handover failure must be proved by affidavit or documentary evidence — Prolonged inaction/neglect is not sufficient cause.
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18 May 2020 |
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Failure to have assessors give and have their opinions read in parties' presence vitiates the tribunal's judgment; retrial ordered.
Land law — District Land and Housing Tribunal procedure — Assessors' opinions — Mandatory requirement to solicit and read assessors' opinions in presence of parties — Non‑compliance renders proceedings and judgment null and void — High Court's revisional power and remittal for retrial de novo.
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15 May 2020 |
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Appellate tribunal misapplied evidence assessment in a boundary dispute; trial tribunal's finding reinstated.
Land law – boundary disputes; burden of proof in trespass claims – necessity to identify boundary marks at locus in quo; weight of documentary evidence (allocation letter) versus oral village testimony; procedural irregularity in omitting parties' representative capacities – minor and not fatal.
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15 May 2020 |
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A purchaser at execution sale acquires only the judgment debtor’s property, not the plaintiff’s separately owned godowns.
Land law – ownership dispute – sale by receiver and separate sale agreements – erroneous title encompassing multiple plots – execution sale – purchaser acquires only judgment debtor’s property – use of Ministry records, sale agreements and site visit to determine ownership.
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15 May 2020 |
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The plaintiff lawfully owns the two go-downs; an auction purchaser’s title is limited to the judgment-debtor’s actual property.
Property law – ownership dispute between a prior purchaser and an auction purchaser – effect of erroneous aggregated title and subsequent subdivision; auction purchaser’s entitlement limited to judgment-debtor’s actual property; evidentiary weight of sale agreements, Ministry records and locus visit.
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15 May 2020 |
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Extension of time granted for appeal due to technical delay where applicant acted promptly after prior proceedings were struck out.
Extension of time – sufficient cause – technical delay where earlier appeal/application was incompetent – prompt action after striking out – Fortunatus Masha principle applied; computation of delay.
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14 May 2020 |
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High Court certified tribunal jurisdiction and composition as points of law; factual disputes on evidence were not certified.
Land disputes — s.47(2) Land Disputes Courts Act — certificate for Court of Appeal — jurisdiction of tribunal — proper constitution and quorum — distinction between questions of law and factual evaluation (adverse possession).
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14 May 2020 |
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Application for stay of execution accrues when execution is filed/served; a stay filed after 60 days is time-barred and dismissed.
Civil Procedure — Stay of execution — accrual of right to apply for stay when decree is sent for execution (application for execution filed/served) — limitation governed by Limitation Act Part III item 21 (60 days) — out-of-time applications to be dismissed.
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13 May 2020 |
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Court extended time to appeal where tribunal's delay in providing records and apparent jurisdictional illegality justified extension.
Extension of time – sufficiency of cause – delay in tribunal supplying certified copies of judgment – promptness in seeking records. Extension of time – apparent illegality on face of record – orders affecting distribution of deceased estate raising probate jurisdiction issues. Exercise of judicial discretion – short residual delay and reasons beyond applicant's control justify extension.
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13 May 2020 |
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Appellant’s failure to produce written sale or auction proof defeated his land ownership claim; tribunal's findings upheld.
Land law – proof of ownership; admissibility of written evidence – section 100 Evidence Act; weight of oral testimony and contradictions; requirement to produce auction documents and sale agreement; appellate review of tribunal fact findings.
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13 May 2020 |
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A tribunal’s adjudication of ownership in favour of a non‑party violated the right to be heard and rendered the judgment null, warranting retrial.
Land law – ownership dispute – necessity to join persons asserting proprietary interests – failure to implead or join legal personal representative; audi alteram partem – right to be heard; nullity of judgment; administrators’ capacity to tender title documents; remedy — retrial de novo.
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13 May 2020 |
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Denying joinder and the right to be heard to a necessary party renders the judgment null and void.
Civil procedure – joinder of parties – necessity to join legal personal representative where deceased’s title is asserted; failure to join and denial of hearing renders proceedings null and void. Right to be heard – audi alteram partem – decision affecting non‑party without joinder is illegal. Evidence – improper attempt to tender documents in name of a different deceased without mandate does not cure non‑joinder.
