Results.
22 judgments found.
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| December 2023 |
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Whether the applicant could renew an interlocutory stay application in the Supreme Court after creation of the Court of Appeal.
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Appellate procedure; interlocutory applications; renewal to Supreme Court; Court of Appeal Act (s.2 definition of "judgment", s.13 leave to appeal); effect of creation of Court of Appeal; jurisdictional limits; exceptional direct appeals (Part III Constitution).
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13 December 2023 |
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Whether the Subordinate Court had jurisdiction under the Intestate Succession Act to hear an estate exceeding K100,000.
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Intestate succession — Section 43(3) Subordinate Court jurisdiction limited to estates ≤ K100,000 (old currency) — Lack of jurisdiction renders proceedings and judgments null and void — Appellate court may raise jurisdiction suo motu — Irregularity of an appellant raising objection to own appeal.
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6 December 2023 |
| November 2023 |
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Cogent circumstantial evidence linked the appellants to murder and aggravated robbery; death sentences under s.294(2) were upheld.
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Criminal law — Circumstantial evidence — Possession of recently stolen property and last communication as cogent inferences; Common intention — joint participation inferred from associative conduct; Aggravated robbery — Section 294(1) and (2) are sentencing provisions for one offence; Death penalty lawful under s.294(2) where grievous harm results.
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16 November 2023 |
| October 2023 |
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Whether statutory increases to pensionable age apply to employees under pre-existing contracts and the effect on accrued pension rights.
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Employment law — Retirement age — Effect of legislative amendment on pre-existing contracts — Non-retrospective application of statutes absent explicit provision; accrued/vested pension rights; unjust enrichment by awarding pension for periods not worked; costs in industrial/labour litigation.
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19 October 2023 |
| September 2023 |
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Section 4 of the Mental Health Act affirms legal capacity subject to safeguards; appellants failed to prove constitutional infringement.
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Constitutional law — Mental Health Act Section 4 — legal capacity vs mental capacity; supported decision-making; role of UN Resolution 46/119 and CRPD in statutory interpretation; procedural safeguards for court-appointed supporters; inadequacy of class action pleadings.
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25 September 2023 |
| August 2023 |
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An arbitration clause in professional rules compels courts to stay proceedings and refer professional conduct disputes to arbitration.
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Arbitration clause — Rule 16 as arbitration agreement — Section 10 Arbitration Act requires stay and referral to arbitration — Judicial review (Order 53) permits interlocutory section 10 applications — Arbitrability of professional conduct disputes.
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30 August 2023 |
| July 2023 |
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A stay of possession cannot be granted where execution has been effected and the applicant cannot show capacity to redeem.
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Stay of execution — possession orders — execution already effected — nothing to stay; Order 88 Rule 5 White Book — suspension of possession requires likelihood of redemption within a reasonable period; requirement of clarity as to which appeal or order is sought to be stayed; applicants must show prima facie merits and irreparable harm.
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30 July 2023 |
| June 2023 |
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Section 13(3) of the Lands Act confines challenges to re-entry to the Lands Tribunal; High Court lacks jurisdiction for such re-entry disputes.
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Lands — Re-entry — Section 13(3) Lands Act — Certificate of re-entry — Jurisdiction — Lands Tribunal vs High Court — "may" in statute — mode of commencement of proceedings.
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22 June 2023 |
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Whether uncorroborated evidence from detained/interested witnesses can be relied upon; recent possession and other circumstances provided "something more" to uphold convictions.
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Criminal law — identification evidence — witnesses with interest/accomplices — requirement of corroboration or "something more"; recent possession doctrine; failure to lift fingerprints not necessarily fatal.
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8 June 2023 |
| May 2023 |
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A will-drafter is not an impliedly appointed executor or estate counsel absent clear naming or specific instructions.
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Wills — appointment of executors — express vs implied appointment; drafting and custody of a will do not imply appointment as executor; reference to "my lawyers" must identify counsel; Legal Practitioners (Practice) Rules — practitioner must act only on instructions; Wills and Administration of Testate Estates Act s.52(2) — reimbursement of legitimate expenses incurred under revoked probate.
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31 May 2023 |
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Renewed leave to appeal refused: letter‑of‑credit disputes were factual/private, not points of law of public importance.
