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Citation
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Judgment date
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| March 2001 |
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Court discharged the regulator as party, finding the first defendant’s attempted joinder an abuse of process and ordered costs.
Civil procedure – Joinder of parties; Abuse of process – reintroduction of matter previously dismissed; Administrative/regulatory law – necessity of regulator’s presence in declaratory proceedings concerning interconnection agreements; Declaratory relief versus appeal or fresh proceedings; Costs for interlocutory applications.
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29 March 2001 |
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Applicants failed to prove prima facie legality of their sit-in; injunction to protect negotiations was dismissed.
Civil procedure – Order 29 r.1 – interim injunction; industrial action – legality of sit-in/strike; burden to establish prima facie right; injunctions not to compel negotiations; distinct causes of action vs. grafting new matter onto pending judicial review.
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28 March 2001 |
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The plaintiff cannot sue the underwriters; only insured directors may claim after legal liability is established; conflicting indemnities void.
Insurance — Directors' and Officers' (D&O) policy — Interpretation: insured persons vs company rights; insured directors/officers acquire rights only after legal liability established. Contract law — policy construction: surrounding circumstances and business commonsense. Companies law — Section 163: prohibition on contractual indemnities for officers; contractual clauses attempting to exclude s.163 are void. Civil procedure — Order 14A RSC: preliminary points of law permissible only where no disputed facts and affidavits must be within deponent's knowledge
Evidence — inadmissibility of double hearsay in Order 14A affidavits. Third-party rights — no common-law or statutory right for company to sue insurers absent specific legislation
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27 March 2001 |
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The respondent must pay full statutory severance for entire service; long-service awards do not offset statutory severance.
Employment law – Severance allowance – Section 35(1) Employment Act 2000 – Long Service Awards not a substitute for statutory severance – Right to fair labour practices (s.31) – Interest for delayed statutory payment.
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23 March 2001 |
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Conviction for rape confirmed; lower court’s five-year sentence set aside and increased to seven years’ hard labour due to gravity of the offence.
Criminal law – Rape – Confirmation of conviction – Sentencing – Whether original sentence unduly lenient – Enhancement of sentence where victim threatened and subjected to consecutive rapes – Instigation of co-perpetrator.
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22 March 2001 |
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Private employer may terminate on contractual notice; constitutional administrative-law protections (Section 43) do not apply to private employment termination.
Employment law – Termination of employment by private employer – Contractual notice – Validity of Acting Chairman’s approval – Non-application of constitutional administrative-law protections (Section 43) to private master-servant terminations – Damages for loss of legitimate expectations.
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20 March 2001 |
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Prison officers convicted of manslaughter; offence in line of duty aggravates sentence, remorse and family circumstances limited mitigation.
Criminal law – Manslaughter by custodial officers – Remorse after conviction of limited weight – Offence in course of duty aggravates sentence – Family responsibilities not substantial mitigation – Remand time to be credited – 18 years' imprisonment with hard labour.
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19 March 2001 |
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Six-year sentence for theft of two cattle was manifestly excessive and reduced to permit the defendant's immediate release.
Sentencing — Theft of cattle — Manifestly excessive sentence — Statutory maximum for worst instance — Need to assess actual facts and mitigation — Review and reduction of sentence.
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17 March 2001 |
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14 March 2001 |
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Appeal allowed where trial court misapplied evidence law and failed to consider self-defence; conviction quashed.
Criminal law – evaluation of credibility and contradiction in evidence; single witness evidence; duty to consider possible defences (self-defence/defence of another); burden on prosecution to disprove raised defences beyond reasonable doubt; appellate review of factual findings.
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13 March 2001 |
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Committal for contempt requires authenticated evidence, proof beyond reasonable doubt, and notice of any restriction order.
Contempt of court — sub judice/prejudicial publications — requirement of notice/knowledge for external restriction orders — magistrate jurisdiction to issue "gagging" orders — authentication and provenance of video evidence — admissibility of hearsay in committal proceedings — standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.
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11 March 2001 |
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A five‑year sentence for housebreaking reduced to three years due to youth, first‑offence status, guilty plea and lack of aggravation.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Housebreaking/burglary – Appropriate starting point and range (Chizumila guidance) – Weight of guilty plea and first‑offender status – Mitigating and aggravating factors in burglary sentencing.
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8 March 2001 |
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Appellant’s conviction quashed where circumstantial evidence had gaps and hearsay/confessions were inadmissible.
Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence – must exclude all reasonable hypotheses of innocence; Hearsay – statements by co-accused to third parties inadmissible to prove truth; Confession – only evidence against maker unless adopted; Burden of proof rests on prosecution.
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8 March 2001 |