Results.
39 judgments found.
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| December 1992 |
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A judge may not dismiss claims without hearing counsel where only part of the pleadings may be barred by Article 29(8).
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Civil procedure — Amendment/striking out of pleadings — Court’s power to amend on its own motion exercised rarely and only in clearest cases — Article 29(8) constitutional bar to claims arising from Presidential detention — Dismissal for no cause of action without hearing counsel irregular — Proper procedure for challenging interlocutory orders
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31 December 1992 |
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A judgment creditor in possession under a writ of elegit must use best endeavours to realise property income and may be liable for wilful default.
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Civil procedure — writ of elegit — Order 43 account against judgment creditor in possession — duty to realise income — liability for wilful default — disputed facts require oral evidence — writ of elegit excludes movables
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31 December 1992 |
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Custodial sentence upheld where large-scale, concealed cross-border drug trafficking justified enhanced penalties.
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Criminal law — Sentencing — Unlawful possession of dangerous drugs — Large quantities, concealment and cross-border importation as indicia of trafficking — Application of Section 19A (enhanced penalties) — When aggravating circumstances justify custodial sentence for first offender
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31 December 1992 |
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Employer's promise to pay repatriation fares requires travel within a reasonable time (here 90 days); delay limits liability.
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Employment law — Employer's obligation to provide repatriation passage — "Whenever ready to travel" constrained by reasonable time — Delay attributable to employee disentitles claimant to increased later fares — Estoppel limited
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31 December 1992 |
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Employer held vicariously liable for employee’s negligent driving; damages apportioned between statutory heads and awarded jointly and severally.
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Negligence — motor-vehicle collision — vicarious liability of employer for servant’s negligent driving when passenger authorised; admissibility of police admissions; proper apportionment of damages between Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act and Fatal Accidents Act; joint and several liability
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31 December 1992 |
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Restoration denied where systematic dishonesty and public/professional interest outweigh demonstrated rehabilitation.
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Legal practitioners — Restoration to Roll — Disbarred for systematic theft — Section 33 discretionary and exceptional — public interest and professional reputation outweigh personal rehabilitation — conditional restoration considered but declined
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31 December 1992 |
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A driver who knows or should know of defective tyres is at fault for an accident caused by skidding.
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Criminal law — Causing death by dangerous driving — Skid defence — defective tyres — onus on prosecution to prove skid due to driver’s fault — duty to inspect and exercise caution if vehicle known to be defective
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31 December 1992 |
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Failure to follow disciplinary rules and breach of natural justice justified reinstatement; damages limited due to mitigation duty.
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Employment law — Wrongful dismissal — Failure to follow disciplinary code and grievance procedure; natural justice breached by interested adjudicators; unsubstantiated charges; reinstatement justified; mitigation of damages and assessment of back pay
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31 December 1992 |
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Res ipsa loquitur applied to a detached load on the road; defendant failed to rebut presumption of negligence.
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Negligence — Motor collision caused by detached load — Application of res ipsa loquitur where dangerous thing under defendant's control — Distinction between Act of God and inevitable accident — Burden of proof on defendant to rebut presumption — Pleadings defects not fatal where evidence admitted and unchallenged — Upheld damages for loss of business
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31 December 1992 |
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Repair payment and signed release did not bar plaintiff's loss-of-use claim for lack of consideration.
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Insurance/subrogation — Release form — Accord and satisfaction — Consideration — Part-payment rule — Unliquidated loss-of-use claim — "Without prejudice" marking — Estoppel/inequity
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31 December 1992 |
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A driver who knows or should know of defective tyres must inspect or drive cautiously; failure is dangerous driving.
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Road traffic — Dangerous driving — Skid caused by defective tyres — Trial judge's misdirection on factual findings — Onus on prosecution where skid claimed — Driver's duty to inspect or exercise special caution if tyres are or may be defective
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16 December 1992 |
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Payment of undisputed repair costs without consideration does not bar a subsequent unliquidated loss-of-use claim.
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Contract — Release/Accord and satisfaction — Part payment of undisputed repair costs does not constitute consideration for settling unliquidated loss-of-use claim; equity/estoppel — enforcement of gratuitous release unconscionable where claimant reserved other claims and received assurances; "without prejudice" generally inadmissible but unnecessary to decide here
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7 December 1992 |
| November 1992 |
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An applicant alleging wrongful dismissal must plead and prove actual dismissal or a contractual breach, not mere redeployment.
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Employment law — wrongful dismissal — constructive dismissal — redeployment versus dismissal — requirement to plead and prove breach of essential contractual term — no case to answer where claimant fails to establish primary facts.
