Results.
281 judgments found.
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| December 2017 |
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Plaintiff awarded MK3,000,000 for loss of use of title deed; special damages not proven.
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Assessment of damages — wrongful retention of title deed — loss of use as general damages — distinction between general and special damages — requirement of strict proof for special damages — restitution in integrum — nominal damages where amount not proved.
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22 December 2017 |
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Stay of damages assessment pending appeal denied where appellant failed to show risk of injustice or inability to repay.
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Civil procedure — Stay of proceedings pending appeal — Interlocutory judgment and assessment of damages — Discretion to grant stay guided by risk of injustice — Stay of execution vs stay of proceedings — Prematurity of application.
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20 December 2017 |
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Court refused the applicant’s stay pending appeal as premature and unjustly prejudicial to the respondent.
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Stay pending appeal — discretionary exercise — consider risk of injustice and prejudice; Interlocutory judgment — liability final but damages to be assessed; Applicant’s burden to show special circumstances and inability of respondent to repay; Prematurity of application to stay assessment of damages; Appropriate remedy may be stay of execution after Registrar’s assessment.
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20 December 2017 |
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18 December 2017 |
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18 December 2017 |
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18 December 2017 |
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Arson conviction confirmed; 84‑month sentence set aside as manifestly excessive and reduced to effect immediate release.
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Criminal law — Arson — Sentence on review — Manifestly excessive sentence reduced on account of guilty plea and first offender status — Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines and section 337(A) considered — Court may vary sentence on review even when parties absent.
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18 December 2017 |
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Leave to seek judicial review refused where impugned acts were recommendations and the wrong public officer was sued.
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Administrative law — Judicial review — Leave to apply requires an arguable case — Ripeness: recommendations by inspectors v. final decisions — Proper party: only the public office/officer who made the impugned decision is liable — TEVETA Board decisions.
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13 December 2017 |
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Excessive 17-year pre-trial detention constituted gross injustice justifying immediate release despite a 12-year manslaughter sentence prospect.
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Criminal law — Manslaughter — Conviction on plea of guilty — Sentence — Mitigating factors: guilty plea, youth, first offender, intoxication, remorse — Aggravating factors: use of knife, multiple fatal wounds — Inordinate pre-trial detention (17 years) as ground for release.
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12 December 2017 |
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Summary judgment granted where defendant’s general denial lacked particulars; estate/dependants claims refused for lack of letters of administration.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14 RSC) — General denial without particulars is not a bona fide defence — Legal capacity to sue for estate and dependants — Letters of administration required.
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11 December 2017 |
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Court exercised discretion to fix taxation rate (K10,000/hr), excluded prior appellate/Registrar-awarded costs, and allowed defendant set-off at K5,000/hr.
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Civil procedure — Taxation of party-and-party costs — Court’s discretion to fix hourly rates — Prior Registrar’s rate revision held invalid — Expense rate fixed at K10,000/hour — Prior appellate and Registrar cost orders given effect — Leave to tax out of time and set-off at K5,000/hour.
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11 December 2017 |
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Bank negligent in delayed action and CCTV management; customer also contributorily negligent; second appellant’s claims dismissed.
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Bank negligence — failure to block account and preserve CCTV evidence — contributory negligence apportionment between bank and customer; civil claims of false imprisonment, malicious prosecution and defamation require proof of improper conduct or malice by the claimant.
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11 December 2017 |
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Summary judgment granted where defendants offered only general denials and insurer’s payments supported liability.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14 RSC) — Plaintiff’s burden to establish claim — Defendant’s duty to plead particularized bona fide defence — General denials insufficient — Insurer’s payments to third-party claimants as evidence of indemnity/liability.
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8 December 2017 |
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Judicial review inappropriate to challenge adequacy of compensation; administrative process was fair and eviction upheld.
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Administrative law — judicial review limited to decision-making process; adequacy of compensation is a merits issue for ordinary suit; procedural fairness and Wednesbury unreasonableness not established; entitlement to adequate notice and compensation satisfied.
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6 December 2017 |
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Court upheld convictions for malicious damage and theft based on circumstantial evidence, partially reducing the sentence.
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Criminal law — Malicious damage and theft — Circumstantial evidence and direct identification — Malice includes intention and recklessness — Defective charge requires prejudice to set aside conviction — Sentencing: role of offender, aggravating factors, and concurrent sentences; reduction where excessive.
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6 December 2017 |
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Application for stay of execution dismissed where defendant negotiated directly with a represented plaintiff despite a valid default judgment.
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Civil procedure — stay of execution (Order 10 Rule 5) — effect of out-of-court settlement/payment made directly to a represented party — default judgment regularly obtained — abuse of process where defendant negotiates behind plaintiff's counsel.
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1 December 2017 |
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The 2nd applicant, an innocent purchaser for value without notice, obtains ownership; respondent entitled only to judgment balance.
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Registered Land Act; Statute of Frauds; sale of land; bona fide purchaser for value without notice; effect of prior default judgment on subsequent sale; estate agent involvement in land sale.
