Results.
23 judgments found.
|
|
|
| November 2023 |
|
|
Oral accusations of murder at a village meeting constituted defamation; plaintiff awarded modest damages and costs.
-
Defamation — oral imputation of serious crime at a public meeting — elements: defamatory meaning, reference, publication — plaintiff bears burden of proof in Zambia — defences (truth/justification, reasonable publication, opinion) require clear proof — semantic distinction between 'killer' and 'murderer' not a defence — damages for vindication and solatium.
|
30 November 2023 |
|
Without prejudice correspondence can be admissible to prove a binding settlement when accepted and acted upon, supporting judgment for unpaid debt.
-
Civil procedure — Default writ and burden of proof; Evidence — admissibility of "without prejudice" negotiations to prove a concluded agreement (Tomlin principle); Contract/Debt — acknowledgment of debt and part payment; Remedies — interest and costs.
|
24 November 2023 |
|
Night-time burglary conviction where unsworn intoxication defence failed to rebut prosecution's credible evidence.
-
Criminal law — Burglary (s.301(a)) — proof beyond reasonable doubt — credibility of witnesses — unsworn testimony of accused — intoxication (s.13(4)) and intent.
|
13 November 2023 |
| October 2023 |
|
|
Prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case of defilement due to unreliable medical and witness evidence; accused acquitted.
-
Criminal law — Defilement — No case to answer — Prima facie standard — Unreliable medical report and absence of medical witness — Discredited witness evidence — Investigative lapses.
|
18 October 2023 |
|
Accused convicted of theft where circumstantial evidence and possession of the complainant’s jacket excluded reasonable hypotheses of innocence.
-
Criminal law — Theft — Burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt — Circumstantial evidence — Afterthought defence — Identification and possession of stolen property — Intention to permanently deprive.
|
2 October 2023 |
| September 2023 |
|
|
Plaintiff's claim for return of goods dismissed because group constitution authorised seizure as security and plaintiff remained indebted.
-
Civil procedure; Restitution and unjust enrichment; Savings-group constitution; Seizure of member property as security; Credibility of witnesses; Refusal to grant relief not established in evidence.
|
28 September 2023 |
|
Buyer failed to prove payments; valid contract existed, repossession amounted to trespass but did not justify refund; claim dismissed.
-
Contract law — formation and enforceability of oral and written terms; parol evidence and collateral oral terms; burden of proof in civil claims (he who alleges must prove); repossession and trespass for unpaid goods; nominal damages when injury shown but loss unproven; costs and right of appeal.
|
14 September 2023 |
| August 2023 |
|
|
Plaintiffs succeeded in conversion/restitution claim for beans and chickens; defendants ordered to restitute or pay market value with interest.
-
Civil law — restitution and unjust enrichment — conversion of goods left in custody — admissibility of criminal-process documentary evidence in civil proceedings — proof on balance of probabilities.
|
17 August 2023 |
| July 2023 |
|
|
Circumstantial evidence and a voluntary confession led to conviction for stock theft of a goat.
-
Criminal law — Stock theft (s.275) — Ingredients of offence; Circumstantial evidence — cogency and exclusion of innocent hypothesis; Confession — voluntariness and admissibility; Leading accused to scene — self-incrimination; Evidential burden on accused to raise defence.
|
31 July 2023 |
|
Accused convicted of assault occasioning actual bodily harm; inadequate alibi and weak defence evidence failed to raise reasonable doubt.
-
Criminal law — Assault occasioning actual bodily harm — Burden of proof; alibi evidential burden and police investigation; weight of unsworn testimony; caution as to relatives' evidence; corroboration by odd coincidences and medical report.
|
17 July 2023 |
|
The court held a mandatory trial-within-a-trial and admitted the accused's confession as voluntary evidence.
-
Criminal procedure — trial-within-a-trial — voluntariness of confession — burden on prosecution to negate inducement beyond reasonable doubt — Judges' Rules — admissibility of confession.
|
11 July 2023 |
|
Intoxication did not negate intent; prosecution proved unlawful entry and guilty mind for criminal trespass beyond reasonable doubt.
