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Citation
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Judgment date
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| September 2024 |
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First‑appeal court dismissed land ownership claim; rescission and evidence failed to establish appellant’s title.
Land law – ownership dispute; rescission of sale agreement and refunds – burden of proof under s.110 TEA – alleged forgery/discrepancy in land size – Tribunal’s duty to hear parties (Article 13(6)) – first appeal: re-evaluation of evidence.
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30 September 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed for want of prosecution after appellants failed to file submissions or appear; merits not decided.
Land appeal — procedural default — failure to file ordered written submissions and failure to appear — dismissal for want of prosecution; issues raised but not decided: jurisdiction, right to be heard, ex parte judgment, ownership, bona fide purchaser.
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30 September 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed for want of prosecution after appellants failed to file submissions or appear; no order as to costs.
Civil procedure — failure to prosecute — dismissal for want of prosecution; non-compliance with court-ordered filing schedule; absence from court; no order as to costs.
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30 September 2024 |
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A respondent’s submissions lacking filing date and registry signature are rejected; non-joinder of liquidator was not fatal.
Civil procedure – Procedural compliance – Filing date and registry endorsement on documents served to parties – served copies lacking endorsement are fatally defective. Civil procedure – Preliminary objection – Non‑joinder/misjoinder – Necessary party doctrine; a party is necessary only if essential for complete and final adjudication. Administrative/land claims – Compensation claims against government – distinction from disputes involving bank/liquidator interests.
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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Applicant proved on balance of probabilities that the attached house is a matrimonial home and not liable to attachment.
Execution — Objection to attachment — Matrimonial/residential home exempt from attachment — Order XXI r.58; s.48(1)(e) CPC; burden on objector to prove interest at date of attachment — Wrong citation of statute not fatal — Court may determine attachment objections without interfering with Court of Appeal decision.
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30 September 2024 |
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Appeal allowed: trial proceedings quashed because plaint failed to sufficiently describe the disputed immovable property.
Civil procedure – Pleading requirements – Description of immovable property – Order VII Rule 3 Civil Procedure Code applies to land disputes; plaint must sufficiently identify property. Evidence – Variance – Oral evidence as to size, boundaries or neighbours cannot cure unpleaded particulars and must be ignored if at variance with pleadings. Land law – Trespass claims require sufficiently identified property for proof and for issuance of executable decrees. Procedural competence – Defective pleadings rendering proceedings incompetent justify quashing proceedings, judgment and decree.
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30 September 2024 |
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The applicants' inconsistent pleading and inadequate land description rendered the suit incompetent and it was struck out.
Land law — Pleading — Adequate description of immovable property — Order VII Rule 3 CPC — Joinder of parties — Representative suit (Order I Rule 8) — Incompetency and striking out where subject matter unclear.
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed: tribunal rightly found disputed area partly public open space and appellants lacked enforceable title or lease.
Land dispute — ownership and possession — distinction between public/open space and titled parcel; effect and enforceability of informal or 'gentlemen's' agreement; requirement to assess evidence on balance of probabilities; appellate review upholding trial tribunal where claimants fail to prove exclusive rights.
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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Court overruled the preliminary objection, allowing the suit to proceed, citing proper service of statutory notice.
Local Govt Law – judicial procedures – statutory notice of intention to sue – sufficient compliance with statutory requirements.
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30 September 2024 |
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Sale and transfer of mortgaged land without statutory notices and contrary to a court order is unlawful and void.
Land law – mortgagee’s power of sale – statutory 60-days' notice of default; receiver duties – written appointment and demand note (s.128); sale by tender – 10-day notice to mortgagor (s.132(4)); effect of court’s status quo order – transfer contrary to court order void ab initio; damages require proof of loss.
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30 September 2024 |
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Application to set aside dismissal denied for failure to prove sufficient cause and repeated non‑compliance with court orders.
Civil procedure – Setting aside dismissal orders – Order VIIIB Rule 20(2) – discretionary relief on just terms; evidentiary proof of incapacity or travel required. Litigation conduct – client‑centric litigation and strict compliance with court orders; negligence/lack of diligence not ordinarily good cause. Costs – discretionary refusal where applicant partly to blame.
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30 September 2024 |
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Applicant granted 14-day extension to seek setting aside of ex parte judgment due to sufficient cause and alleged illegality.