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Letters of credit — strict compliance doctrine — issuing bank's obligation qualified by documents 'appearing on their face' to comply; UCP 600 Article 34; point of law of public importance — novelty insufficient; leave to appeal — prospects of success.
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24 May 2023 |
| April 2023 |
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Interpretation of a credit-life master policy: individual insurance contracts arise with borrowers; failure to comply with insurer-requested medical tests defeats a claim.
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Insurance law — Credit life Master Policy — Distinction between master policy and individual contracts — Beneficiary cession to creditor — Claims procedure and duty to comply with insurer-requested medical examinations — Effect of refusal to undergo tests.
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20 April 2023 |
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Appeal against rape conviction dismissed: weak identification cured by corroborative bruises and prior recognition, conviction upheld.
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Criminal law — Rape — Identification evidence; recognition vs identification; need for caution and careful testing of identification; identification parade; corroboration by injuries (bite and bruises); accused’s duty to explain incriminating connecting evidence; appeal dismissed despite trial misdirection.
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14 April 2023 |
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Inadmissible hearsay from a police investigation fatally undermined the prosecution, leading to acquittal for the appellant.
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Criminal law — Murder — Admissibility of hearsay from police investigations — Circumstantial and ballistic evidence — Photographic evidence requiring oral explanation — Burden of proof and choice of inference favourable to accused.
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14 April 2023 |
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Causation and malice aforethought established from assault targeting the head and indifferent conduct; appeal dismissed.
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Criminal law — causation (s.207 Penal Code) — when an assailant is liable despite intervening acts; Malice aforethought (s.204(b)) — inference from weapon, target (head) and indifference; appeal against murder conviction dismissed.
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13 April 2023 |
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Unsworn assertions of provocation or self‑defence insufficient against credible sworn eyewitness testimony; appeal dismissed.
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Criminal law — Murder — Evaluation of unsworn statement versus sworn eyewitness testimony — Provocation and self‑defence — Corroboration of accused’s extra‑judicial assertions.
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13 April 2023 |
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Joint, severe assault by three appellants causing death justified inference of malice aforethought; convictions and sentences upheld.
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Criminal law — Murder — Causation and malice aforethought inferred from joint severe assault — Lack of post-mortem evidence as to implements — Judicial interventions not amounting to substantial miscarriage of justice.
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3 April 2023 |
| March 2023 |
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One-year deadline to dispose labour complaints should be interpreted purposively; expiry does not automatically divest the court of jurisdiction.
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Industrial and Labour Relations Act — section 85(3)(b)(ii) — one-year time limit for disposal — purposive vs literal interpretation — jurisdiction — whether expiry of one year automatically divests court of jurisdiction — remittance and reallocation — Guardall decision reversed.
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10 March 2023 |
| February 2023 |
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Review application filed before an appeal does not justify reopening judgment absent genuine fresh evidence.
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Civil procedure — review of judgment (Order XXXIX r.1) — timing of leave to appeal — review barred only if leave and appeal exist when review application filed — fresh evidence for review must pre-exist judgment, be undiscoverable with reasonable diligence, and be material — subsequent charging/arraignment not fresh evidence.
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23 February 2023 |
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A council must make the requisite by-laws/standing orders before imposing levies; parking levy by public notice was unlawful and refundable.
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Local Government Act (ss.69, 70) — By-laws mandatory for imposition of levies; standing orders required for council contracts (ss.63,64) — Public notice insufficient for parking levies — Unjust enrichment and restitution.
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17 February 2023 |
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Respondents who voluntarily accept revised separation terms by applying under the scheme are treated as having accepted the contractual variation.
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Employment law — Variation of contractual terms — Acceptance by conduct — Voluntary separation scheme — Terminal benefits — Multiplier applied to gross pay — Recalculation of benefits — Early retirement claims.
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9 February 2023 |
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Employees who voluntarily exit under a revised separation scheme can be deemed to have accepted the revised terms by their conduct.
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Employment law — Variation of contractual terms — Acceptance by conduct — Voluntary separation scheme — Calculation of terminal benefits — Unilateral variation — Early retirement and statutory amendments (non‑retrospective).
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9 February 2023 |