Results.
17 judgments found.
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| December 2013 |
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High Court granted bail where lower court denied it without proper reasons amid prolonged pre-trial detention and weak evidence.
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Criminal law
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— Bail — Refusal based solely on denial of bail in other pending matters — Necessity to consider interests of justice and provide reasons
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— Pre-trial detention — Prolonged delay and commencement of trial — Relevant ground for bail where detention is inordinate and State’s case appears weak
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15 December 2013 |
| November 2013 |
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Interim injunction refused where landlord’s common-law right to distrain for rent persisted and damages were adequate.
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Civil procedure — interim injunctions — American Cyanamid principles; landlord’s common-law right to distrain for rent; adequacy of damages and undertaking as to damages; role of Sheriff and warrants of distress; balance of convenience in commercial tenancy disputes.
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26 November 2013 |
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Interim injunction denied where plaintiff lacked a good arguable claim and balance of convenience favoured installation of the rightful heir.
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Civil procedure — Interim injunction — Requirement of good arguable case and assessment of balance of convenience
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Customary law — Chieftaincy succession — Proof of customary descent and custodianship of custom
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Remedies — Adequacy of damages — Monetary compensation inadequate for disputes over traditional office
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14 November 2013 |
| October 2013 |
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Summary judgment for unpaid repair invoices upheld; unpleaded damages set aside, defendant’s defence struck out, compound commercial interest awarded.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment — Requirement that plaintiff clearly prove claim and defendant show bona fide reasonable defence — Summary judgment appropriate where defence is a sham or merely aims at delay
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Contract — Pleading — Court may not award damages for a head of loss not pleaded — Such relief must be set aside
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Interest — Commercial disputes — Courts may award compound commercial interest under Courts Act s 11(a)(v) to reflect economic reality of borrowing costs
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31 October 2013 |
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Plaintiff’s failure to initiate mediation and prosecute the claim justified dismissal for want of prosecution with costs.
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Civil procedure — dismissal for want of prosecution — failure to initiate mediation within prescribed time — Mandatory Mediation Rules (Rule 7(2)) — failure to prosecute and attend hearing — costs awarded to respondent.
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30 October 2013 |
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Summary judgment and judgment on admission refused where defendant raised triable issues and no clear admission of the claimed debt.
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Civil procedure — summary judgment (Order 14) — requirement of no bona fide defence; summary disposal inappropriate where triable issues exist. Civil procedure — judgment on admission (Order 27) — letters/faxes must clearly admit claim to justify judgment
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Evidence — defendant’s burden at summary stage to raise credible, triable issues (e.g., disputed invoices, proof of payment)
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30 October 2013 |
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Insurer liable for passengers' injuries despite policy exclusion; owner negligent for failing to keep vehicle in repair.
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Road Traffic Act s.148(2) — insurer liability despite policy exclusions; Owner's duty to keep vehicle in repair — res ipsa loquitur; Procedural joinder — late objection and available remedies (third-party notice/calling witness).
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15 October 2013 |
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Compliance with a lawful police request to hand over the applicant did not constitute false imprisonment or defamation.
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False imprisonment — private person assisting police — s41(a) Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code — lawful delivery to police; Defamation — conduct as publication — mere arrest/handcuffing not necessarily defamatory; Compliance with lawful police request as defence to civil liability; Failure to prosecute does not of itself establish false imprisonment.
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15 October 2013 |
| September 2013 |
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Whether chiefs can alienate customary land and whether the applicant's long-term investment warranted protection and compensation.
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Customary land — chiefs lack authority to sell — customary land vests in the President; Right to use vs title — long-term use and substantial investment create protectable use-rights; Appeal remedies — reversal, remittal under Courts Act s22(d) to quantify losses; Compensation for destruction of trees/crops.
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30 September 2013 |
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An appellant cannot dispossess longstanding customary occupiers; long use of customary land confers protected rights.
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Customary land — rights of use not alienable title — long uninterrupted occupation confers protectable rights; access to courts not ousted by chiefs’ processes; procedural irregularity (delay and improper fees) criticized but insufficient to overturn substantive decision
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15 September 2013 |
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High Court dismissed a customary land claim as prematurely commenced; statutory land tribunals under the Customary Land Act must first adjudicate.
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Customary land disputes — jurisdiction — Customary Land Act 2016 Part VII — requirement to institute customary land tribunals and district land tribunals; non-establishment and undue delay; judicial duty to give effect to statute; High Court not competent at first instance for matters assigned to statutory tribunals; precedential weight of Polypet Packaging Industries v. OG Plastic Industries; Kennes Msuku obiter dicta per incuriam
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1 September 2013 |
| August 2013 |
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Court quashed robbery and unlawful wounding convictions where evidence was insufficient and a plea of guilty was improperly accepted.
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Criminal law — sufficiency of evidence for robbery conviction — duplication of convictions; Criminal procedure — plea of guilty — admissibility and weight of caution/denial statements (Rep v Chikakuda) — requirement to treat qualified admissions as not guilty pleas.
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8 August 2013 |
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The applicant may have a default judgment set aside if their affidavit discloses an arguable defence on the merits.
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Default judgment — setting aside under Order 13 r.9/Order 19 r.9; discretionary power; requirement to disclose an arguable defence on the merits; delay and prejudice; implied stay of proceedings following stay of execution; restoration of summons.
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3 August 2013 |
| July 2013 |
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23 July 2013 |
| June 2013 |
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The court affirmed the conviction but reduced a manifestly excessive ten‑year robbery sentence to seven years.
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Criminal law — Robbery — Sentencing principles — Proportionality and constitutional limits on punishment — Sentencing guidelines and starting points for robbery (s.301(1) 5yrs; s.301(2) 8yrs; firearms 10yrs) — Aggravating and mitigating factors — Guilty plea reduction
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17 June 2013 |
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Whether a constitutional referral should be dismissed for want of prosecution and whether the three-judge panel had jurisdiction given procedural defects.
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Constitutional procedure — referral to three-judge panel — requirement of Form 3 and Chief Justice certification (Form 1); dismissal for want of prosecution — inordinate and inexcusable delay; jurisdictional limits on referral; mixed commercial and constitutional matters — severance and original court competence
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11 June 2013 |
| May 2013 |
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Interlocutory injunction to restrain lawful distraint for rent refused; sheriff need not hold a bailiff certificate.
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Landlord and tenant — distraint for rent — interlocutory injunction — American Cyanamid principles (exception) — sheriff’s power to distrain without bailiff certificate — adequacy of damages — balance of convenience
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2 May 2013 |