Extension of time; sufficient cause vs negligence; technical delay; ex parte judgment; illegality on face of record; non-joinder of necessary parties; Ward Tribunal requirement (Written Laws (Misc. Amendment) (No.3) Act, 2021); exercise of judicial discretion.
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30 September 2024 |
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Failure to serve the mandatory 90‑day statutory notice on local authorities rendered the applicant's suit incompetent and struck out.
Government proceedings – mandatory ninety days' notice to Attorney General/local government before commencing suit; non-compliance renders suit incompetent. Civil procedure – preliminary objection – court may strike out suit for failure to comply with mandatory statutory prerequisites. Local government – suits against district or village councils treated as government proceedings after statutory amendments.
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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Court allowed extension of time to file revision, holding alleged illegality can justify enlargement of time.
Extension of time – s.14 Law of Limitations Act – sufficiency of cause and accounting for delay; alleged illegality in impugned decision as ground for enlargement of time; discretion of court; precedents: Devram Valambhia, Lyamuya Construction.
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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Technical procedural delays justified a 14‑day extension to lodge an appeal; application granted, no costs.
Civil procedure – Extension of time to appeal – Technical delay consisting of withdrawn application with leave to refile, striking out for being out of time, and delayed service – constitutes good cause for extension. Appeal procedure – Time limits for lodging appeals – court may grant limited extension where applicant demonstrates procedural or technical impediments.
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30 September 2024 |
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30 September 2024 |
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A challenge to the Registrar’s land-registration act must be by appeal under section 102(1); a fresh suit was incompetent and struck out.
Land law – Challenge to Registrar’s act – Section 102(1) Land Registration Act – Appeal to High Court within three months is the exclusive remedy – Competence of suit where plaint seeks to set aside registration – Preliminary objection sustained.
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29 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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Extension granted: technical delay from a struck-out appeal was excusable and not inordinate, so leave to appeal is extended.
Extension of time; technical delay from prosecuting an incompetent appeal; section 14(1) Law of Limitation Act; section 41(2) Land Disputes Courts Act; Fortunatus Masha; Lyamuya test on accounting for delay and inordinate delay; comparison with 45-day statutory appeal period.
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27 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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Applicant failed to plead a primafacie case, irreparable harm or favourable balance of convenience for injunctive relief; application dismissed.
Civil Procedure – Interim injunctions – Requirements for granting temporary injunctions – Atilio v Mbowe test: triable issue/primafacie case, irreparable harm, balance of convenience – Sufficiency of affidavit to establish the conditions for injunctive relief.* Lease disputes – eviction and access to premises – applicant’s burden to plead facts supporting injunctive relief.
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27 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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Non-compliant locus in quo visit rendered the tribunal's proceedings and judgment null, leading to quash and remittal.
Land law – locus in quo – site visit procedural requirements – presence of parties and advocates; evidence on oath; cross-examination; recording of proceedings and court observations. Failure to observe locus in quo safeguards renders site-visit proceedings and any judgment relying on them a nullity. Remedy – quashing of defective proceedings, remittal to trial tribunal to proceed from pre-visit stage; parties to bear own costs.
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27 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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Suit dismissed as res judicata because prior dismissal resolved same land dispute between same parties.
Civil procedure – Res judicata (section 9 CPC) – constructive res judicata where prior dismissed suit on compensation involved same land and parties; dismissal is a final determination barring re-litigation.
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27 September 2024 |
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27 September 2024 |
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The applicant failed to prove matrimonial interest; prior decree stands and property is liable to execution.
Land law – matrimonial property claims; Order XXI r.62 CPC – suit to establish proprietary right after objection; res judicata/functus officio – court not revisiting its prior decree; proof of contribution – requirement of cogent documentary evidence; execution/attachment of property pursuant to valid decree.
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26 September 2024 |
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Plaintiffs failed to prove title to village land; trespass and damages claims dismissed with costs.
Land law – unsurveyed village land – proof of title – burden of proof in civil cases; necessity of calling material witnesses (vendors and village authorities) – adverse inference where material witnesses are not called (Hemedi Saadi v Mbilu) – weight of village council minutes in resolving village boundary/ownership disputes – trespass claim requires establishment of proprietary right.
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26 September 2024 |
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Revision against Tribunal execution orders is incompetent where statute and regulations prescribe appeal; application struck out.
