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Citation
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Judgment date
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| January 2021 |
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Court held the purported will invalid and, recognizing remarriage by repute, applied intestacy rules to distribute the estate.
Probate — Validity of wills — Formal witnessing requirements (DEWIPA s6); Revocation by divorce and remarriage (DEWIPA s10); Recognition of marriage by repute/permanent cohabitation (Constitution s22(5); MDFRA s13); Intestacy and distribution to immediate family (DEWIPA s17); Criminal prohibition on unlawful dealing with estate (DEWIPA s84).
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29 January 2021 |
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25 January 2021 |
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Assessment of personal injury damages: K1.5M pain and suffering, K500k loss of amenities; special damages not proved.
Road traffic personal injury — assessment of general damages — pain and suffering and loss of amenities — use of comparative awards and adjustment for currency value — disfigurement not awarded — special damages require proof of actual expenditure.
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22 January 2021 |
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Assessment of damages for a minor’s fractured tibia and fibula: K4,000,000 awarded; special damages not proved.
Personal injury – road traffic accident – fractured tibia and fibula – assessment of non-pecuniary damages (pain and suffering, loss of amenities, disfigurement) – use of comparable awards and adjustment for currency devaluation – special damages must be specifically pleaded and proved – leave to appeal granted.
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22 January 2021 |
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Court awarded K3,000,000 for minor’s tibia fracture injuries; denied special damages for lack of proof.
Road traffic accident – assessment of damages – fractured tibia and multiple bruises – general damages (pain and suffering, loss of amenities, disfigurement) – reliance on comparable awards and adjustment for currency devaluation – special damages require strict proof – costs to be taxed – leave to appeal granted.
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22 January 2021 |
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Assessment of damages for a minor’s above‑elbow amputation: K10,000,000 awarded for non‑pecuniary loss and costs.
Personal injury – Amputation above the elbow; Assessment of damages – Non-pecuniary damages: pain and suffering, loss of amenities of life, disfigurement; Use of comparable awards and adjustment for currency devaluation; Minor claimant; Costs; Leave to appeal granted.
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22 January 2021 |
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22 January 2021 |
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Application to discharge interlocutory injunction dismissed where defendant’s non-compliance, prior contempt, and pending lease did not justify lifting injunction.
Injunctions — application to discharge interlocutory injunction — competing land claims — pending lease application insufficient to dissolve injunction — clean hands doctrine — contempt and non-compliance material to equitable relief.
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15 January 2021 |
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Court upheld convictions and sentences for child abduction and defilement, finding no reasonable belief the victim was over sixteen.
Criminal law – defilement (s.138 Penal Code) – statutory proviso requiring reasonable belief that complainant was 16 or above – burden on accused to satisfy court; voir dire and admission of unsworn evidence for a child witness; child abduction; sentence review – appellate restraint.
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14 January 2021 |
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12 January 2021 |
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The appellant’s 14‑year sentence for defilement was increased to 40 years; court ordered child‑welfare follow‑up and report.
Criminal law – Defilement (s138(1) Penal Code) – Sentencing guidelines – "Worst instances" of offence – Starting point for defilement – mitigation: guilty plea and first offender – rejection of age/life‑expectancy as substantial mitigation – ordering child welfare services and reporting.
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8 January 2021 |
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Conviction for repeated defilement of a ten-year-old confirmed; sentence increased to 40 years, emphasising worst-instance sentencing.
Criminal law — Defilement of a child — Sentence — Worst instances of offence — Maximum (life) reserved for most grievous cases — Aggravating factors: young victim, multiple occasions, position of trust — Mitigation: guilty plea and first offender status limited — State duty to ensure child welfare services.
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8 January 2021 |
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Defilement of a 10‑year‑old by a trusted adult is among the worst instances; 14 years increased to 40 years imprisonment.
Criminal law – Defilement of a child – Sentencing: gravity of multiple offences against a ten‑year‑old and breach of trust – starting point and worst instances – weight of guilty plea and first‑offender status – substitution of sentence to forty years imprisonment with hard labour – referral to child welfare for counselling/report.
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8 January 2021 |
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8 January 2021 |
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Court affirmed aider/abettor liability as principal for defilement and increased sentence for aggravated abduction and repeated defilement of a 13‑year‑old.
Criminal law – Defilement (statutory) – Liability of aider/abettor under s21(1)(b),(c) – Whether separate statutory aiding offence required for sexual offences – Sentencing on review: aggravating factors (abduction, victim age, pregnancy, coercion).
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8 January 2021 |
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Court convicted two accused for murder based on corroborated admissions; two others acquitted; inquest into custodial death required.
Criminal law – Murder of a person with albinism – Participation and counselling under section 21 – Malice aforethought (section 212) – Burden and standard of proof – Trial court discretion under section 201(1) vis-à-vis prosecutorial strategy – Mandatory coroner’s inquest into custodial death (Inquests Act).
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8 January 2021 |
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7 January 2021 |
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The claimant’s freezing directive extended for further investigation; defendant’s request to withdraw living expenses from frozen accounts refused.
Financial Crimes Act – section 23 freezing directives – extension of freezing order – scope of powers; Preservation orders – sections 107 and 108 – conditions for preservation; Living expenses – section 70 – requirement of sworn disclosure and applicability only under preservation orders.
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6 January 2021 |
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6 January 2021 |
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6 January 2021 |
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Interlocutory injunction refused where granting it would effectively grant the claimant full substantive relief in a land encroachment dispute.
Civil procedure — Interlocutory injunction — Order 10 r.27 test (serious question to be tried; adequacy of damages; justice of granting injunction) — Equitable discretion to refuse interim relief where injunction would grant claimant full substantive relief — Land dispute, alleged trespass and encroachment.
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4 January 2021 |
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4 January 2021 |
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Interlocutory injunction granted to preserve status quo in a disputed land ownership dispute where damages are inadequate.
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4 January 2021 |
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4 January 2021 |
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Assessment of damages for soft-tissue road injuries: MK1,600,000 awarded for general damages; special damages not strictly proved.
Damages assessment — personal injury from road accident — general damages for pain, suffering and loss of amenities — permanent incapacity (15%) — strict proof required for special damages — reliance on comparable awards and currency devaluation.
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4 January 2021 |
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4 January 2021 |
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4 January 2021 |
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Application to set aside default judgment dismissed for inordinate delay and failure to show a good reason for non‑attendance.
Civil procedure — Setting aside judgment entered for non‑attendance — Order 16 r.7(2)-(5) CPR — requirements of promptness, good reason and reasonable prospect of success — counsel illness and procurement delays held insufficient to justify relief.
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4 January 2021 |