Results.
135 judgments found.
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| December 2003 |
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Damages for wrongful occupation assessed by market rental value; plaintiff awarded K509,000 and assessment costs.
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Property law — Wrongful occupation — Measure of damages: market rental value — Assessment based on expert valuation (Knight Frank) — Unchallenged evidence — Award K509,000 — Costs of assessment for plaintiff
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31 December 2003 |
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Letters admitting rent arrears and failure to seek a stay for arbitration led to judgment on admissions and summary judgment for the plaintiff.
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Lease — rent and service-charge arrears — admission by correspondence — Order 27 r.3 (judgment on admissions) — arbitration clause — stay under Arbitration Act — failure to apply for stay — Order 14 r.1 (summary judgment) — costs.
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31 December 2003 |
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Summary judgment granted where plaintiff proved debt and defendant failed to file particulars or show a bona fide defence.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment under Order 14 — Plaintiff’s documentary proof of debt — Defendant’s failure to file defence or affidavits with particulars — No bona fide defence — Judgment with costs.
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31 December 2003 |
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Whether service at a spouse's workplace renders a default judgment irregular and if a meritorious defence warrants setting it aside.
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Civil procedure — setting aside default judgment — Order 13 r 9 — service by post/last known address — service at spouse’s workplace — regularity of judgment — meritorious defence — right to trial.
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31 December 2003 |
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Assessment of general damages for assault and battery based on uncontested evidence and medical report.
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Tort — Assault and battery — Assessment of general damages — Pain and suffering, loss of amenities, injury to feelings — Weight of medical report versus continued employment and outpatient treatment.
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31 December 2003 |
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Where the respondent negligently damages the applicant's vehicle, the applicant is entitled to loss-of-use damages based on reasonable hire costs.
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Tort — Negligence — Motor vehicle collision — Liability for loss of use — Measure of damages for loss of use assessed by reasonable hire cost per day.
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31 December 2003 |
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Applicant awarded K457,000 for repair and loss-of-use after vehicle damaged by police officers; hire costs upheld.
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Assessment of damages — Vehicle damaged by state police — Repair costs and loss-of-use hire costs — Acceptance of undisputed evidence — Award of damages and costs.
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31 December 2003 |
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Default judgment set aside for irregular service; defendant's meritorious defence found; plaintiff to pay sheriff fees.
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Civil procedure — setting aside default judgment — service of process — personal service required under Order 65 r2 — third‑party acknowledgement and agency — meritorious defence — sheriff fees (s.44(3) Sheriff Act).
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31 December 2003 |
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Summary judgment refused where genuine disputes existed over amount recovered and entitlement to statutory 15% collection fees.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14) — Requirement of no bona fide defence; Solicitors’ collection fees — statutory 15% under Scales and Minimum Charges (Table 6); entitlement and timing of recovery; necessity of evidence on amount collected and plaintiff’s role; litigant in person claims and bill of costs.
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31 December 2003 |
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A respondent's general denial cannot resist summary judgment absent a shown bona fide defence to a conversion and delivery-up claim.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14) — General traverse insufficient — Defendant must show cause by affidavit to raise bona fide defence — Conversion/delivery up of vehicle — Change of registration as evidential admission.
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31 December 2003 |
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Summary possession under Order 113 inappropriate where ownership and bona fide purchaser issues require plenary proceedings.
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Property law — recovery of possession — Order 113 RSC — wrongful occupation vs purchaser with defective title — bona fide purchaser — summary proceedings inappropriate where title disputed — proceed by writ — service of process.
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31 December 2003 |
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Damages for conversion and loss of use awarded where defendants seized the plaintiff's household goods in her absence.
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Conversion; trespass to goods; measure of damages (market value at time of wrong v. value at assessment); damages for loss of use of domestic goods; assessment on uncontroverted evidence in default judgment
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31 December 2003 |
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Summary judgment granted where defendant’s uncorroborated assertion of cheque payment failed to disclose a bona fide defence.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14) — Defendant must show bona fide defence supported by credible evidence — Mere assertion of cheque payment insufficient — Production of bank statements or equivalent may be required — Non-attendance undermines defence.
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31 December 2003 |
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Summary judgment application undermined by material discrepancies between affidavit figures and particulars of claim, failing to prove the debt clearly.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14) — Plaintiff must prove debt clearly in affidavit — Inconsistencies between affidavit and pleadings — Omission of payments and unexplained numerical discrepancies defeat summary relief.