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1 December 2017 |
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1 December 2017 |
| November 2017 |
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Employer may deduct from wages for restitution but cannot withhold employees' pension to recover debts.
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Employment law — recovery of employer losses — s56(4) Employment Act: deductions from wages permissible; Pension law — pension benefits not attachable to settle employee debts; remedies for seized property.
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30 November 2017 |
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Applicant on prolonged remand granted bail with strict conditions including cash bond, sureties, reporting, and surrender of travel documents.
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Criminal procedure — Bail — Applicant on prolonged remand granted bail — State non-objection but requests strict conditions — Conditions imposed: cash deposit, two bonded sureties, periodic police reporting, travel restrictions, surrender of travel documents, examination of sureties before Registrar.
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30 November 2017 |
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Bail granted despite overstay on remand, subject to strict conditions to ensure attendance and protect the administration of justice.
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Bail — Grant of bail where accused has overstayed on remand — Interest of justice — Imposition of conditions: cash deposit, sureties, periodic police reporting, surrender of travel documents — Examination of sureties before Registrar.
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30 November 2017 |
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Applicant granted bail pending trial with strict cash, surety, reporting and travel-document surrender conditions.
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Criminal procedure — Bail application — Overstay on remand — Bail Guidelines Act s12; Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code s118; Constitution s42(2)(e) — Conditions of bail: cash deposit, bonded sureties, reporting requirements, travel-document surrender, examination of sureties.
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30 November 2017 |
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Summary judgment granted where insurer's general denial and unsupported contributory-neglect plea failed to constitute a bona fide defence.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14 RSC) — Defendant must file an affidavit with particulars — Bare denials and unsupported contributory negligence plea are not bona fide defences — Insurer’s vicarious liability where insurer not disputed — Sham defence doctrine.
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29 November 2017 |
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Summary judgment granted where defendant's general denial lacked particularized facts to raise a bona fide defence in a negligence claim.
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Civil procedure — summary judgment (Order 14 RSC) — requirement for a defendant to raise a bona fide defence with particularized facts — negligence/personal injury — general denials insufficient to defeat summary judgment.
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28 November 2017 |
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Summary judgment refused where defendant’s denial of insurer status and plea of contributory negligence raised bona fide triable issues.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14 RSC) — Exceptional remedy — Bona fide defence and triable issues — Contributory negligence — Denial of insurer status — Admissibility/weight of affidavit sworn by counsel — Liability to be determined at trial.
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21 November 2017 |
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Court dismissed the action for want of prosecution due to inordinate delay, granting liberty to restore within 30 days.
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Civil procedure — dismissal for want of prosecution — High Court Civil Procedure Rules 2017 — active case management (Order 1 r.5) — inordinate and inexcusable delay — liberty to restore — costs awarded.
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20 November 2017 |
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An Order 14A application was dismissed because disputed adverse possession and notice issues require a full trial.
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Civil procedure — Order 14A RSC — Summary determination inappropriate where issues of adverse possession, bona fide purchaser status and limitation raise factual disputes requiring full trial and cross‑examination; prior judicial directions to proceed to trial preclude pre‑emptive interlocutory determination.
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17 November 2017 |
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Insurer struck out because the policy excluded passenger cover and the plaintiff had no cause of action against it.
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Insurance law — insurer struck out where policy expressly excluded passenger cover; Road Traffic Act s.144 does not universally mandate passenger insurance; sanctity of contract; Order 15 r.6(2) RSC — striking out improperly joined parties.
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16 November 2017 |
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Trial held in chambers without sufficient reasons breaches right to public trial; proceedings declared nullity and retrial ordered.
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Constitutional right to public trial — s42(2)(i); Criminal Procedure & Evidence Code s71; Courts Act s60 — in camera exceptions require sufficient reasons; trials in chambers/prisons without Chief Justice designation invalid; remedy: proceedings declared nullity and retrial ordered.
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14 November 2017 |
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Court awarded the plaintiff K3,806,000 for pain, loss of amenities, disfigurement and report costs after a vehicle collision.
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Tort — assessment of non-pecuniary damages — pain and suffering; loss of amenities of life; disfigurement — reliance on comparable cases and adjustment for currency devaluation — award of documentary costs.
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9 November 2017 |
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Prosecution discontinuance resulted in the accused’s discharge under s77 and discharge of bail and recognizances.
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Criminal procedure — Discontinuance by prosecution — Discharge under s 77 Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code — Effect on bail and recognizances.
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8 November 2017 |
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Summary disposal inappropriate where consultations in redundancy dispute raise contested factual issues; matter remitted for trial.
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Industrial relations — unfair dismissal — termination for operational requirements — requirement to consult — appropriateness of summary disposal where factual disputes exist — IRC procedure and pleadings — remit for trial — no order as to costs (s72 LRA).
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3 November 2017 |
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2 November 2017 |
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Leave to issue third‑party notice dismissed; dispute is commercial and belongs in the Commercial Court; costs awarded.