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13 May 2020 |
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Unexplained delay and lack of documented diligence defeat extension of time to appeal despite alleged illegality.
Civil procedure – Extension of time – Application under section 41(2) Land Disputes Courts Act – requirement to show sufficient cause and due diligence. Delay in being supplied with certified copies – applicant must produce evidence of prompt request and follow-up. Alleged illegality – must be obvious on the face of the record to justify extension of time. Burden of proof – affidavit assertions unsupported by documentary evidence are insufficient.
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12 May 2020 |
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Lease expired and no renewal proved — vacate order sustained; unpleaded rent-arrears award set aside.
Land law – Lease expiry and renewal – absence of evidence of renewal – unlawful occupation; Reliefs – vacant possession incidental to finding of unlawful occupation; Monetary claims (rent arrears) under s.82(1) Land Act must be specifically pleaded and proved – counterclaim procedure required; Tribunal cannot grant specific unpleaded relief.
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12 May 2020 |
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A non‑party to the trial cannot be joined on appeal; reliance on VLC proceedings was improper and vitiated the appellate judgment.
Land law – Appeals – Joining parties at appellate stage – A person not a party to the trial cannot be joined on appeal; Village Land Council proceedings are mediatory and not part of the Ward Tribunal appellate record; improper joinder vitiates appellate proceedings.
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11 May 2020 |
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A non‑party cannot be joined on appeal; reliance on VLC proceedings not in the record vitiated the appellate proceedings.
Land law & procedure – Appellate procedure – Joining parties on appeal – A person not party at trial cannot be added at appeal stage. Village Land Council – Role and effect – VLC is mediatory; its proceedings are referrals, not part of Ward Tribunal appellate record. Civil procedure – Irregularities vitiating appeal – Reliance on non-record material and inclusion of non-party nullifies appellate proceedings. Remedy – Nullification of appellate proceedings and award of costs to improperly joined party.
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11 May 2020 |
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An appeal filed beyond the 60-day LDCA limit without an extension is time-barred and struck out with costs.
Civil procedure — Appeals — Time limit for appeal under section 38 LDCA (60 days) — Extension of time requires application and showing good cause — Prior appeal withdrawn with liberty to refile does not automatically justify delay — Application of section 52(2)(b) LDCA to strike out time-barred appeal.
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8 May 2020 |
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An application joining extension of time and a substantive revision is incompetent; tribunal rightly struck it out; appeal dismissed.
Civil procedure — Competency of application — Improper blend of prayers — extension of time and substantive revision cannot be joined — striking out for incompetence — correct remedy is to file fresh application before trial tribunal.
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8 May 2020 |
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An application joining extension of time and substantive revision is incompetent and must be struck out; appeal dismissed.
Civil procedure – competence of application – improper blending of prayers; application for extension of time vs substantive application – leave must precede substantive relief; striking out incompetent applications; remedy is filing a fresh properly framed application.
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8 May 2020 |
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Absence of a recorded coram rendered the ward tribunal improperly constituted; proceedings and decision nullified and retrial ordered.
Ward Tribunals — Composition and coram — Section 11 Cap. 216 requires proper recording of members (names, gender, attendance dates) — Absence of coram invalidates proceedings — Section 45 cannot cure defects affecting existence of tribunal — Nullification and retrial ordered.
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8 May 2020 |
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A Ward Tribunal’s failure to show coram and member details invalidates its proceedings and mandates retrial.
Administrative law – Local tribunals – Ward Tribunal composition – Coram requirements under section 11, Cap. 216 – mandatory recording of members and genders. Civil procedure – Effect of procedural irregularities – Limits of section 45 (substantive justice) where tribunal’s very existence is in doubt. Land law – retrial ordered where tribunal improperly constituted.
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8 May 2020 |
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Failure to state the date of accrual of cause of action renders the plaint incompetent and struck out.
Civil Procedure — Pleadings — Requirement to state facts constituting cause of action and date of accrual — Order VII r.1(e), Civil Procedure Code — Purpose to permit assessment of limitation defence — Omission fatal, plaint incompetent — Suit struck out.