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31 December 2003 |
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Court continued attachment order where plaintiff sold preserved vehicle in bad faith and ordered consolidation and costs to defendants.
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Attachment/preservation orders — ex parte orders and abuse of process — sale of preserved property — bad faith conduct — consolidation of related proceedings — costs awarded.
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30 December 2003 |
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Whether a party may withdraw from a fixed-term employment agreement before commencement where the other party’s conduct amounts to anticipatory breach.
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Contract law — fixed-term employment agreement — pre-commencement withdrawal — anticipatory breach/repudiatory conduct — objective test — remedies; insufficient evidence for counterclaim.
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30 December 2003 |
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A second injunction duplicating an existing injunction is inappropriate; breaches should be enforced by committal proceedings.
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Civil procedure — Injunctions — Consent orders — Whether a consent order not reduced to final judgment estops further relief — Duplicate injunctions inappropriate — Breach to be enforced by committal
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28 December 2003 |
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An interlocutory injunction for an alleged right of way was upheld; suppression not proved and order discrepancy requires formal application.
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Civil procedure — interlocutory injunction — ex parte injunction — suppression of material facts — easement/right of way — prima facie entitlement — dissolution application — rectification of court order
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28 December 2003 |
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Fine alone inadequate for wildlife trafficking; imprisonment imposed despite statutory ambiguity and first-offender status.
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Wildlife law — National Parks and Wildlife Act s.110 — ambiguity in prescribed fine; penal statutes strictly construed; sentencing — first offenders (s.340 Criminal Procedure) — fine versus imprisonment; seriousness and public interest in wildlife trafficking; aggravating conduct (resistance, syndicate activity).
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28 December 2003 |
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Interlocutory injunction granted where disputed termination, inadequate remedy in damages, and triable issues require preserving the status quo.
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Contract law — interim relief — application of American Cyanamid principles — adequacy of damages and protection of goodwill — contractual notice requirements for termination
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23 December 2003 |
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Disobedience of an injunction is civil contempt and does not disqualify an MP under s51(2)(c) absent a criminal conviction.
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Contempt of court — civil contempt v criminal contempt — disobedience of injunction — qualification for Parliament under s51(2)(c) — moral turpitude and dishonesty — common law approach where no statutory contempt regime exists
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22 December 2003 |
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Fair labour practice does not mandate repatriation to home regardless of circumstances; interest and collection-charge awards were overturned.
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Labour law — fair labour practices and repatriation — interpretation of constitutional right to fair labour practices; pleading and jurisdiction for awards of interest in subordinate courts; legal collection charges — who bears them under Legal Practitioners (Scale and Minimum Charges) Rules
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21 December 2003 |
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Judgment creditors cannot garnishee government funds; the Constitution and rules protect the Consolidated Fund and prescribe statutory remedies.
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Government immunity from execution; garnishee proceedings as enforcement; Order 77 r.15 applies in Malawi; s.8 Civil Procedure (Suits by and against Government and Public Officers) does not authorize common-law execution against State; Consolidated Fund appropriation required; administrative remedies for refusal or neglect to pay judgments
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15 December 2003 |
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S.337(1) applications may proceed within existing proceedings; veil lifted where the real debtor knowingly defrauded the creditor.
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Companies Act s.337(1) — lifting corporate veil — procedural form versus substance — s.337(1) application may be within existing proceedings — curable procedural irregularity — intention to defraud — director/shareholder personal liability
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11 December 2003 |
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Municipal assembly may lawfully levy rates despite dissolved councillors; equitable ownership suffices to make the university liable for arrears.
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Local Government Act — authority to levy and collect municipal rates despite dissolution of councillors; Valuation and rating — definition of 'owner' includes equitable interest; Assessable property — college buildings within municipal area; Pleadings — interest must be specifically pleaded; Legal practitioner’s collection costs recoverable at 15% where properly claimed
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11 December 2003 |
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No interlocutory appeal lies to the Supreme Court against a High Court finding that a defendant has a case to answer; appeal must await final judgment.
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Criminal procedure — interlocutory orders — whether a defendant may appeal a High Court’s finding of a case to answer — appellate jurisdiction under section 11(1) Supreme Court Act — finality test (Order 59)
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9 December 2003 |
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High Court can entertain no‑case submissions; prosecution evidence was sufficient under Galbraith to require the defendants to make a defence.