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25 November 1992 |
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Appeal dismissed: daylight identification and corroborative circumstances upheld conviction and 15‑year sentence.
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Criminal law — Aggravated robbery — Identification evidence — Opportunity to observe in daylight and subsequent recognition by victims — Minor discrepancies in clothing descriptions not fatal to identification; corroboration by apprehension and police visit to scene.
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3 November 1992 |
| October 1992 |
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Restoration to the Roll demands special, compelling grounds; public interest and profession's reputation prevail over individual rehabilitation.
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Legal practitioners — Restoration to Roll — Chief Justice's discretion under s.33 — requires special and compelling grounds — public interest and profession's reputation override individual rehabilitation — conditional restoration possible only with factual basis
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25 October 1992 |
| September 1992 |
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29 September 1992 |
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Robust criticism of a public figure in context was protected as fair comment; appeal dismissed with costs.
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Defamation — fair comment — public interest — contextual reading of words — inferences from published article — absence of malice — elected public figure.
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24 September 1992 |
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An employer's obligation to provide repatriation passage is limited to a reasonable period (three months) after termination.
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Employment law — expatriate repatriation passage — obligation to provide air tickets limited to a reasonable period (three months) post-termination — employee delay does not extinguish right but limits liability to ticket value within 90 days — employer not liable for fare increases due to employee's inordinate delay — limited estoppel
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18 September 1992 |
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9 September 1992 |
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Court should not order or dismiss pleadings on its own motion without hearing counsel; interlocutory disputes require review or trial.
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Civil procedure — Pleadings — Court-initiated amendment rare and should follow Order 8; striking out/dismissal only in clearest cases; presidential detention claims may survive if detention improperly enforced; improper conduct in refusing to obey interlocutory order; proper remedy is motion to review
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8 September 1992 |
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A judgment creditor in possession under a writ of elegit must use best endeavours and is liable for wilful default.
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Civil procedure — Writ of elegit — Account under Order 43 — Judgment creditor’s duty to realise income — Liability for wilful default — Oral evidence required — Elegit does not extend to movables
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8 September 1992 |
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Wrongful dismissal found; exceptional circumstances justified reinstatement, but damages limited by duty to mitigate to 12 months' salary.
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Employment law — Wrongful dismissal — Failure to follow disciplinary code and natural justice — Interested members on disciplinary committee — Exceptional circumstances warranting reinstatement — Duty to mitigate damages; damages limited to 12 months' salary plus arrears
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3 September 1992 |
| August 1992 |
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A driver who knows or ought to know of dangerously defective tyres is at fault if a resulting skid causes death.
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Causing death by dangerous driving — skid due to defective tyres — driver’s duty to inspect and report defects or drive cautiously — once skid accepted prosecution must prove driver’s fault — trial misdirection on facts
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28 August 1992 |
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Res ipsa loquitur applied; defendant failed to rebut negligence for an unsecured tank causing the collision.
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Negligence — road obstruction by detached trailer load; res ipsa loquitur shifts burden to defendant; Act of God/inevitable accident defence; burden of proof for latent defect; pleadings vs. unobjected evidence on negligence and loss of business
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28 August 1992 |
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Aggravating factors, including trafficking and transient status, justified denying the appellant the option of a fine and imposing custody.
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Sentence — custodial term without option of fine justified where aggravating circumstances (trafficking, importation, concealment) exist; Dangerous Drugs Act s.19A engaged; aggravating facts need not be pleaded in particulars; fines may be ineffective for transient offenders
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24 August 1992 |
| July 1992 |
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28 July 1992 |
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The applicant's defences of act of God, inevitable accident, latent defect and res ipsa loquitur failed; appeal dismissed with costs.
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Tort — negligence — defences: act of God, inevitable accident, latent defect, res ipsa loquitur — burden of proof shifts to defendant to rebut inference of negligence; pleadings — failure to object to unpleaded evidence may permit its consideration; damages — unchallenged evidence of business loss may suffice
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15 July 1992 |
| June 1992 |
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Employer vicariously liable despite passenger prohibition; damages must be apportioned and criminal outcomes not generally determinative of civil negligence.
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Vicarious liability — prohibition on carrying passengers does not negate employer liability; Damages — global awards improper, must apportion between Law Reform Act and Fatal Accidents Act and adjust for inflation; Civil negligence — criminal convictions generally inadmissible except for admissions; Quantum — increased award for loss of expectation of life
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20 June 1992 |
| March 1992 |
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Payment of undisputed repair costs and a signed release did not bar the plaintiff's unliquidated claim for loss of use absent fresh consideration or inequity.
