Results.
3,950 judgments found.
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| July 2024 |
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Applicant's renewed leave to appeal denied; no novel point of law and factual findings on title and fraud upheld.
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Civil procedure — leave to appeal — Section 13 Court of Appeal Act — question of law of public importance; Order 28 RSC (White Book) — originating summons deemed writ — directions; Pleading of fraud — particularity v. reliance on unopposed evidence; Property law — bona fide purchaser for value and due diligence; Appellate restraint on findings of fact; Costs — award to non-attending party.
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24 July 2024 |
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Supreme Court holds Court of Appeal lacked jurisdiction over substantive Article 28 appeal and vacates its judgment.
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Constitutional law — Article 28 appeals — appellate route and jurisdiction — interlocutory versus substantive appeals — Court of Appeal lacked jurisdiction — decision void and vacated; procedural commencement (petition vs writ) noted.
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23 July 2024 |
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The Court of Appeal lacked jurisdiction to hear a substantive Article 28 appeal; its judgment was vacated.
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Constitutional law — Article 28 appeals — jurisdictional route for appeals from High Court on Bill of Rights — Kabwe Order; Hakainde Hichilema clarification — decision without jurisdiction void — mode of commencement of constitutional claims.
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23 July 2024 |
| June 2024 |
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Whether a one-year delay for power connection was reasonable under the contract and Regulation 14.
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[Contract law] Reasonable time for performance; interpretation of 'at the earliest possible time' and Regulation 14; notice making time of the essence; judicial notice of a party's status as sole national supplier; assessment of procurement and COVID-19 delays.
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19 June 2024 |
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Conviction upheld where voluntary confession and recent possession proved guilt; second appellant's appeal abated on death.
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Criminal law — Confession admissibility — Burden to prove voluntariness — Trial-within-a-trial credibility assessment — Recent possession doctrine — Appeal abatement on death of appellant.
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11 June 2024 |
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Admissions to village headmen or neighbourhood watchmen are admissible absent coercion; voluntariness is a credibility issue.
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Criminal law — admissibility of confessions — Judges' Rules apply to persons in authority only — admissions to village headmen/neighbourhood watchmen admissible absent coercion — voluntariness and credibility — afterthoughts — failure to produce postmortem not fatal where evidence cogent.
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11 June 2024 |
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Conviction unsafe where prosecution failed to rule out accidental fire despite voice-identification and threats evidence.
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Criminal law — murder by arson — circumstantial evidence — necessity to exclude accidental fire where no eyewitness; voice-identification and Turnbull guidance; relatives as potentially suspect witnesses — bias must be evidenced.
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11 June 2024 |
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Detention with an accused does not make a witness an accomplice; motive and corroboration determine testimonial reliability.
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Criminal law — suspect witnesses — distinction between accomplice and witness with interest; motive to give false evidence required before special caution; detention with accused not determinative; corroboration and unchallenged evidence may render conviction safe.
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10 June 2024 |
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Last‑seen circumstantial evidence and witness credibility upheld as sufficient to sustain a murder conviction; appeal dismissed.
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Criminal law — Circumstantial evidence — 'Last seen with' principle — Admissibility and weight of statements to private witnesses — Credibility assessments — Non‑investigation and dereliction of duty — Murder; malice aforethought.
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10 June 2024 |
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Whether provocation or false implication excused a fatal stabbing; court found no heat of passion and dismissed the appeal.
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Criminal law — murder — provocation — elements: sudden grave provocation, loss of self-control, proportionate retaliation; witness credibility — interested witnesses and need for corroboration; fals e implication — danger where witnesses have interest; sentence — failed provocation does not constitute extenuating circumstances for mandatory death penalty.
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6 June 2024 |
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Provocation and self‑defence not established; corroboration of suspect witness upheld murder conviction and death sentence.
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Criminal law — murder; provocation; self‑defence and defence of property; suspect witness caution and corroboration; mandatory death sentence; extenuating circumstances for sentencing.
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6 June 2024 |
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Appellant's self-defence and provocation defences rejected; murder conviction and 45-year sentence upheld.
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Criminal law — murder — self-defence — provocation — proportionality of force — appellate deference to trial findings — sentencing discretion — appeal determined on judgment-only record.
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6 June 2024 |
| May 2024 |
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Appeals dismissed: identification, recent possession and ballistic evidence sufficiently proved armed robberies.
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Criminal law — identification evidence — single and multiple identifying witnesses — recent possession doctrine — recoveries and scene reconstruction — definition and proof of firearm under the Firearms Act — appellate interference with trial findings of fact.
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21 May 2024 |
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Whether denial or suspension of driving licences for deaf persons breaches constitutional rights to freedom of movement and non-discrimination.
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Constitutional law — Road Traffic Act (ss.59,62,68) — Licensing and suspension of drivers with hearing impairment — Article 11 (protection of the law) — Article 22 (freedom of movement protects liberty to move, not means) — Article 23 (entrenched text did not expressly include disability) — Persons with Disabilities Act and UNCRPD as alternative remedies.
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16 May 2024 |
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Denial or suspension of driving licences for deaf persons did not, per se, violate Articles 11, 22 or 23 of the Constitution.
