Results.
50 judgments found.
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| August 2024 |
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An interested party holding competing mining rights must be allowed to apply to be heard in Judicial Review under Order 53 RSC.
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Judicial review — procedure — Order 53 RSC applicable to Judicial Review in High Court; Order 53 Rule 9(1) — hearing of a 'proper person' in opposition; joinder vs. permission to be heard; locus standi of interested third party with competing mining rights; scope of stay and status quo pending review.
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29 August 2024 |
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Leave under Section 331 is required before a director/shareholder may sue to protect company property; failure renders proceedings a nullity.
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Companies Act s.331 — derivative/company actions — leave required for directors/shareholders to sue on behalf of company; receivership — protection of company property; procedural irregularity and abuse of process — nullity of proceedings.
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26 August 2024 |
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Mesne profits require wrongful possession; award set aside where no trespass and holding over was not proved.
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Mesne profits — requirement of wrongful possession/holding over; burden of proof on claimant; landlord–tenant post-termination occupancy; limits of award where no trespass proven; issues not pleaded cannot be relied on in appeal.
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25 August 2024 |
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A non‑customer signatory cannot claim a bank’s Quincecare duty; alleged loss was too remote and strike‑out was proper.
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Banking law — negligence — duty of care — Quincecare duty — third‑party signatory — remoteness and foreseeability — strike out for failure to disclose reasonable cause of action.
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22 August 2024 |
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Identification by victim’s daughter, uninvestigated alibi, and circumstantial/common-purpose evidence upheld conviction.
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Criminal law — identification evidence — witness related to victim — opportunity to observe and bias; Criminal procedure — alibi — police duty to investigate and dereliction of duty; Criminal law — circumstantial evidence — inference of guilt; Criminal law — common purpose liability (Sections 21 & 22 Penal Code); Corroboration by odd coincidence and independent witness evidence.
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22 August 2024 |
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A failed provocation defence can constitute extenuating circumstances warranting reduction of a capital sentence.
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Criminal law — Murder — Sentencing — Extenuating circumstances — Intoxication: evidential and conduct-based assessment — Provocation: failed defence may still mitigate sentencing — Appeal against sentence — Reduction from death to fixed term.
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22 August 2024 |
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A trial judge may not dismiss an inter partes claim sua sponte or refuse relief without reasons; appeal allowed and matter remitted.
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Civil procedure — requirement for reasoned judgments and rulings; dismissal sua sponte in inter partes proceedings; cause of action — sufficiency of pleadings; interim injunction applications; right to be heard.
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22 August 2024 |
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Whether a financier can be held liable for misrepresentation in a sale to which it was not a party.
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Financing agreements v sale contracts — privity of contract; allocation of risk under VAF clauses; liability for misrepresentation by seller; admissibility of unobjected evidence on unpleaded matters; buyer’s duty to inspect; ethical issues in party endorsement and counsel conflicts.
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22 August 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed because the relied-upon precedent was overturned by the Supreme Court, leaving the challenge to jurisdiction incompetent.
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Civil procedure — jurisdictional lapse for delay in delivering judgment — whether failure to render judgment within one year terminates jurisdiction — Court of Appeal precedent overruled by Supreme Court — effect of Citibank decision on reliance upon Guardall.
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22 August 2024 |
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Death of a child during a violent sexual assault justified life imprisonment despite plea and first‑offender status.
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Sentencing — Manslaughter — Plea of guilty and first‑offender mitigation — Aggravating factor: death of a child during violent sexual assault — Appellate interference only if sentence wrong in principle or shocks conscience.
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22 August 2024 |
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Termination without reasons breaches Section 52; punitive "as if" gratuity clauses unenforceable; excess gratuity and notice in lieu may suffice as damages.
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Employment law — wrongful/ unfair termination — Section 52 Employment Code Act — contractual clause paying gratuity "as if" full term punitive and unenforceable — normal measure of damages: notice period/salary in lieu — enhanced damages for mental distress require specific evidence.
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22 August 2024 |
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Promotion did not create a new fixed‑term contract; employment ended by effluxion of time and respondent awarded costs.
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Contract interpretation — fixed‑term employment — promotion ‘subject to’ clause — no fresh contract on promotion; Changed substratum doctrine — not applicable to create new contract term; Termination by effluxion of time — no notice or payment in lieu required; Legitimate expectation — insufficient evidence; Fringe benefits — end with contract expiry; Costs — discretionary award to successful respondent.