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8 May 2020 |
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Appellate court upheld trial finding of respondent ownership, rejecting appellant's unpleaded title evidence and dismissing appeal with costs.
Land law – ownership dispute – evidentiary weight of pleaded versus unpleaded documentary title evidence; rule against departure from pleadings (Order 6 Rule 7 CPC). Civil procedure – non‑joinder – distinction between necessary party and witness; non‑joinder of vendor not fatal where vendor not shown to have enforceable interest affected by decree. Administrative evidence – ministerial letters obtained during pendency of appeal given little weight where appeal not disclosed and no investigation report produced. Judgment requirements – Order XX Rule 4 CPC satisfied: trial judgment held to be reasoned.
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8 May 2020 |
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Unpleaded title evidence and post-appeal Ministry documents were unreliable; tribunal's finding of respondent's ownership upheld.
Land law – ownership dispute – assessment of competing documentary title evidence and credibility of witnesses Civil procedure – pleadings – prohibition against departure from pleadings; evidence outside pleadings inadmissible to raise a new case Civil procedure – non-joinder – necessary party test; vendor not a necessary party where only ownership between parties is disputed Evidence – post-judgment or post-trial documents obtained during pendency of appeal (Commissioner for Lands) cannot be given weight without proper investigation report Judgment – requirements for reasons in trial judgments; judgment held to be reasoned and compliant
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8 May 2020 |
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Court held Ward Tribunal appeals are governed by Customary Limitation Rules, not the Law of Limitation Act, and revised tribunal's dismissal.
Land law – Revision and appeals from Ward Tribunal – Limitation – Whether the Law of Limitation Act applies or the Customary Law (Limitation of Proceedings) Rules 1964 under s.51(1) of the Land Disputes Courts' Act. Fundamental right to be heard – absence at Ward Tribunal proceedings. Revisional powers – setting aside erroneous tribunal order and substituting striking out; liberty to apply for extension of time.
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7 May 2020 |
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Failure to record quorum and hear the appellant rendered ward tribunal proceedings void; eviction set aside and restoration ordered.
Land law – Ward Tribunal procedure – mandatory quorum (s.4 Ward Tribunals Act) – failure to record quorum or attendance vitiates proceedings; Administrative law – natural justice – right to be heard; Civil procedure – proceedings and judgments pronounced by improperly constituted tribunal are nullities; Remedies – nullification of proceedings, restoration to property and costs.
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7 May 2020 |
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Extension of time to appeal denied where applicants failed to account for delay and were aware of the ruling date.
Land law — Extension of time to appeal — 'Sufficient cause' requirements: account for delay, non-inordinate delay, diligence; apparent illegality on the face of record may suffice — Illegality ground cannot be used to extend time to challenge a decision of the same court (functus officio/estoppel) — Notice of ruling and duty of party present at hearing to attend for ruling.
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6 May 2020 |
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Plaintiffs lacked a cause of action against the de‑specified 1st defendant; claim lay against the receiver/successor, so suit struck out.
Land — right of pre‑emption — preliminary objection on cause of action; Parastatal specification — assets vested in receiver/manager (PSRC/CHC) — successor Treasury Registrar Office; Section 40 Written Laws (Misc. Amendments) Act 2016 — Attorney‑General intervention; Suit struck out for wrongful defendant.
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6 May 2020 |
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Court granted extension to file appeal where delay stemmed from late supply of certified tribunal records.
Extension of time – Land Disputes Courts Act s.41(2) – sufficiency of reasons for delay. Limitation – Law of Limitation Act s.19(2) – exclusion of time to obtain judgment copy from computation. Procedural objection – respondent's substantive attacks on tribunal decision premature at extension stage.
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6 May 2020 |
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Court upheld loan variations and lawful auction sales; proceeds did not discharge indebtedness, suit dismissed with costs.
Property law – mortgage enforcement – sale by public auction – compliance with Land Act and Auctioneers Act advertising and sale procedures. Contract law – variation of loan facilities – acceptance of offer letters – effect of EXD1/EXD2 on agreed interest rates. Evidence – account statements and valuations as proof of performance and interest computation. Res judicata/issue estoppel – prior Land Case preventing relitigation of ownership for identified plot.
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5 May 2020 |