Results.
540 judgments found.
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| May 2021 |
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Failure to furnish written reasons for denying land access breaches the constitutional right to administrative justice.
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Administrative law — Section 43 Constitution — right to lawful and procedurally fair administrative action — duty to furnish written reasons — judicial review focuses on decision-making process — remedy: quashing decision; damages for trespass.
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27 May 2021 |
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Claimant's challenge to denial of access succeeded: failure to give reasons breached section 43, decision quashed and trespass damages awarded.
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Administrative law — Judicial review — Procedural fairness — Failure to give written reasons — Breach of constitutional right to administrative justice (Section 43) — Decision quashed — Remedy: damages for trespass — Court reviews process not merits of title dispute.
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27 May 2021 |
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Multiple judicial review applications arising from the same Ombudsman report were consolidated under Order 6 rule 9 for efficiency.
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Civil procedure — consolidation of claims — Order 6 rule 9 Courts (High Court) (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2017 — common question of law or fact — judicial review arising from the same Ombudsman report — joinder guidance under Order 6 rule 5.
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20 May 2021 |
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Court granted leave for judicial review of the Ombudsman report but refused an interim stay, citing available contractual remedies.
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Judicial review — leave to apply — Ombudsman determination reviewable under section 123(2) of the Constitution — interim stay refused where adequate alternative remedies in employment contract exist — leave-stage assessable on prima facie arguable case.
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18 May 2021 |
| April 2021 |
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30 April 2021 |
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Permission for judicial review and ex parte injunction refused for insufficient evidence and valid statutory seizure powers.
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Judicial review — permission stage; interlocutory injunction without notice; seizure/detention under the Forestry Act — requirement for seizure certificate; insufficiency of uncertified documents; proof of purchase and licence for quarrying; validity of sworn statements; statutory mandate of forestry officers.
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21 April 2021 |
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Application for judicial review and interim release of seized tippers dismissed for lack of admissible evidence and arguable case.
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Judicial review — interlocutory injunction — seizure of vehicles under Forestry Act; proof and admissibility of documentary evidence; requirement for seizure certificate; enforcement against unlicensed quarrying; procedural adequacy of affidavits.
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21 April 2021 |
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Judicial review quashed a chief's appointment for procedural unfairness and failure to show presidential satisfaction under section 4(2).
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Chiefs Act s4(2) — appointment of chiefs; requirement of entitlement under customary law and majority support; administrative justice — Constitution s43; judicial review focuses on decision-making process; admissibility of affidavits — Oaths, Affirmations and Declarations Act (section 7) and Commissioner for Oaths rules; role of District Commissioner and Minister as facilitators; limits on court ordering executive appointments.
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13 April 2021 |
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Default judgment application rejected because the draft judgment sought relief not contained in the supporting sworn statement; Legal Aid Bureau given 14 days to respond.
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Civil procedure — Default judgment — Order 12 r.7(1) CPR — draft judgment must correspond to sworn statement — inclusion of relief not pleaded renders application inadmissible — active case management — extension to Legal Aid Bureau to file defence.
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12 April 2021 |
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Ex parte interlocutory injunction denied where claimed urgency was self-created and the applicant unreasonably delayed seeking relief.
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Civil procedure — Interlocutory injunction — Ex parte urgent relief — Urgency must not be self-created — Unexplained delay and observed development defeat claim of extreme urgency — Order 10 CPR.
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8 April 2021 |
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High Court denied leave for judicial review because original jurisdiction over labour disputes lies with the Industrial Relations Court.
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Judicial review — leave to apply — labour disputes — jurisdiction — Industrial Relations Court as forum of original jurisdiction — High Court limited to appellate competence.
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6 April 2021 |
| March 2021 |
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Claim dismissed as statute-barred; lack of letters of administration is not a disability extending the limitation period.
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Limitation of actions — negligence claims — three-year limitation under Limitation Act — disability exception does not include lack of letters of administration; Road Traffic Act s148 inapplicable where insurer sued jointly with insured; procedural rule citation imprecision not fatal if not misleading.
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19 March 2021 |
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Failure of the police to investigate and prosecute sexual violence by officers violated rights to dignity, equality and freedom from torture; compensation awarded.
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Constitutional law — State liability for human-rights violations — Police failure to investigate sexual violence — Breaches of dignity, equality and freedom from torture — Compensation under section 46(4).
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9 March 2021 |
| February 2021 |
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Whether mosquito coils are 'pesticides' under the Pesticides Act and import without registration/permit is unlawful; leave refused.