Land law – Challenge to execution orders – Whether execution orders of the District Land and Housing Tribunal are to be challenged by appeal or revision; Statutory interpretation – Land Disputes Courts Act s.38(1) and GN 173 of 2003 (Regs. 23–24) – appeal rights to High Court; Procedural competency – necessity to plead and justify departure from prescribed remedies.
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26 September 2024 |
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Acquisition and valuation without statutory notice and proper survey procedures rendered compensation void and acquisition nullified.
Land Acquisition Act — statutory notice and Gazette publication requirements; validity of valuation — adequacy of Valuation Form No.3 and surveyor's records; fair compensation — procedural compliance essential; procedural irregularities render acquisition and valuation void; entitlement to general damages requires evidentiary basis.
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26 September 2024 |
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Temporary injunction granted to restrain sale of alleged matrimonial property mortgaged without spousal consent pending main suit.
Land law – temporary injunction – maintenance of status quo ante to restrain sale of land pending main suit Matrimonial property – spousal consent to mortgage – alleged absence as ground for interim relief Civil Procedure – interim injunction – application of Attilio v Mbowe test Procedural – uncontested application/withdrawal of opposition and effect on relief granted
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26 September 2024 |
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Whether the respondent proved ownership of the disputed land by gift and sale on the balance of probabilities.
Land law – proof of title by gift and sale; Evidence – evaluation of oral testimony and corroborating documents; Civil standard – balance of probabilities; Appeal – re-hearing on first appeal.
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26 September 2024 |
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Unsigned sale agreement executed in a different locality undermined the respondent's proof of ownership; appeal allowed with costs.
Land procedure — compliance with prescribed form; non-compliance not fatal if not affecting substance and not raised at trial. Evidence — documentary: sale agreement must be signed, certain and connected to the property to prove transaction. Evidence — oral occupation: uncorroborated witness testimony may be insufficient to prove ownership on balance of probabilities. Locality of execution — agreement executed in different locality raises doubt as to its applicability to disputed land.
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26 September 2024 |
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Unsigned, uncertain sale agreement and weak evidence defeated the respondent's ownership claim; appeal allowed with costs.
Land law – proof of title – reliability of sale agreement – unsigned agreement and execution at different locality undermine certainty of sale; Evidence – burden of proof – ownership must be proved on balance of probabilities; Procedure – minor procedural defects in tribunal filings that do not affect substance need not invalidate proceedings.
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26 September 2024 |
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26 September 2024 |
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A plaint must specify a sufficient description of land under Order VII r.3; failure renders the suit incompetent and struck out.
Civil Procedure — Description of immovable property — Order VII r.3 CPC — plaint must contain a description sufficient to identify the property; blanket descriptions are insufficient; defective plaint renders suit incompetent. Preliminary objection on locus standi not determined where suit struck out for defective plaint.
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26 September 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed where appellants failed to prove pleaded claim and advanced a new case in testimony.
Land law – proof of title – parties bound by pleadings – inadmissibility of establishing a new case at trial – burden of proof on balance of probabilities – appellate review of factual findings.
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26 September 2024 |
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26 September 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed: respondent proved ownership by purchase and occupation; appellant’s village allocation documents were insufficient.
Land law – proof of ownership – purchase and occupation as evidence of title; village allocation documents – need for clear description, boundaries and size; evaluation of oral and documentary evidence – balance of probabilities; burden of proof on claimant; appellate reappraisal of factual findings.
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26 September 2024 |
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26 September 2024 |
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Court found only 215 sqm acquired and plaintiff entitled to possession of remaining 220 sqm; improvements already compensated.
Land acquisition — extent of acquisition; valuation and compensation for improvements — locus visit and documentary evidence; entitlement to remaining unacquired land and costs.
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26 September 2024 |
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Appeal allowed: tribunal proceedings quashed due to variance between pleadings and evidence and non‑joinder of estate administrator.
Land law – ownership dispute over village/hamlet land – competing purchase claims and alleged trespass/extraction of sand Civil procedure – parties bound by pleadings; evidence inconsistent with pleadings must be ignored Civil procedure – non‑joinder of necessary party (administrator of deceased vendor) as material irregularity Remedy – quashing and setting aside tribunal proceedings and ordering fresh institution with proper joinder
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26 September 2024 |