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22 August 2024 |
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Covid‑19 quarantine justified absence, but five‑month delay to apply to set aside the judgment was inordinate; appeal dismissed.
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Civil procedure — setting aside judgment obtained in absence — Order 35 r.5 High Court Rules — sufficient cause and reasonable time for application; Delay/inordinate delay; COVID‑19 quarantine as excuse for non‑attendance.
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22 August 2024 |
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Severance under s54 applies to specified termination/expiry modes, not to dismissal for misconduct; award set aside.
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Employment law — Severance pay under s54 Employment Code Act — "Termination" vs "Dismissal" — Severance payable only where contract terminated/expired as prescribed (medical discharge, fixed-duration termination, redundancy, death) — Summarily dismissed employee not entitled to severance pay — Statutory interpretation; expressio unius.
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22 August 2024 |
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A shareholder's equity in a company does not, by itself, create a caveatable beneficial interest in company land.
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Land law — Caveats — Lands and Deeds Registry Act s76(1) — Beneficial interest — Shareholder/equity contribution does not equate to a caveatable interest in company land; Civil procedure — High Court Rules Order 2 Rule 3 — notice to proceed directed at parties, court may continue proceedings.
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22 August 2024 |
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A company lacked locus standi where the loan agreement showed an individual lender and the company’s name appeared later in different handwriting.
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Company law — separate legal personality and locus standi; privity of contract — only parties to a contract may sue; documentary evidence and handwriting discrepancies as proof of party status; equitable mortgage evidenced by deposit of Certificate of Title.
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22 August 2024 |
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Appellate court upheld trial finding that WhatsApp, conduct and partial performance proved an oral contract and payment, dismissing appeal.
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Contract formation — oral agreement evidenced by conduct and WhatsApp correspondence; admissibility and probative value of messages; burden of proof on plaintiff; appellate review of factual findings; award of outstanding payment for undelivered goods.
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22 August 2024 |
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Section 54(1)(c) severance/gratuity applies to fixed-duration contracts; dismissed permanent employees cannot claim it under Section 54.
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Employment Code Act s54(1)(c) — severance pay/gratuity applies to fixed-duration/long-term contracts; permanent and pensionable contracts are distinct from fixed-term contracts; Section 51 dismissal precludes claim to severance under Section 54; sections 51 and 54 are mutually exclusive.
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22 August 2024 |
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The Court upheld the arbitral award as within the arbitration scope and not contrary to public policy.
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Arbitration — setting aside award — scope of submission to arbitration; public policy — narrow ground; limited judicial intervention; illegality of one contract does not automatically taint independent contract.
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22 August 2024 |
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Court of Appeal held joinder may be ordered post-judgment where justice requires protecting parties' proprietary interests.
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Civil procedure — Joinder of parties — Discretionary remedy — Joinder may be ordered post-judgment where in interest of justice — Functus officio not an absolute bar — Protection against deprivation of property without due process.
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21 August 2024 |
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Guarantee for US$900,000 enforceable despite pleading mis‑reference and absence of a moneylenders licence; appellant liable after demand.
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Contract and suretyship — enforceability of credit guarantee; pleadings and variance — non‑fatal mis‑reference; proof of debt and demand; moneylenders' licence not fatal to principal recovery; Turquand rule — corporate internal authority irrelevant to third parties.
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21 August 2024 |
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Fixed-term employment without a renewal clause or clear assurances does not create a legitimate expectation of renewal.
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Employment law — Fixed-term contract — Legitimate expectation — Renewal of contract — Performance appraisal — Board resolutions — Effluxion of time — Remedies for non-renewal.
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21 August 2024 |
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Dismissal for poor performance was wrongful where systemic SAP procurement failures and procedural irregularities prevailed; 36 months' damages upheld.
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Employment law — wrongful and unfair dismissal; procedural compliance — Disciplinary Code v. Poor Performance Procedure/PIP; institutional/systemic failures (SAP) affecting performance; PIP not a disciplinary sanction; measure of damages — departure from contractual notice; appellate limitation on increasing awards without cross-appeal
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21 August 2024 |
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Appeal dismissed: pleadings disclosed a reasonable cause of action and joinder was only suggested, not ordered.
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Civil procedure — Order 18 r.19 (White Book) — striking out pleadings — "reasonable cause of action" vs "serious question to be tried" (interim injunctions); joinder of parties — suggestion v formal order; summary disposal reserved for plain and obvious cases.
