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Citation
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Judgment date
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| January 2017 |
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Assessment awarded MK6.7 million for personal injury: pain and suffering, loss of amenities, and earning capacity; future care not proven.
Personal injury – assessment of damages – pain and suffering and disfigurement – loss of amenities – loss of earning capacity (Smith v Manchester award) – admissibility of unpleaded injuries at assessment – proof of future nursing care and medical expenses.
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31 January 2017 |
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31 January 2017 |
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31 January 2017 |
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Plaintiff failed to prove the first defendant's negligence; evidence was insufficient and unreliable.
Road traffic negligence; burden and standard of proof (balance of probabilities); evidentiary weight of hearsay versus eyewitness and police sketch; contributory negligence and intoxication of pedestrian; absence of neutral onlookers.
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31 January 2017 |
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27 January 2017 |
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A property dispute arising from bank-related commercial dealings is a commercial matter and must be transferred to the Commercial Division.
Commercial law; jurisdiction; transfer to Commercial Division; Courts (Amendment) Act 2016 s2 definition of "commercial matter"; Courts Act s6A; interlocutory injunction consequences.
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27 January 2017 |
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25 January 2017 |
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24 January 2017 |
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Trial court improperly granted ex parte discharge and released property without complying with section 247(1)–(2).
Criminal procedure — discharge for want of prosecution — sections 247(1)–(2) CP & EC — ex parte applications — requirement of reasonable notice and hearing — prosecutorial delay and prejudice — defective record-keeping and change of venue — High Court review under section 362(1).
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24 January 2017 |
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Interlocutory injunction for spousal access dismissed as abuse of process amid related guardianship proceedings.
Family law – interlocutory injunction – right to consortium – abuse of court process – full and frank disclosure – related custody/guardianship proceedings and court-ordered medical assessment.
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24 January 2017 |
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19 January 2017 |
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19 January 2017 |
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18 January 2017 |
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18 January 2017 |
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Court admonished counsel for misleading the court and discharged an interim stay preventing prosecutions.
Judicial review — ex parte leave and interim stay; Legal practitioner misconduct — misleading the court; Disciplinary powers — section 21(1)(b) Legal Education and Legal Practitioners Act; Stay of prosecution discharged.
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18 January 2017 |
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17 January 2017 |
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13 January 2017 |
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Positive identification and a corroborated caution statement sustain conviction; sentence reduced from 12 to 8 years for excessiveness.
Criminal law – Identification evidence and Turnbull principles – reliability of witness identification by torchlight; Evidence – hearsay, search warrant irregularities, call logs and co-accused admissions – impact on conviction; Defence of alibi – prosecution’s duty to disprove; Sentencing – ss. 339–340 CP&EC, first offender, reduction of manifestly excessive custodial term.
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13 January 2017 |
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13 January 2017 |
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Assessment of personal injury damages (pain, loss of amenities, disfigurement) guided by comparable awards and inflation.
Personal injury – assessment of damages – pain and suffering, loss of amenities and disfigurement – reliance on comparable awards and adjustment for inflation – uncontested evidence where defendant absent but served – award MK6,300,000.
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11 January 2017 |
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11 January 2017 |
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Court permitted tender of a photocopy of a medical report where the original was unobtainable and no prejudice to defendant was shown.
Evidence — Documentary proof — Production of original or certified copy — Where original unavailable despite reasonable efforts, court may allow secondary evidence (photocopy) in interest of justice; avoidance of technicalities.
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11 January 2017 |
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11 January 2017 |
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10 January 2017 |
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Section 184(1)(c) is unconstitutionally vague and permits arbitrary, discriminatory arrests, violating multiple fundamental rights.
Constitutional law — Criminal law — Vagrancy offence (s.184(1)(c) Penal Code) — Vagueness and arbitrariness — Presumption of innocence and due process — Limitation clause (s.44) — Remedy: declaration of invalidity; legislative and executive measures.
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10 January 2017 |
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A banking/finance dispute was held to be a commercial matter and must be transferred to the Commercial Division within 14 days.
Commercial law — classification as "commercial matter" under Courts (Amendment) Act 2016 — allocation to Commercial Division under s.6A Courts Act — transfer of cause; interlocutory injunction and consequence of non-transfer.
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10 January 2017 |
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10 January 2017 |
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Customary clan land cannot be acquired by prescription nor bequeathed; subordinate magistrates may determine customary land disputes.
Civil procedure; jurisdiction of subordinate courts over customary land (s.39 Courts Act) – Registered Land Act s.134 excludes prescription for customary land – prescription/adverse possession inapplicable to customary/tribal land – Wills and probate: DEWIPA vests probate jurisdiction in High Court; unproved will inadmissible – Clan/tribal land not bequeathable.
