Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal - 2021 November

7 judgments

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7 judgments
Citation
Judgment date
November 2021
Summary judgment was improperly granted where injunction defence, third‑party proceedings, and an unliquidated loss‑of‑profits claim required a trial.
Civil procedure – Summary judgment and judgment on admission – Defendant’s affidavit and defence raising triable issues – Third‑party proceedings not an admission of liability – Unliquidated loss of profits requiring assessment – Requirement for reasons in judgment.
30 November 2021
30 November 2021
The claimant’s constitutional challenge to electoral appointments was struck out as res judicata, an appeal in disguise, and an abuse of process.
Constitutional law – electoral commission composition – res judicata – appeal in disguise – jurisdiction of constitutional panel – section 42 General Interpretation Act – section 75 Constitution – locus standi – Civil Procedure (Suits by/against Government) Act s4 notice – ex turpi causa – abuse of process.
26 November 2021
The applicant cannot claim posthumous pain and suffering; respondent liable for loss of dependency and expectation of life damages.
Road-traffic negligence – assessment of damages – loss of expectation of life – loss of dependency (multiplicand and multiplier) – proof of earnings and special damages – posthumous pain and suffering claim inadmissible.
19 November 2021
Court granted a stay of execution pending appeal due to a strong jurisdictional challenge and high likelihood of success.
Stay of execution — discretionary relief — guided by balance of convenience, balance of justice and likelihood of success on appeal; jurisdictional challenge — strong prospect of success may justify stay; execution rendering appeal nugatory; costs to successful applicant.
10 November 2021
A party must first seek stay of execution from the lower court; SCA vacated an ex-parte stay for non-exhaustion of remedies.
Civil procedure – appeals – interim relief – stay of execution pending appeal – Order 1 Rule 18 requires applications first to be made to Court below – ex-parte stay vacated where lower court had fixed hearing date and remedies not exhausted – section 22(1)(d) SCA Act inapplicable for such intervention.
10 November 2021
A suing party cannot invoke an arbitration clause to obtain a stay; the ex parte injunction was vacated and matter remitted.
Arbitration clause — stay of proceedings — suing party cannot rely on arbitration to obtain stay; Interim ex parte injunction — effectively permanent relief — vacated; Legal practitioners — practising licence expiry — documents not automatically invalid; Law firm signature — does not of itself render processes a nullity; Courts' jurisdiction — separability and when stay is appropriate.
3 November 2021