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Citation
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Judgment date
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| March 2002 |
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Appeal against an eight-year manslaughter sentence dismissed; belief in witchcraft and family hardship insufficient to merit suspension.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Sentence – Appeal against sentence – belief in witchcraft as potential mitigation – family hardship and personal circumstances insufficient to warrant suspension – deterrence and public policy considerations
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5 March 2002 |
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Interim injunction against appointing a receiver was wrongly granted where borrower was in undisputed default and balance favoured lender.
Civil procedure – Interlocutory injunction – Appointment of receiver – Status quo versus irreparable harm and balance of convenience – Unchallenged affidavit of indebtedness – Enforcement of security on default.
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5 March 2002 |
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Appeals dismissed; ten-year sentences upheld for witchcraft-motivated manslaughter, but hard labour removed for second appellant.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Group assault motivated by witchcraft suspicions – Deterrent sentencing – Mitigation (guilty plea, youth, bereavement) – Removal of hard labour.
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5 March 2002 |
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Appellate court affirms aggravated robbery convictions, deferring to trial judge’s credibility findings and identification evidence.
Criminal law – Aggravated robbery – Identification and credibility – Trial judge’s advantage in assessing demeanour – Appellate restraint in overturning credibility findings.
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5 March 2002 |
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Guilty pleas were binding; six‑year manslaughter sentence upheld and hard labour replaced with simple imprisonment.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – Guilty plea accepted in court bars challenge to conviction – Sentencing: mitigation weighed against seriousness of death and need to deter belief‑based violence (witchcraft accusations) – Appellate amendment of ancillary order of hard labour to simple imprisonment.
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5 March 2002 |
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Recovery of stolen vehicle plus possession of keys and leading police justified upholding aggravated robbery conviction.
Criminal law – aggravated robbery – circumstantial evidence – recovery of stolen vehicle – appellant led police to vehicle – possession of keys – credibility findings; conviction upheld.
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5 March 2002 |
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Appeal allowed where trial court's finding of exoneration was perverse, report showed supervisory negligence.
Employment law — unfair dismissal — disciplinary dismissal for gross negligence — supervisory negligence in money order frauds — appellate intervention where trial court's factual finding is perverse or unsupported by evidence.
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5 March 2002 |
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Unexplained year-long delay justified refusal of out-of-time review; interest on claim runs from date of the writ.
Civil procedure – review out of time – inordinate delay – leave to apply for review; Interest – commencement date – interest on claim in foreign currency runs from date of writ to date of judgment (Shanzi; Bank of Zambia v Anderson).
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5 March 2002 |
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Whether summary dismissal justifies damages beyond contractual benefits to compensate distress and difficulty obtaining similar work.
Wrongful dismissal – Measure of damages – Contractual or reasonable notice as normal measure – Departure permitted for traumatic/summary dismissals – Award of non-pecuniary (Mpundu-type) damages – Excessive award of two years’ earnings reduced to six months.
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5 March 2002 |
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Employer terminated employee on extended study leave without hearing; dismissal harsh but damages not justified given employer's benefit.
Employment law – study leave and sponsorship – termination for failure to return from study leave – procedural fairness/natural justice – entitlement to recover training costs – damages for wrongful dismissal.
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5 March 2002 |