Supreme Court of Zambia - 2016

171 judgments
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Results. 171 judgments found.

171 judgments
December 2016
Regulations validly applied: properties were "recovered", unclaimed within three months, and consequently forfeited to the State.
  • Corrupt Practices (Disposal of Recovered Property) Regulations 1986 — validity and effect; definition of "recovered property"; vesting on expiry of three-month claim period; service and claim to Commission; judicial review of forfeiture.
29 December 2016
29 December 2016
Termination for convenience upheld; supplier not entitled to full contract price and cannot recover costs caused by breaching bid specifications.
  • Contract law — termination for convenience — clause expressly permitting termination — validity of termination; Measure of damages — entitlement to foreseeable loss (profit) not full contract price — Hadley v Baxendale; Bid compliance — supplier’s breach by sourcing goods contrary to bid specifications — effect on recoverability of costs; Equitable adjustment clause — limits where revised price is unreasonable; Cancelled tender — invitation to treat does not give rise to damages where cancelled before award.
29 December 2016
23 December 2016
Employer liable for subcontractor's unpaid variation works; liquidated damages not allowed where employer's engineers caused delay.
  • Building contracts — extra/variation works — lump-sum contract — when extra work is payable; Nominated sub-contract — payment responsibilities; Employer's project consulting engineers — duty to design and supervise; Liquidated damages — recoverable only where delay caused by contractor; Unjust enrichment — refund of withheld sums where counterclaim fails.
22 December 2016
Appeal dismissed: Medical Board’s recommendations are advisory; the Director’s adverse medical advice lawfully supported the medical discharge.
  • Military law — Medical discharge — Role of Defence Medical Board as investigatory and advisory body — Director of Defence Medical Services’ decisive advisory role — Procedural compliance with Defence Act and Regulations — Evaluation of medical evidence in discharge decisions.
21 December 2016
Seller's failure to deduce title was a breach; court restored possession and awarded rent for full occupation period.
  • Conveyancing — deduction of title — sale and purchase agreement clause giving buyer right to cancel where seller fails to produce certified title; clause entitling seller to cancel in buyer default inapplicable where seller at fault; vendor–purchaser relationship displaces Rent Act procedure; recovery of rent under sale agreement.
21 December 2016
Whether the parties’ conduct created a binding distributorship contract and the proper measure of damages for breach.
  • Contract formation by conduct — unsigned standard agreement — condition precedent/feasibility study — measure of damages for wrongful termination — notice period and mitigation — interest and costs.
20 December 2016
13 December 2016
12 December 2016
12 December 2016
Written confirmation was required to end probation; absent it employment remained probationary and termination was lawful.
  • Employment law — probationary employment — requirement of written confirmation for substantive appointment — effect of lapse of probation period without written confirmation — applicability of precedent (Nyirenda).
12 December 2016
12 December 2016
9 December 2016
Deportation held unlawful where permit revocation and ministerial declaration lacked required written notice and statutory procedure.
  • Immigration law — revocation of employment permit — Section 34(2) and Section 10 — requirement of written notice and opportunity to make representations; Ministerial declaration under Section 35(2) must be in writing; Notice to Prohibited Immigrant under Section 36; judicial review of executive discretion; procedural fairness and unlawful deportation.
9 December 2016
9 December 2016
Failure to expressly decide a landlord's counter‑claim is reversible error, despite upholding tenant's renovation claim and damages.
  • Landlord and Tenant — variation of lease by mutual agreement and council minutes — Local Government Act s.63(3) — validity despite non‑compliance with standing orders; tenant renovations and reimbursement; counter‑claim and set‑off; failure to expressly adjudicate counter‑claim as misdirection.
9 December 2016
9 December 2016
Early medical retirees may receive actuarially reduced pension lump sums, but not collective-agreement golden handshake or free passes.
  • Pension law — interpretation of pension scheme rules — early medical retirement entitlement to Rule 5 benefits subject to actuarial reduction; Collective Agreement — golden handshake and free passes limited to normal retirement; Statutory Instrument on minimum wages inapplicable to unionised employees; Recovery of overpayment by employer.
9 December 2016
9 December 2016
The High Court lacks statutory jurisdiction to dissolve a marriage solemnized under Sunni Muslim law in Zambia.
  • Matrimonial jurisdiction — Matrimonial Causes Act 2007 (ss.3–4) — High Court's statutory jurisdiction limited to marriages under the Marriage Act or foreign law — Religious (Sunni Muslim) marriages solemnized in Zambia not within Act’s scope — Prior consent judgments cannot confer jurisdiction — Conflict of laws not engaged where marriage contracted in Zambia.
9 December 2016
Whether discretionary refusal of service retirement and delayed pay justified claims of discrimination, constructive dismissal, and terminal benefits.
  • Employment law — service/early retirement as discretionary relief; discrimination — section 108 jurisdiction; constructive dismissal — non-payment versus delay in pay; terminal benefits and proof of loss.
1 December 2016
November 2016
29 November 2016
Court awarded additional damages for mental anguish and full costs after finding procedural unfairness and appellate-rule default.
  • Employment law — wrongful/unfair termination — failure to observe disciplinary/natural justice procedures; Damages — mental anguish and distress recognised as separate head of damages; Costs — costs follow the event; Civil procedure — non-compliance with appellate rules (Rule 58(2)) results in dismissal of grounds.
29 November 2016
29 November 2016
24 November 2016
16 November 2016
11 November 2016
Whether Order 39 review may correct trial errors or whether such errors must be remedied on appeal, and admissibility of unpleaded evidence.
  • Civil procedure — Review under Order 39 — discretion and limited grounds for reopening judgments; admission of unpleaded evidence — effect where not objected to; consent orders — limits on varying by court; errors of law/fact to be corrected on appeal, not review.