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Criminal procedure — Submission of no case to answer — High Court jurisdiction and common law right — Corrupt Practices Act s24(2) — Elements: corruptly give/promise/offer gratification as inducement — Galbraith test for no-case submission — Credibility of complainer (judge) — Amendment of charge under s254(2)
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7 December 2003 |
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A court-appointed receiver must protect the estate; failure may warrant summary judgment and personal costs liability.
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Wills and Inheritance Act — duties of court-appointed receiver to take possession, control and protect estate — Section 27 immunity covers acts, not omissions — summary judgment appropriate where receiver admits control and waste — personal costs for inaction
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7 December 2003 |
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The applicant successfully set aside a default judgment entered against the wrong party without proper service.
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Civil procedure — Default judgment — Irregular judgment where originating process not served on correct legal entity — Misnomer versus amendment — Ex debito justicie relief — Insufficiency of poorly labelled exhibits to prove prior payments.
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4 December 2003 |
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Delay and ill-health do not justify bail for a confessed murder/armed-robbery suspect who presents a real flight risk.
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Bail pending trial — section 42(2)(e) Constitution — Bail (Guidelines) Act — murder and armed robbery — exceptional/special circumstances — delay in prosecution and ill-health — confession and flight risk (INTERPOL arrest) — interests of justice test
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3 December 2003 |
| November 2003 |
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Aggravated damages awarded for front‑page libel imputing criminality and causing serious reputational and financial harm.
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Defamation (libel) — assessment of damages — aggravated damages — front‑page publication — imputations of criminality — absence of apology — special damages (travel) — costs
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30 November 2003 |
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Wrongful premature retirement entitles the plaintiff to gratuity, pension, salary arrears and leave grant for lost service.
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Employment law — wrongful premature retirement — entitlement to gratuity, pension, salary arrears and leave grant; quantum assessment; unchallenged evidence; Chawani v Attorney General
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30 November 2003 |
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Court may revive an action dismissed for breach of an 'unless' order where non-compliance was due to extraneous solicitor delay.
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Civil procedure — 'unless' orders — court's power to revive or extend time after dismissal — discretionary exercise where failure due to extraneous circumstances — stringent terms and costs
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30 November 2003 |
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Ex parte injunction and leave for review discharged: ACB lacks capacity to be sued; non-disclosure and wrong party sued.
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28 November 2003 |
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Unpleaded trial evidence of a stationary vehicle cannot be used to establish contributory negligence; defendant held vicariously liable.
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Negligence — duty of care — breach causing personal injury; Contributory negligence — requirement that facts supporting the defence be pleaded; Pleadings — admissibility of evidence first raised at trial; Vicarious liability — employer liable for servant's negligence; Remittal for assessment of damages.
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21 November 2003 |
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A contractual termination may be constitutionally unfair if employer denies reasons and a fair opportunity to answer misconduct allegations.
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Constitutional labour rights — fair labour practices and natural justice in termination — ILO Termination of Employment Convention as part of domestic law — requirement to give reasons and opportunity to answer where misconduct alleged — remedies under section 46 (compensation, possible reinstatement)
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20 November 2003 |
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Section 31 constitutional right to fair labour practice creates a compensatory remedy for unfair dismissal, distinct from common-law damages.
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Constitutional law — right to fair labour practice (s.31) — unfair dismissal remedy distinct from common law — compensation principles modelled on Norton Tool Co v Tewson: notice/earnings loss, manner of dismissal, future earnings, loss of severance; political discrimination in dismissal unlawful
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20 November 2003 |
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Termination by notice without investigation or hearing can be unfair; employers must afford procedural fairness before dismissal for misconduct.
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Employment law — wrongful/unfair dismissal — implied natural justice in employment contracts — procedural fairness required before dismissal for misconduct — Constitution s31 (fair labour practice) — Employment Act s57 and Termination of Employment Convention — remedy: equitable compensation (one month’s pay per year served)
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20 November 2003 |
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Overseas transfer was a secondment; redundancy pay must include combined Malawi and Kenyan remuneration; plaintiff awarded costs.
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Employment law — transfer/secondment v termination — continuity of employment — redundancy/severance pay calculation — inclusion of overseas salary and allowances — full and final settlement — estoppel — parent/subsidiary corporate arrangements
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20 November 2003 |
| October 2003 |
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A defendant may set aside a default injunction judgment by showing a meritorious defence and that the plaintiff lacks clean hands.