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Procedure — Third‑party notice (Order 19 Rule 1) — Jurisdiction — Commercial dispute falling within Commercial Court under section 6(A)(1) Courts Act — Commissioner for Lands v Deeds Registrar — land law; Deeds Registration Act; Land Act.
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1 November 2017 |
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Constructive desertion upheld where spouse unjustifiably denied conjugal rights and accusations of adultery were unproven.
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Family law — Constructive desertion — Denial of conjugal rights — Sufficiency of evidence of adultery — Marriage, Divorce and Family Relations Act s48(1) — Appeal by rehearing — No basis for retrial.
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1 November 2017 |
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Court upheld dismissal for collusion and dishonesty, finding substantive and procedural fairness despite telephonic summons.
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Employment law — unfair dismissal — disciplinary procedure — dishonesty/collusion in sales transactions — s.27 Employment Act (particulars of employment) not determinative — s.57 fairness of reasons and procedure — telephonic disciplinary summons.
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1 November 2017 |
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Conflicting subordinate court distributions of matrimonial property were set aside; a senior magistrate ordered to re-distribute within 30 days.
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Matrimonial property distribution — Conflicting subordinate court orders — Procedural irregularities in distribution records — Setting aside defective orders — Re-assignment to Chief Resident Magistrate or senior delegate — Supervisory accountability.
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1 November 2017 |
| October 2017 |
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A stay pending appeal was granted because enforcement would likely render the appeal nugatory and harm the respondent.
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Civil procedure — stay of execution pending appeal — discretion to grant stay where appeal would be rendered nugatory — applicant bears burden to show special circumstances, inability to repay, and balancing of equities.
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31 October 2017 |
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31 October 2017 |
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Division of matrimonial property: assets acquired during marriage are joint; sales and proceeds divided considering contributions and child custody.
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Family law — Distribution of matrimonial property — Assets acquired or improved during marriage form joint/matrimonial property; considerations: contribution, custody, income; sale and division of proceeds; allocation of movables; sale via Registrar due to animosity.
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30 October 2017 |
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Court ordered sale of estate assets and equal distribution among the widow and four children under intestacy rules.
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Succession Law
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Intestate Distribution — Fair distribution and protection of dependants under Section 17 of the Wills and Inheritance Act
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Widow’s Rights — Retention of household belongings versus equal sharing of estate proceeds under Section 17(b)
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30 October 2017 |
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Appellate court reversed magistrate and awarded disputed customary land to the appellant based on chiefs' evidence.
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Land Law — Customary Land — Determination of ownership — Weight of village chiefs' and customary authorities' evidence
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Civil Procedure — Appeal — Rehearing of evidence — Appellate court may reverse where lower court misdirected on weight of evidence
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25 October 2017 |
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Accused acquitted where evidence failed to connect him to a mob homicide; court criticised substandard police investigation.
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Criminal law — Homicide — Mob justice — Adequacy of police investigation — Evidence linking accused — Acquittal for lack of connection.
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25 October 2017 |
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Respondent’s long delay allowed the appellant to acquire permanent usage rights to customary land allocated by the chief.
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Land Law
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Customary Land — Allocation and Right of Use and Occupation — Validity of chief’s allocation under Land Act ss 2, 25 and 26
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Evidence and Delay — Laches/Sitting on Rights — Delay in asserting customary land rights may defeat later claim if land was lawfully allocated and openly developed
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24 October 2017 |
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Summary judgment granted where defendant failed to file opposing affidavit and alleged, unparticularised defence was a sham.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14 RSC) — Defendant must file affidavit with particulars of bona fide defence — General denial/sham defence insufficient — Unsubstantiated allegations do not defeat summary judgment.
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19 October 2017 |
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Court refused dismissal for want of prosecution despite inordinate delay, ordering strict timelines to settle the record or face sanctions.
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Civil procedure — dismissal for want of prosecution — inordinate and inexcusable delay — case management — directions to settle record — stay of execution — sanction of vacatur and execution.
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18 October 2017 |
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Court finds ACB had reasonable and probable cause to arrest and prosecute; all claims dismissed with costs.
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False imprisonment; malicious prosecution; reasonable and probable cause; evidence of funds transfer and vehicle registration; plea bargaining and state witness arrangement; damages for reputation and loss of income.
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13 October 2017 |
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Applicant's bail refused; court stressed 90-day pre-trial limit, burden of exceptional circumstances, and ordered committal and disclosure timeline.
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Criminal procedure — Bail applications — Pre-trial detention limit (section 161G, 90 days) — Burden on accused to show exceptional circumstances to depart from limit — State obligation to bring accused to trial and disclose witnesses — Legal aid funding and donor influence on interests of justice.
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5 October 2017 |
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Timesheets are not mandatory for taxation of costs; their absence does not bar taxation proceedings.
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Civil procedure — Taxation of costs — Order 62 r.29 — Supporting documents — Whether timesheets are mandatory — Absence does not invalidate taxation.
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2 October 2017 |
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1 October 2017 |