11 November 2016
Whether the deceased’s statements qualified as res gestae and were admissible; appeal dismissed.
  • Criminal law — murder — admissibility of deceased’s extra‑judicial statements — res gestae exception to hearsay (test: spontaneity, involvement, and absence of opportunity for concoction) — recording of statements of the dangerously ill (s237 CPC) — post‑mortem corroboration.
1 November 2016
Whether a union General Council may lawfully impose indefinite suspension and when a secretary‑general’s directive amounts to an unlawful suspension.
  • Labour law — Trade union disciplinary procedure — Jurisdiction of General Council to suspend elected officers beyond 90 days — Unlawful unilateral suspension by Secretary‑General — Entitlement to half‑pay during lawful suspension — Procedural fairness in removal from payroll — Funeral grant under Conditions of Service.
1 November 2016
October 2016
28 October 2016
Termination of an acting appointment and procedural discrepancies did not render dismissal null where gross negligence was proved.
  • Employment law — acting appointment terminable for administrative convenience — not a demotion; disciplinary procedure — discrepancy between charge and hearing does not invalidate dismissal where offence proved; gross negligence — admission of carelessness plus pecuniary loss satisfies definition; procedural irregularity — failure to follow procedure immaterial if employee committed dismissible offence.
28 October 2016
Shareholder who proved loans and investments entitled to repayment; appellate court upheld factual findings and dismissed appeal.
  • Company law — Joint venture and shareholder advances — Shareholder loans and repayment — Clause providing deduction from profits — Appellate review of findings of fact; dismissal of counterclaim.
28 October 2016
27 October 2016
Retirement in the national interest breaks continuity of service; s31 benefits inapplicable and pension under s18 was full.
  • Employment law — corporatization transfers; s31 Aviation (Amendment) Act — voluntary transfer vs retirement in national interest; pensions — application of s18 Civil Service (Local Conditions) Pensions Act and characterization as full pension; mediation settlements and ancillary claims.
21 October 2016
Rule 16(4) permits striking an application off the roll when counsel fails to attend; dismissal was a misdirection, application restored.
  • Civil procedure — Non-attendance at hearing — Rule 16(4) — Court may strike application off roll where counsel absent without reasons; rule does not permit dismissal — Misapplication of rule — Restoration and remission of application — Costs ordered against appellant.
20 October 2016
20 October 2016
20 October 2016
A certificate of title obtained amid irregularities can be cancelled for fraud and owner entitled to rents despite fraud not being pleaded.
  • Land law — Certificate of title — Challenge and cancellation for fraud or impropriety; burden of proof on claimant; admissibility and weight of unpleaded evidence; credibility findings on appeal.
19 October 2016
Sine die adjournment without time limit is not an 'unless' order; dismissal for want of prosecution requires shown prejudice.
  • Civil procedure — adjournment sine die vs 'unless' orders; dismissal for want of prosecution; prejudice requirement; Rule 48(5) scope; finality of multi-judge decisions; Practice Direction applicability.
16 October 2016
Court dismissed preliminary objections, allowing applicants to seek reopening of prior judgments in exceptional circumstances.
  • Civil procedure — Preliminary objections under Rule 19 — Reopening appellate judgments — per incuriam doctrine — res judicata — discretion for defective record (Rule 68(2)) — waiver of procedural irregularity.
14 October 2016
Whether a strike-off statutory declaration binds the company or directors for liabilities arising after deregistration.
  • Company law — Deregistration under s.361(4) — Statutory declaration and board resolution — Scope of liabilities (as at date of declaration v. thereafter).; Directors' liability — s.361(6) preserves pre-existing liabilities only — no personal liability for debts crystallising after dissolution.; Restoration — s.362(1) provides 24‑month window to restore dissolved company and pursue claims.; Procedural — conformity of record of appeal relevant but appeal heard on merits.
10 October 2016
9 October 2016
Redundancy held genuine; employer complied with contractual/statutory procedures, appeal dismissed and costs borne equally.
  • Labour law — redundancy — genuine redundancy versus sham — consultation and notice obligations — contractual Handbook provisions — payment in lieu of notice — appellate review limited on findings of fact (Section 97 Industrial and Labour Relations Act).
7 October 2016
Dismissal for admitted fraudulent receipting upheld; Appeals Board lacked jurisdiction after statutory amendment.
  • Employment law — unfair dismissal — fraudulent receipting and theft of public funds — disciplinary procedure — scope of judicial review: existence of factual substratum to support dismissal — jurisdictional effect of Local Government (Amendment) Act No.6/2010 replacing Appeals Boards with Local Government Service Commission.
4 October 2016
September 2016
28 September 2016
Appellants' convictions and death sentences upheld: common purpose and reliable single-witness identification supported by corroborative circumstantial evidence.
  • Criminal law — murder — joint enterprise/common purpose — single identifying witness — connecting link; accomplice evidence — need for corroboration whether called by prosecution or defence; admissibility and sufficiency of circumstantial evidence.
14 September 2016
Whether conditioning repatriation benefits on vacating company housing unlawfully contracts out of the Employment Act.
  • Employment law — repatriation benefits — section 13(1) Employment Act — validity of contractual precondition (vacation of employer housing) — subsistence awards — mitigation and eviction following discharge of interim injunction — costs.
12 September 2016
Whether dismissal for alleged cash shortage and unauthorized receipting was procedurally fair and supported by sufficient facts.
  • Labour law — unfair dismissal — exhaustion of administrative remedies — scope of judicial review in disciplinary dismissals — procedural fairness and sufficiency of factual substratum to justify summary dismissal for fraud and failure to follow lawful instructions.
12 September 2016