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21 August 2024 |
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Credible identification by known eyewitnesses under moonlight upheld conviction despite an unverified alibi.
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Criminal law — Identification evidence — Known witnesses and moonlight recognition — Alibi — Weight of unverified alibi — Appellate deference to trial judge credibility findings — Circumstantial evidence and motive not essential.
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20 August 2024 |
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Eyewitness identification and credibility findings upheld; alibi and investigative gaps did not raise reasonable doubt.
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Criminal law — Murder; eyewitness identification; alibi; burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt; appellate deference to trial judge’s credibility findings; investigative omissions immaterial where evidence overwhelming.
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20 August 2024 |
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A failed defence of provocation may amount to extenuating circumstances warranting reduced sentence for murder.
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Criminal law — Murder — Provocation — Failed provocation can constitute extenuating circumstances for sentencing — Trial court misdirection — Sentencing reduction from life to term.
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20 August 2024 |
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A first offender under s161 should receive a fine, not imprisonment, absent recklessness or other aggravating factors.
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Road Traffic Act s161 — sentencing — fine v imprisonment — first offender — absence of aggravating factors — recklessness required for custodial sentence — appellate intervention where sentence excessive.
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20 August 2024 |
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Court upheld a 35-year sentence for the appellant for defilement due to pregnancy, age disparity, and repeated encounters.
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Criminal law — defilement — sentence appeal — Jutronich test — pregnancy as aggravating factor — minor’s incapacity to consent — age disparity and repeated encounters justify severe sentence.
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20 August 2024 |
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Murder conviction substituted with manslaughter where fatal injuries occurred during a fight; sentence set at five years.
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Criminal law — Circumstantial evidence — Inference of guilt; Criminal law — Homicide: death in course of a fight — Manslaughter v. murder; Causation — necessity of evidential foundation for alternative causes of death.
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19 August 2024 |
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Circumstantial and medical evidence excluded suicide hypothesis; conviction for murder and death sentence upheld.
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Criminal law — Murder — Circumstantial evidence — must exclude reasonable hypothesis of innocence; postmortem finding of asphyxia by strangulation supports homicide inference; conduct and opportunity of accused as corroborative circumstances.
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19 August 2024 |
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Applicant's challenge that he was a juvenile and that his plea was equivocal was dismissed; sentence upheld.
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Criminal law — age determination and jurisdiction under Juveniles Act — role of interpretation in age admission — equivocal plea doctrine — materiality of alleged inconsistencies to offence under Anti‑Human Trafficking Act s9(1).
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19 August 2024 |
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CCTV recognition corroborated by wallet and unexplained financial transactions upheld convictions for murder and aggravated robbery.
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Criminal law — murder and aggravated robbery — identification by CCTV — recognition by co-workers — corroboration by property found at scene and financial transactions — failure to produce call records — dereliction of duty not necessarily fatal where evidence is overwhelming — odd coincidence as supporting evidence.
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19 August 2024 |
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Whether the Director of Mining Cadastre may grant consent to enter titled surface land and proper appellate remedy.}
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Administrative law; mining law — Director of Mining Cadastre’s power to grant consent to enter surface rights; procedural remedies and appeals under the Mines and Minerals Development Act; jurisdiction and leave to appeal under section 13 Court of Appeal Act.
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19 August 2024 |
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Mere unauthorised possession of a Defence Force uniform does not satisfy s6(1)(a); prosecution must prove prejudicial purpose.
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State Security Act s6(1)(a) — unauthorised use/possession of Defence Force uniform — requirement of specific purpose (gain admission to protected place or purpose prejudicial to national safety/interests) — mere possession insufficient; Penal Code s182 inapplicable.
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19 August 2024 |
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Applicant failed to show statutory grounds for leave to appeal or for a stay; omitted grounds properly deemed abandoned.
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Court of Appeal — leave to appeal to Supreme Court (s13(3)) — criteria: point of law of public importance; reasonable prospects of success; other compelling reasons — abandonment of grounds omitted from heads of argument — improper raising of unpleaded fraud — stay of execution dismissed.
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19 August 2024 |
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Whether the prosecutrix’s identification was sufficiently corroborated by admissions, medical evidence, and opportunity.
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Criminal law — Defilement — Corroboration of identity and commission — Role of relatives’ evidence — Admissions and opportunity as corroboration — Safety of conviction.
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16 August 2024 |
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Failure to show gross negligence, respondent's accidental firearm discharge during hunting negates manslaughter.