-
Criminal trespass — elements: unlawful entry without permission and requisite intent — intoxication as defence (s.13(4)) requires incapacity to form intent — burden on prosecution to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt — attempted flight and habitué status as indicia of guilty mind.
|
11 July 2023 |
| June 2023 |
|
|
Prosecution proved criminal trespass where accused entered signposted private plantation and unsworn defence was inconsistent.
-
Criminal trespass — unlawful entry onto private property — notice by signage — burden on prosecution to prove intent and lack of permission beyond reasonable doubt — weight of unsworn defence evidence.
|
26 June 2023 |
|
Intoxication did not negate intent; accused convicted of criminal trespass for entering fenced private premises.
-
Criminal trespass — unlawful entry onto private, fenced premises — intent to commit offence — intoxication defence under section 13(4) Penal Code — burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt — dock identification.
|
26 June 2023 |
|
Unlawful distraint: landlord must obtain court leave before seizing tenant’s goods; restitution ordered to remedy unjust enrichment.
-
Landlord and tenant law — distraint/distrain — Rent Act (Cap. 206) s.14 requires court leave to levy distress; unlawful distraint; unjust enrichment and restitution; exclusion of benefit from illegality.
|
22 June 2023 |
|
Accused convicted for naming the respondent a wizard; acquitted of using insulting language due to insufficient proof.
-
Witchcraft Act s3(a) — naming a person a wizard; Penal Code s179 — insulting language; identification at night by acquaintances; evidential burden on alibi; caution with relatives’ testimony; human-rights implications of witchcraft accusations.
|
21 June 2023 |
|
Circumstantial evidence and an unreliable alibi led to conviction for breaking into a workshop and stealing power tools.
-
Criminal law — Breaking and entering and theft — Elements of offence — Burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt — Alibi: requirement of particularity and timely raising — Circumstantial evidence: cogency and exclusion of reasonable hypothesis of innocence.
|
14 June 2023 |
|
Circumstantial evidence and an implausible afterthought defence supported convictions for stock theft.
-
Criminal law — Stock theft (s.275 Penal Code) — burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt — circumstantial evidence and ‘odd coincidences’ — credibility of afterthought defence and disputed documentary evidence.
|
2 June 2023 |
| May 2023 |
|
|
Whether retention of savings-group funds constituted conversion and liability to repay K13,623.00 with interest.
-
Conversion of money; implied debt and restitution; subordinate court equitable jurisdiction; measure of damages for conversion; savings group funds misappropriation.
|
18 May 2023 |
|
Circumstantial evidence and unrebutted possession of stolen items established burglary and theft beyond reasonable doubt.
-
Criminal law — Burglary and theft — Elements and burden of proof — Circumstantial evidence and odd coincidences as corroboration — Afterthought defence and failure to call corroborative witness.
|
16 May 2023 |
|
Conviction for theft where possession, silence, and absence of a bona fide claim supported inference of dishonest intent.
-
Criminal law — Theft (s.272 Penal Code) — possession and conversion of property — intention to permanently deprive — burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt — accused’s silence and claim of right.
|
16 May 2023 |
|
Accused convicted for pretending to be an advocate under the Legal Practitioners Act after personation not proved.
-
Criminal law — Personation vs. professional impersonation; requirement of intent to defraud under section 378 Penal Code; substitution of charge; Legal Practitioners Act s.43 — pretending to be an advocate; burden of proof and benefit of doubt to accused.
|
16 May 2023 |
| March 2023 |
|
|
Whether the prosecution proved that the accused, a public servant, fraudulently moved and sold government containers.
-
Criminal law — Theft by public servant — Elements: actus reus (taking/movement) and mens rea (fraudulent intent) — Proof that property belonged to Government — Evidential corroboration of witness testimony and transactions — Disposal of government assets and role of Ministry of Works and Supply.
|
23 March 2023 |