Results.
2,111 judgments found.
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| October 2024 |
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A Certificate of Title may be cancelled if procured in breach of prescribed allocation procedures; unsigned offer letters and unproved revocation allegations fail.
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Land law — Circular No. 1 of 1985 — procedure for allocations and council recommendations; Certificate of Title — conclusive evidence but subject to cancellation for fraud or procedural impropriety; validity/authentication of offer letters; judicial notice and burden of proof; appellate interference with trial factual findings.
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3 October 2024 |
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Court upheld cancellation of a title obtained without following statutory allocation procedures; unsigned offer letter unauthenticated.
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Lands — Certificate of Title — Cancellation for procedural impropriety — Circular No. 1 of 1985 — Offer letters and authentication — Judicial notice of administrative revocation — Proof of payment and employee concessions.
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3 October 2024 |
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Damages for pain and anguish require specific pleading and proof; employer must remit payroll loan deductions or repay employees.
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Employment law — redundancy — payroll loan deductions — employer's obligation to remit deductions or repay employees; damages for pain and anguish — must be specifically pleaded and proved; appellate review — abandoned grounds deemed abandoned for lack of argument.
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3 October 2024 |
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Allegations of forgery require clear pleading and higher proof; respondent proved contract and entitlement to specific performance.
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Contract law — specific performance — remedy available where respondent proved contract and payments.
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2 October 2024 |
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Employer must remit or return payroll-deducted loan monies; damages for mental anguish require specific pleading and proof.
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Employment law — redundancy — payroll deductions for loan repayments — employer's withholding and non-remittance; Civil procedure — pleading and proof — damages for pain and anguish must be specifically pleaded and proven; Remedies — restitution to employees where third-party creditor is not party to proceedings.
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2 October 2024 |
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High Court judgment set aside for failing to state adequate reasons; matter remitted for rehearing before a different judge.
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Judgment-writing standards — requirement to state concise facts, issues, findings and reasons; Failure to reveal court’s reasoning — judgment set aside; Remittal for re‑hearing before different judge; Ambiguity in orders and unenforceable decisions; Costs to abide outcome of rehearing.
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2 October 2024 |
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Appellant failed to prove entitlement to additional responsibility allowance; appeal dismissed and costs awarded to respondent.
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Employment law — Additional responsibility allowance — Requirement of written communication to prove formal appointment to additional duties; proof of entitlement; calculation of terminal benefits; appellate review of factual findings; costs follow the event.
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2 October 2024 |
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Court raised jurisdiction sua sponte and set aside lower court judgment because Local Court lacked authority to appoint the administrator.
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Civil procedure — jurisdiction — court may raise jurisdiction suo motu — Intestate Succession Act s.43 limits Local Court jurisdiction to estates ≤ K50 — appointment of administrator by Local Court exceeding limit is void — transactions by an unauthorized administrator invalid — judgments without jurisdiction are null and void.
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2 October 2024 |
| September 2024 |
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Majority denied leave and stay, holding registration defects curable under the Lands and Deeds Registry Act; dissent would grant leave.
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Court of Appeal — leave to appeal (s.13 Court of Appeal Act) — Lands and Deeds Registry Act (s.5, s.6) — registration of letters of administration — whether non-registration curable by court — extension of time for registration — stay of execution — execution already effected — majority refusal, dissent granting leave.
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30 September 2024 |
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The applicant's refusal to transfer after corporate restructuring did not amount to redundancy or constructive dismissal.
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Employment law — corporate restructuring and acquisition — transfer of rights/obligations; redundancy — when redundancy arises; constructive dismissal — test for breach of fundamental term; contractual interpretation — 'salary review' not inherently an increase; contra proferentem inapplicable where clause clear.
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30 September 2024 |
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18 September 2024 |
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18 September 2024 |
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18 September 2024 |
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Appellant entitled to contractual and statutory accrued service benefits; costs not awarded absent misconduct under Rule 44(1).
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Employment law — accrued service benefits and severance pay — applicability of Employment Code Act s.54(1)(c) from date of enactment; contracts providing more favourable terms prevail (s.127); Industrial Relations Court Rules — Rule 44(1) limits awards of costs to cases of unreasonable, improper or vexatious conduct.
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18 September 2024 |
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17 September 2024 |
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An appeal was dismissed because a late application for extension of time rendered the extension order a nullity, depriving the court of jurisdiction.
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Civil procedure — extension of time — jurisdiction — late application renders extension order a nullity — Court of Appeal lacks jurisdiction — appeal dismissed.
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16 September 2024 |
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Misjoinder upheld where cybersecurity regulator lacked investigatory mandate and no cause of action was disclosed.
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Administrative law — judicial review — misjoinder — necessity to disclose a decision or omission — Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act — scope of regulator’s mandate — mandamus — costs.
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12 September 2024 |
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Default judgment set aside where claims against the defaulting defendant were inseparable from claims against other defendants.
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Civil procedure — Default judgment — Multi-defendant actions — Where claims against defaulting defendant cannot be dealt with separately, default judgment should not be entered pending determination of liability against other defendants — Setting aside default judgment: defence on merits and promptness but also avoidance of inconsistent judgments.
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10 September 2024 |
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Writs for service out of jurisdiction must be accompanied by a statement of claim; Registrar’s decisions require appeal under Companies Act.
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Civil procedure — service out of jurisdiction — Order X R16 HCR — Order 6 R1 (SI 58/2020) requires statement of claim with writ — mode of commencement — s341 Companies Act — appeal from Registrar — costs discretion.
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9 September 2024 |
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Court partially upheld property division, excluded unproven borehole and ordered expert valuation of vehicle; cattle award affirmed.
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Matrimonial property division — proof of acquisition during marriage — burden on party alleging asset is matrimonial — appellate restraint on factual findings — valuation and depreciation of assets — appellate judge must not assume valuer's role; expert valuation required — polygamy considered in apportionment.
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4 September 2024 |
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4 September 2024 |
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Court allowed amendment of divorce petition to five‑year separation as permissible update of factual basis to same statutory cause of action.
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Family law — Divorce — Amendment of petition — Whether court may allow amendment to plead five‑year continuous separation accruing after petition — Distinction between amending factual basis within same statutory cause and introducing new cause of action; Rules on amendment (Order 18 R.1, Order III R.2, Matrimonial Causes R.17(2)); Matrimonial Causes Act s.8–9.
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4 September 2024 |
| 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 |