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10 January 2017 |
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10 January 2017 |
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9 January 2017 |
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Appellant's counsel non-appearance without adequate excuse justified lower court's reinstatement of judgment and refusal to stay execution.
Civil procedure – adjournment and non-appearance – exercise of judicial discretion; audi alteram partem; stay of execution; hierarchy of courts and allocation of hearings.
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9 January 2017 |
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Medical report stating victim's age admissible under s180 when served and unobjected; 12-year sentence for guardian's defilement of 14-year-old upheld.
Criminal law – Defilement – Proof of age – Admissibility of medical reports under s180 as exception to hearsay; report may include introductory particulars such as age when procedural conditions met; representation and failure to object relevant
Sentencing – Aggravating factors: abuse of trust, repeated offences, threats and victim dependency justify substantial custodial term
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6 January 2017 |
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6 January 2017 |
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Appeal dismissed: age and penetration proved; proviso defence not established; nine‑year sentence for repeated defilement upheld.
Criminal law — Defilement (s.138 Penal Code) — Proof of age: parental testimony and health passport as sufficient evidence — Proviso defence: requirement of reasonable belief of age — Magistrate’s powers under s.201 CPC — Admissibility and evidential weight of medical reports/photocopies — Sentencing: repeated defilement, coercion, first offender considerations.
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6 January 2017 |
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6 January 2017 |
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6 January 2017 |
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6 January 2017 |
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6 January 2017 |
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Court ordered implementation of unpaid rural hardship allowances, declared contested postings illegal, and awarded costs.
Administrative law – Judicial review of executive inaction – Failure to implement rural hardship allowance; Unreasonableness, arbitrariness and discrimination in eligibility criteria; Mandamus to compel payment; Unlawful/retaliatory postings; Costs awarded.
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6 January 2017 |
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High Court may review 'case to answer' rulings; confessions of one accused require independent corroboration to charge co-accused.
Criminal procedure — Review of 'case to answer' decisions; confession evidence — inadmissibility against co-accused unless adopted; retracted confessions — section 176(3) requires beyond reasonable doubt satisfaction; hostile witnesses — evidence disregarded; receiving stolen property — proof of knowledge required.
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5 January 2017 |
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High Court reviewed a 'case to answer' finding, acquitting four accused due to inadmissible or uncorroborated confession evidence.
Criminal procedure — review of 'case to answer' rulings; confession evidence — admissibility and retracted confessions (s176(2),(3)); requirement of independent corroboration for co-accused; hostile witnesses — inadmissibility; receiving stolen property — requirement of knowledge.
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5 January 2017 |
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4 January 2017 |
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State must show and file supporting evidence of its case before opposing bail; publicity or related refusals are insufficient.
Criminal procedure — Bail — Judicial discretion under Bail Guidelines Act — State must demonstrate strength of evidence on affidavit or by docket — Publicity insufficient to deny bail — Like cases assessed individually — Expiry of prescribed custody periods and lack of extension proof.
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4 January 2017 |
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One‑third remission is a statutory right, reduced by at most sixty days for bad conduct; applicant not entitled to immediate release.
Prisons Act — remission under s107(1) — remission as of right subject to deductions under s91 — s91(a)(ii) permits forfeiture of remission not exceeding 60 days for bad conduct — calculation of release dates where multiple sentences apply.
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4 January 2017 |
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Appellate court reduced a 12-year defilement sentence to 9 years, balancing guilty plea and first-offender mitigation against pregnancy aggravation.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Defilement of a child (12 years) – Plea of guilty as mitigating factor – First offender and relative youth as mitigation – Victim pregnancy as aggravating factor – Appeal reduces sentence from 12 to 9 years' imprisonment with hard labour.
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4 January 2017 |
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4 January 2017 |
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Accomplice testimony may suffice for conviction if the court, after caution, finds it truthful; sentences reduced to 10 and 9 years.
Criminal law – Child trafficking – Accomplice evidence and corroboration (s242 Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code); identification testimony and Turnbull principles; joint liability/common intention; admissibility/use of caution statements; venue and in camera trial; sentence proportionality and reduction.
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4 January 2017 |
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4 January 2017 |
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Prosecution for inconsiderate driving commenced after the statutory 12‑month period is time‑barred; accused discharged and property returned.
Criminal Procedure — s261 limitation period; Road Traffic Act s127 inconsiderate driving; time-barred prosecution; discharge and return of seized property.
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4 January 2017 |