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Civil procedure — setting aside default judgment (Order 19 r 9) — defendant must show bona fide defence on the merits (Farden v Richter) — equitable relief and clean hands doctrine — dispensing with service of defence — costs where judgment regularly entered.
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31 October 2003 |
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False accounting in delivery notes does not amount to forgery; confession admissible but full amount of theft not proved.
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Criminal law — admissibility of confession where accused alleges police force; forgery vs false accounting — false entries in company documents do not necessarily constitute forgery; theft by servant — requirement to prove amount stolen for sentencing
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29 October 2003 |
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Interlocutory injunction refused because damages were adequate and plaintiff failed to show inability to pay.
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Interlocutory injunction — American Cyanamid principles — adequacy of damages — undertaking as to damages — disputed agency and fraud — balance of convenience
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29 October 2003 |
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Cross-examination of a company's affidavit deponent in summary judgment is exceptional and inappropriate where fraud allegations warrant a trial.
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Civil procedure — Summary judgment (Order 14/Part 24) — Cross-examination of affidavit deponent — Company officer adopting another affidavit — Leave to cross-examine should be rare and limited — Serious allegations of fraud require trial, not summary oral examination
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28 October 2003 |
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Court refused to dissolve ex parte injunction against sale of intestate estate, finding non-disclosure immaterial and balance of convenience favored maintenance.
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Civil procedure — Interlocutory (ex parte) injunction — Non‑disclosure materiality — Application of American Cyanamid principles — Intestate estate — Sale by beneficiary without letters of administration — Balance of convenience and preservation of status quo
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28 October 2003 |
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Court refused to order defendants to pay plaintiffs solicitors directly; upheld judgment for costs, criticized 1999 rules altering indemnity principle.
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Civil procedure — judgment in default for liquidated sum; government suits — section 4 notice not required for contractual claims; arbitration — discretion to stay only where appropriate; solicitors lien — no order to compel defendant to pay solicitor directly except in exceptional equitable cases; costs law — Legal Practitioners (Scale and Minimum Charges) (Amendment) 1999 alters indemnity principle, 15% collection charge recoverable as part of judgment but subject to taxation
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22 October 2003 |
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Ex parte injunctions require full, frank disclosure; misrepresentation disentitles applicant to stay of discharge.
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Civil procedure — Ex parte injunctions — Duty of full and frank disclosure — Misrepresentation of alternative accommodation — Stay of discharge governed by ex parte principles, not Marriage Act or Married Women’s Property Act.
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7 October 2003 |
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Whether the applicant has standing and whether the expanded ‘crossing the floor’ amendment infringes association and political rights.
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Constitutional law — standing — Sections 15(2) and 46(2): broad purposive locus standi for persons/groups protecting rights; constitutional amendment — Section 65(1) (crossing the floor): limits on freedom of association (s.32) and political rights (s.40); referendum requirement — Sections 196/197 and schedule; severance of unconstitutional portions under Sections 5 and 11(3) and jurisdiction s.108(2)
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5 October 2003 |
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On review the court enhanced burglary sentences, finding a six-year starting point and prevailing aggravating factors.
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Criminal law — Burglary — Sentencing — High Court starting point six years — Aggravating factors (multiple offenders, no guilty plea, prior convictions) — Disparity in sentences — Sentences enhanced on review
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2 October 2003 |
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A six-year burglary sentence was reduced to four years after balancing aggravating and mitigating factors.
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Criminal law — Sentencing — Burglary/housebreaking — sentencing principles and factors — Chizumila six-year starting point; three-year minimum for simple burglary — aggravating factors (violence, vulnerable victim) v. mitigating factors (youth, first offender, guilty plea, cooperation) — review and reduction of manifestly excessive sentence
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2 October 2003 |
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Conviction upheld despite duplicity in the charge where no prejudice existed; burglary sentence found manifestly inadequate but already served.
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Criminal procedure — Duplicity in charge/particulars contrary to section 128 — No prejudice vitiating conviction; Sentencing — burglary/housebreaking: Chizumila starting point six years, simple burglary minimum three years; factors: vulnerability of victims, multiple participants, guilty plea, first offender status; late review after sentences served
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2 October 2003 |