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Constitutional law — Part III rights — protection of the law, freedom of movement and non-discrimination — scope of Articles 11, 22 and 23; Road Traffic Act — fitness to drive and public safety; Persons with Disabilities Act and UNCRPD — alternative remedies.
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16 May 2024 |
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The State successfully appealed: extenuation lacked evidential basis and the six-year sentence was quashed for mandatory death.
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Criminal law — Murder — Extenuating circumstances must be evidence-based — Defence of property cannot be raised for first time at sentencing — Appellate power to quash and substitute sentence where substantial miscarriage of justice — Substitution of mandatory death despite sentence served.
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16 May 2024 |
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Conviction based solely on circumstantial coincidence and lack of identification was unsafe; appeal allowed and acquittal ordered.
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Criminal law — circumstantial evidence — sufficiency of coincidence of injuries as incriminating link — identification parades — police dereliction of duty — reasonably possible defence creates reasonable doubt.
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15 May 2024 |
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Conviction overturned for reliance on uncorroborated interested witnesses and improperly admitted confession evidence.
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Criminal law — murder; corroboration of interested witnesses; hearsay; caution over evidence of detained/suspect witness; admissibility of confessions — court must ask defence to object; ballistic evidence not conclusive.
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14 May 2024 |
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The Supreme Court held it may determine its own jurisdiction to grant leave to appeal and need not refer that question to the Constitutional Court.
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Constitutional jurisdiction — Whether Supreme Court may grant leave to appeal to itself after Court of Appeal refusal — Article 131 interpretation — Article 128(2) referral to Constitutional Court — Mandona precedent.
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8 May 2024 |
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Termination by notice communicated via a group HR officer was valid; wrongful dismissal yields damages, not nullity, and entitlements lacked proof.
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Employment law — validity of termination by notice communicated by parent-group official — master-and-servant relationship — wrongful termination is breach (damages) not nullity; delving behind termination requires evidence of improper motives; acting allowance and salary increase require clear proof or formal contract amendment.
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6 May 2024 |
| April 2024 |
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Application for leave to appeal dismissed; filing was timely and counsel wrongly condemned, but proposed grounds failed statutory threshold.
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Civil procedure — leave to appeal to Supreme Court — computation of time under Supreme Court Rules (public holidays) — mischaracterisation of ruling dates and counsel misconduct — section 13(3) Court of Appeal Act threshold for leave (point of law of public importance, prospects of success, compelling reasons) — appellate power under section 24 to grant relief necessary for justice — no novel unjust enrichment issue.
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25 April 2024 |
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Whether a Director may authorise use of government vehicle and driver for private consultancy and whether that constitutes abuse of office.
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Abuse of authority of office — authorisation of government vehicle and driver for private consultancy — Director of Geological Survey powers under s124 Mines and Minerals Development Act — credibility of administrative witnesses — sentencing for misdemeanour; fine preferred for first offender.
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19 April 2024 |
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Whether the appellant proved a statutory honest-belief defence as to age, and whether the 40-year sentence was excessive.
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Criminal law — Defilement — Statutory defence of honest belief as to age under s.138(1) — requirement of reasonable cause and actual belief — sentencing discretion for defilement (15 years to life) — appellate interference only if sentence shocks court.
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19 April 2024 |
| March 2024 |
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Whether Bundabunda chieftaincy is rotational and whether the Kashimbi lineage is entitled to the next succession.
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Customary law — chieftaincy succession — rotation among matrilineal lineages; probative weight of family trees and contemporaneous joint reports; admissibility and weight of oral/traditional evidence (shrine clay pots); appellate interference with trial findings of fact where documentary inconsistencies and absence of verification exist.
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20 March 2024 |
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Evidence of telephone confirmations and corroborating call-back stamps upheld a court-martial conviction despite a harmless misdirection about producing signature comparisons.
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Criminal law — Courts-martial appeal — Defence Act s.138 — proof of handwriting/signature by witness confirmation and corroborative documentary evidence; burden of proof — misdirection harmless where independent evidence supports conviction; disclosure obligations — prosecution not required to produce comparative signatures when accused effectively admits or confirms authorship; procedural irregularity — failure to deliberate in private requires shown prejudice.
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6 March 2024 |
| 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 |
| December 2022 |
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29 December 2022 |
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Appellants' corruption convictions and five-year sentences upheld; statutory presumption valid and foreign documents admissible.
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Criminal law — Corruption — proof of overpayments and corrupt gratification; Admissibility — foreign documents and authentication; Constitutional law — right to silence vis-à-vis statutory presumptions in anti‑corruption legislation; Evidence — use of intelligence-related material and presidential consent; Corporate law — lifting the veil to attribute personal criminal liability to corporate officers; Sentencing — custodial deterrent sentences for corruption.
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29 December 2022 |
| November 2022 |
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Renewed application for leave to appeal denied; alleged fraud and locus standi procedural failings do not justify setting aside arbitral award.
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Arbitration — limited court intervention; Arbitration Act s17 — grounds to set aside awards (fraud, public policy, jurisdictional limits); Court of Appeal Act s13(3) — threshold for leave to appeal; procedural requirement to renew single-judge applications (renewal, not appeal); failure to produce evidence at arbitration not basis for setting aside award.
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9 November 2022 |