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Administrative law — Judicial review — Leave stage — Statutory interpretation of 'pest' and 'pesticide' under Pesticides Act — Importation and registration requirements — Import of unregistered pesticides unlawful — Ignorance of law no defence.
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22 February 2021 |
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Leave to appeal was granted while the court condemned counsel’s insertion of a misleading postscript and unprofessional post-judgment conduct.
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Electoral law — fresh elections — use of previous voters’ roll and eligibility of candidates; Civil procedure — joinder of affected parties before judgment; appellate procedure — leave to appeal; Professional conduct — inadmissibility of postscripts in formal orders and improper post-judgment audience requests.
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21 February 2021 |
| December 2020 |
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17 December 2020 |
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8 December 2020 |
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8 December 2020 |
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Applicant established a prima facie defamation claim warranting an interlocutory injunction and removal of defamatory social-media posts.
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Civil procedure — interlocutory injunction — American Cyanamid test — defamation via social media — freedom of expression versus protection of reputation — order to remove online posts and commence action within fixed period.
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5 December 2020 |
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4 December 2020 |
| November 2020 |
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Minor electrocuted by defendant's live wire awarded MK23,000,000 for pain, loss of amenities and disfigurement.
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Personal injury — Electric burns to minor — Assessment of general damages for pain and suffering, loss of amenities and disfigurement — Weight of medical reports, photographs and court observation — Quantum of award and consideration of comparative authorities.
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27 November 2020 |
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18 November 2020 |
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11 November 2020 |
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Unlawful governmental seizure prevents acquisition of title by adverse possession; limitation tolled until plaintiff discovered title.
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Limitation Act s6 & s21 — disability and extension of limitation period; Registered Land Act s134(1) — adverse possession requirements (peaceable, open, uninterrupted); unlawful governmental seizure taints successors and precludes acquisition by prescription.
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11 November 2020 |
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7 November 2020 |
| October 2020 |
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23 October 2020 |
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21 October 2020 |
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16 October 2020 |
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Claimant (personal representative) entitled to damages; court quantified loss of expectation, dependency and special damages.
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Wrongful death — entitlement to damages by personal representative without letters of administration; assessment of loss of expectation of life; multiplicand/multiplier method for loss of dependency; proof and admissibility of special damages receipts.
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16 October 2020 |
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16 October 2020 |
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1 October 2020 |
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1 October 2020 |
| September 2020 |
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Claimant failed to prove driver’s negligence or resulting damages; documentary and witness evidence not tendered, each party to bear own costs.
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Negligence — burden of proof on claimant — requirement to prove duty, breach and causation — pedestrian also owes duty of care — failure to tender documentary evidence and call witnesses fatal to claim — res ipsa loquitur not invoked or pleaded — insurer liability fails if primary claim not proved.
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24 September 2020 |
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18 September 2020 |
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16 September 2020 |
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Section 32(2) mandates automatic transfer on existing terms; purchaser cannot replace terms and early retirement was unlawful.
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Employment law — Sale of undertaking — Section 32(2) Employment Act — automatic transfer and continuity of contract; offer of new terms by transferee unenforceable; unlawful early retirement = breach/unfair dismissal; assessment of damages under section 63 — just and equitable, mitigation and marketability; quantum substituted at 28 months' pay.
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10 September 2020 |
| August 2020 |
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Decree nisi granted to respondent for cruelty; petitioner failed to prove respondent’s desertion and provocation defence was rejected.
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Divorce — desertion: elements and proof; Divorce — cruelty: single serious act suffices; Provocation defence; Condonation and reconciliation; Constitutional dignity informs cruelty assessment.
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27 August 2020 |
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Court reversed lower court: awarded Mandala house to appellant, upheld Lilongwe trust management, ordered K3,000,000 maintenance by respondent.
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Family law — Distribution of matrimonial property — Joint ownership a question of fact — Consideration of non-monetary contributions and fairness (Sikwese v Banda) — Charges/mortgages are encumbrances and do not transfer title — Maintenance award on dissolution.
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27 August 2020 |
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Defendant's encroachment and tree-felling constituted trespass; court granted declarations, damages to be assessed, and costs to plaintiff.
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Property law — Trespass to land — Encroachment and felling of trees — Trespass actionable per se; entitlement to declarations, damages and injunctive relief; mandatory injunctions require specificity.
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27 August 2020 |
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18 August 2020 |
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3 August 2020 |
| July 2020 |
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28 July 2020 |
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8 July 2020 |
| May 2020 |
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6 May 2020 |
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6 May 2020 |
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5 May 2020 |
| April 2020 |
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22 April 2020 |
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20 April 2020 |
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6 April 2020 |
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2 April 2020 |