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Tort — damages for loss of use — release and accord and satisfaction — part payment of undisputed repair costs insufficient consideration to discharge separate unliquidated claim — estoppel and inequity — "without prejudice" marking considered but not decisive
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20 March 1992 |
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Repatriation passage must be claimed within a reasonable period; employer not liable for fare increases caused by employee delay.
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Employment law — repatriation passage on termination — entitlement must be exercised within a reasonable time — "whenever ready to travel" does not permit indefinite delay — employer not liable for fare increases due to employee's delay — measure of recovery is fare value within reasonable period
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19 March 1992 |
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Whether a D.P.P.'s public non-prosecution precludes later prosecution absent fresh evidence and trial judge's failure to address biased eyewitness credibility.
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Evidence—affidavit evidence on contentious matters; Criminal procedure—coroner’s order vs D.P.P. discretion; Prosecution reopened after D.P.P. public non-prosecution—requirement of fresh evidence; Amendment of charge—power to upgrade information; Credibility—warning as to interested witnesses; Self-defence—objective and subjective tests
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19 March 1992 |
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Employer held vicariously liable for employee's negligent driving; damages allocated between statutory heads and adjusted for inflation.
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Negligent driving — vicarious liability of employer for employee’s driving — authority to carry passengers and employer’s onus — admissibility of driver’s police admissions in civil negligence — allocation of damages between Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act and Fatal Accidents Act — quantum adjusted for inflation
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19 March 1992 |
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Restoration to the Roll denied where systematic dishonesty undermined public interest despite subsequent rehabilitation.
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Legal practitioners — restoration to the Roll under section 33 — disbarment for misappropriation/theft — public interest and profession’s reputation paramount — repentance and rehabilitation relevant but not overriding — restoration a rare remedy
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19 March 1992 |
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D.P.P.'s public non‑prosecution bars later prosecution absent fresh evidence; trial judge misdirected on witness bias and self‑defence succeeds.
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Affidavit evidence on contentious matters; Rule 39(1)
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Supreme Court Rules — Bail on appeal in murder cases — Rule 45(2) and s.123 C.P.C. — Coroner's order naming persons to be charged — D.P.P.'s public non‑prosecution and reopening of prosecution — Amendment of information under s.273(2) C.P.C. — Witness bias and credibility — Self‑defence: honest and reasonable belief in imminent danger
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18 March 1992 |
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A landlord is bound by reasons in a notice to quit; s11(1)(e) requires proof of superior tenancy and intent to dispose as whole for better yield.
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Landlord and tenant — notice to quit binds landlord to reasons stated — Section 11(1)(e) Cap.440 requires proof of superior tenancy and intention to let/otherwise dispose of whole property for better rental yield — Section 11(2) five-year bar protects recent purchasers/transferees — transferee cannot evade protection by administrative transfer — essential evidentiary requirements to oppose grant of new tenancy.
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15 March 1992 |
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A dismissal for want of cause was irregular where strike‑out should be reserved for clearest cases and counsel must be heard before dismissal.
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Civil procedure — Amendment and striking out of pleadings — Article 29(8) and claims arising from presidential detention — Strike‑out reserved for clearest cases — Irregular dismissal without hearing counsel — Improper correspondence by counsel refusing judicial order
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3 March 1992 |
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Six-year custodial sentence for trafficking-related possession upheld; aggravating factors justified imprisonment despite first-offender plea.
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Sentencing — possession of large quantity of dangerous drugs — trafficking inferred from quantity and concealment — first-offender principle v. aggravating circumstances — Section 19A Dangerous Drugs Act — enforcement of fines against transient/foreign offenders — trans-border drug trafficking deterrence
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3 March 1992 |
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Court found wrongful dismissal due to procedural unfairness and unproven charges, ordered reinstatement and limited damages.
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Employment law — wrongful dismissal — failure to follow disciplinary code and grievance procedure — breach of natural justice by interested disciplinary committee members — exceptional circumstances justifying reinstatement — mitigation of loss and measure of damages
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3 March 1992 |
| February 1992 |
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Possession of distinctive stolen goods and implausible explanation upheld conviction for aggravated robbery; statutory minimum sentence affirmed.
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Criminal law — Aggravated robbery — Circumstantial evidence and possession of distinctive stolen goods — Credibility findings — Defence of lawful possession for safekeeping — Police investigation of alleged third party — Statutory minimum sentence non-appealable.
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5 February 1992 |