High Court of Zambia - 2022 June

14 judgments
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Results. 14 judgments found.

14 judgments
June 2022
Employee dismissed after refusing to attend disciplinary hearings; accrued leave awarded, dismissal and terminal benefits claims dismissed.
  • Employment law — dismissal for misconduct — statutory right to be heard (s.52(3) Employment Code; clause 10(c) collective agreement) — refusal to attend disciplinary hearing — accrued leave entitlement — unjust enrichment and terminal benefits.
30 June 2022
Claims for contractual allowances, bonus variation, redundancy and wrongful termination dismissed; respondent must issue certificate of service.
  • Employment law — contractual terms trump verbal promises; allowances must be contractually or statutorily provided; discretionary bonuses not contractual; employer may transfer employees within Zambia if contract permits; refusal to accept lawful redeployment may amount to resignation/desertion; mandatory issuance of certificate of service under Employment Code Act.
30 June 2022
Discretionary bonuses and intra‑company transfers permitted by contract do not automatically give rise to redundancy or unlawful variation; employer must issue certificate of service.
  • Employment law — allowances and arrears; discretionary bonuses — not contractual entitlements; intra‑company transfers — contractual transfer clause and statutory provisions; redundancy and desertion; duty to issue certificate of service.
30 June 2022
Termination under the contract's notice clause for operational requirements was lawful; wrongful dismissal claim dismissed.
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30 June 2022
29 June 2022
Plaintiff's claims for director retainer fees and statutory-duty damages dismissed for failure to prove contractual entitlement or causation.
  • Contract law — written employment contract and privity; extrinsic evidence inadmissible to vary clear terms; burden of proof on claimant; director remuneration requires appropriate resolution/authority; breach of statutory duty actionable only with proven causal damage.
21 June 2022
Acquittal where circumstantial evidence and investigative failures left reasonable doubt as to the accused's guilt.
  • Criminal law — Murder — Circumstantial evidence — Burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt — Malice aforethought — Investigative failures (no forensic testing, no fingerprints) — Odd coincidence insufficient to convict — Acquittal.
21 June 2022
Applicant awarded judgment for debt with contractual interest and a 60-day redemption period before foreclosure.
  • Mortgage enforcement — Third-party legal mortgage — Enforcement of contractual interest and compounding — Default and admission by conduct/non-appearance — Equity of redemption and prescribed redemption period before foreclosure.
20 June 2022
Court enforces personal guarantee against director despite alleged business rescue; moratorium held inapplicable to the guarantor.
  • Guarantee enforceability; personal guarantor liability; business rescue moratorium; Corporate Insolvency Act s.25(2); originating summons procedure; burden of proof for business rescue initiation.
9 June 2022
Unregistered lease is void, but possession and accepted rent created a periodic tenancy permitting the plaintiffs' claims to continue.
  • Lands and Deeds Registry Act s4 & s6 — non-registration of a lease renders it void; unregistered lease enforceable inter partes only; possession plus payment and acceptance of rent creates periodic tenancy independent of void lease; Order 14A inappropriate where point of law will not finally dispose of action.
9 June 2022
Unregistered long lease is void; periodic tenancy arose, but claimant's application was procedurally defective and dismissed.
  • Lands & Deeds Registry Act — non-registration of a lease for >1 year renders it null and void; periodic tenancy may arise by possession and payment of rent; procedural requirements under Landlord and Tenant (Business Premises) Act — originating notice of motion limited to specified claims, statutory notice and notification requirements for new tenancy (s.5, s.10) and Rule 5 compliance; improper commencement deprives court of jurisdiction; application dismissed; costs to respondent; leave to appeal granted.
8 June 2022
The accused convicted under section 224(a) for pushing the victim from a moving vehicle; intent inferred from probable harm.
  • Criminal law — Acts intended to cause grievous harm — s.224(a) Penal Code — Pushing person from moving vehicle — intent may be inferred from foresight of probable serious harm — credibility of eyewitness and forensic evidence.
7 June 2022
By consent, defendant ordered to retract defamatory statement, publish approved apology on social and print media, and pay damages and costs.
  • Defamation — Remedies: retraction and public apology (approved by plaintiff), publication on social media and print — nominal damages and costs — consent judgment and enforcement by execution.
5 June 2022
Application to set aside arbitral award dismissed — no lack of notice, no proven excess of scope, no unlawful delegation to assistant arbitrator.
  • Arbitration Act s.17(2) — setting aside arbitral awards — notice of proceedings; scope of submission to arbitration; tribunal composition; Regulation 15 — assistants and delegation of decision‑making.
3 June 2022