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Criminal law — Manslaughter by negligence — Defence of accident (section 9(1) Penal Code) — Burden on prosecution to disprove accident — Gross negligence/recklessness required — Failure to engage safety catch not per se manslaughter in hunting context.
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16 August 2024 |
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Court refused to dismiss the appellant's appeal for defective grounds but awarded costs to the respondent.
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Appeal procedure — grounds of appeal — Order X r.9(2) CAR — non-compliance with rules (narrative/argumentative grounds) — jurisdiction — discretion to hear appeal despite defects — costs.
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15 August 2024 |
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Whether respondent bank conspired or breached a charge; court finds no bank liability and email did not waive charge.
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Agency — agent's authority by conduct; Charge over bank account — enforceability and waiver by email; Conspiracy to defraud — requirement of combination and unlawful means; Unconscionability — setting aside oppressive interest clauses; Civil procedure — restraint on prolix heads of argument.
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14 August 2024 |
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A party seeking variation of a single judge’s decision must proceed by renewal, not by an appeal styled motion.
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Civil procedure — Full court review of single judge decisions — Section 9(b) CAA and Order 10 r.2(8) CAR — Renewal of application to full court, not an appeal; procedural competence; registry clerical errors; consolidation and jurisdictional objections.
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6 August 2024 |
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A step-child born before the marriage and not adopted or maintained by the deceased is not entitled to the children's share under intestacy.
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Intestate Succession Act — definition of "child" and "dependant" — step-child born before marriage — adoption requirement — entitlement to children's share of estate.
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6 August 2024 |
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Unexplained two‑year delay in seeking to amend pleadings justified refusal due to likely prejudice and abuse of process.
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Civil procedure — amendment of pleadings — discretion to allow late amendments — inordinate/unexplained delay and prejudice to respondent — Industrial Relations Court Rules (Rules 33, 36, 37, 55).
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6 August 2024 |
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Court held Order 14A cannot be invoked in originating motion proceedings absent a notice of intention to defend.
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Procedure — Order 14A RSC — preliminary issues — mandatory requirement of notice of intention to defend — originating notice of motion vs writ proceedings — jurisdiction to determine questions of law without full trial — Rent Act matters — remittal.
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2 August 2024 |
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A disciplinary striking-off upheld for the appellant’s failure to account for client funds; Section 68 accountant’s report not mandatory.
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Legal practitioners — disciplinary proceedings — failure to render account of client funds — Sections 52, 53 and 22 Legal Practitioners Act — Section 68 (accountant’s report) not determinative — procedural fairness — suspension pending disciplinary determination — standard of proof for dishonesty — striking off as sanction.
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1 August 2024 |
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Claim dismissed as statute-barred: cause of action accrued in 2011, negotiations did not suspend the limitation period.
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Limitation of actions — accrual of cause of action — statutory six-year period — ex‑curia settlement negotiations do not suspend limitation — once time has expired court lacks jurisdiction.
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1 August 2024 |
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Surety delayed claiming its right to elect remedies under a performance bond; employer lawfully encashed the bond and mitigated losses.
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Performance bond — surety’s contractual options — requirement to act promptly — failure to act amounts to 'sleeping on rights' — estoppel — employer’s right to encash — mitigation of loss by engaging replacement contractor.
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1 August 2024 |
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A niece qualifies as a "near relative" under the Intestate Succession Act and may inherit under Section 7(f).
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Intestate succession — Interpretation of "remoter descendants" — collateral descendants (nieces/nephews) included as "near relatives" under Section 3 and 7(f) — estate assets (shares and personal property) amenable to valuation and distribution — administration costs payable from estate.
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1 August 2024 |
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Leave to appeal refused—proposed grounds raised no point of public law and lacked reasonable prospects of success.
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Land law — bona fide purchaser — actual notice and duty to inquire; Certificate of title — conclusiveness v fraud and impropriety; Compulsory acquisition and emergency powers — procedural requirements; Leave to appeal — point of law of public importance and prospects of success; Court of Appeal jurisdiction on matters not raised below.
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1 August 2024 |
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Leave to appeal refused: no public importance or reasonable prospects regarding authority to charge authorisation fees.
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Leave to appeal — Section 13 Court of Appeal Act — point of law of public importance — reasonable prospects of success — securities regulation — authority to charge authorisation fees — repealed Securities Act and rules — finality of litigation.
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1 August 2024 |