Results.
248 judgments found.
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| December 2016 |
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Court granted a s.123 inhibition to preserve land pending suit over disputed demarcation and equal division.
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Land Law — Inhibitions under Registered Land Act — Granting an inhibition to preserve land pending dispute over demarcation and title — s.123 Registered Land Act
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Civil Procedure — Interim Relief — Conditions for preservation orders — Requirement to institute substantive proceedings within specified period
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29 December 2016 |
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Pre-trial detention beyond statutory limits justified granting bail to a homicide suspect, subject to strict conditions.
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Constitutional right to bail — not absolute — subject to interests of justice; pre-trial detention beyond statutory limits; homicide suspects; bail guidelines; public order considerations; bail conditions (bond, sureties, reporting, travel restrictions, non-tampering).
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22 December 2016 |
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Manufacturer not liable to retailer for lost sales; negligence, contract and defamation claims dismissed.
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Tort — Negligence — Manufacturer's duty of care to ultimate consumer not to intermediary retailer
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Contract — Sale of Goods — Implied condition of merchantable quality — Breach confined to particular defective bottle
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Defamation — Publication and attribution — Statements by customers not imputable to manufacturer
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15 December 2016 |
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The 1st defendant's negligent overtaking caused the crash; owner and insurer held vicariously and statutorily liable.
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Tort
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Negligence — Duty of care of driver and unsafe overtaking — Road Traffic Act s96
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Vicarious liability and Insurance — Owner and insurer liability for driver’s negligence — Road Traffic Act s148
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14 December 2016 |
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Court allowed twelve-month instalment plan after finding debtor’s disclosure sufficient and creditor’s challenge inadequate.
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Civil Procedure — Payment of Judgment Debt — Application to pay by instalments — Requirement of full and frank disclosure by judgment debtor — Balancing creditor’s right to immediate recovery
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Evidence — Sufficiency of financial disclosure and adequacy of creditor’s challenge — Reliance on debtor summaries and credibility of contradictory submissions
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13 December 2016 |
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Whether identification evidence was safe despite no Turnbull warning and whether 10-year robbery sentences were excessive.
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Criminal Law
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Evidence — Visual Identification — Turnbull caution and safety of conviction
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Identification Parade — Proper conduct and evidential weight of parade identification
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Sentencing — Armed group robbery at night; appropriate custodial term
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13 December 2016 |
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Stay granted pending appeal because the magistrate court allegedly lacked jurisdiction over matrimonial property.
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Civil Procedure — Stay of Execution Pending Appeal — Jurisdictional defect as a special circumstance
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Property — Matrimonial Property and Registered Land — Jurisdictional limit of Magistrate's Court and consequences of proceedings without jurisdiction
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12 December 2016 |
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Whether a bank validly exercised its power of sale and whether interim injunction and inhibition should be maintained pending trial.
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Registered Land Act — exercise of power of sale — good faith and compliance with statutory requirements; interlocutory injunction and inhibition — adequacy of damages; pre-transfer remedies; balance of convenience; alleged contempt for breaching interim orders.
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12 December 2016 |
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Court continued interlocutory injunction to preserve land pending trial because damages are inadequate and balance of convenience favoured plaintiff.
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Civil Procedure — Interim Relief — Interlocutory injunction — Preservation of status quo in land disputes — Application of American Cyanamid principles
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12 December 2016 |
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Court varied an ex parte injunction on university fees due to defendant’s delay and lack of demonstrated prejudice.
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Civil Procedure
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Originating Summons — Variation or revocation of order made in absence of party — Order 28(4)(1) RSC — Discretion to vary perfected ex parte order
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Service and delay — Effect of delay and lack of demonstrated prejudice on applications to set aside orders
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Administrative/Constitutional Law — Right to Education — Expedited proceedings and public‑interest urgency — Justification for proceeding in absence of respondent
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12 December 2016 |
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Convict ordered immediately released on re-sentencing due to mitigating factors, missing record, prolonged detention, and poor prison conditions.
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Criminal Law — Sentencing — Re-sentencing after declaration of mandatory death sentences — Consideration of mitigating factors including self‑defence and time served
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Criminal Procedure — Right to Appeal and Missing Record — Effective remedy of immediate release where record loss undermines appeal rights
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Human Rights — Pre-trial Delay and Prison Conditions — Impact of prolonged detention and appalling prison conditions on sentencing
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12 December 2016 |
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Ex parte subordinate court custody order set aside for failure to follow Child Care Act and consider the child's best interests.
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Family Law — Child Custody — Ex parte interlocutory custody orders — Requirement to proceed under Child Care, Protection and Justice Act and consider best interests of the child
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Civil Procedure — Revisionary Jurisdiction — High Court’s supervisory power under section 26 of the Courts Act to call for records and set aside irregular subordinate court orders
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Civil Contempt — Committal to civil prison — Requirement of proportionality and consideration of fines before imprisonment
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8 December 2016 |
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Unsafe overtaking caused a collision; driver, employer and insurer held liable; damages to be assessed.
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Tort
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Negligence — Overtaking causing collision
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Vicarious and Insurer Liability — Employer and insurer responsibility for employee's negligent driving
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Statutory Breach — Road Traffic Act s 98(2)(c) and s 99(2) compliance
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1 December 2016 |
| November 2016 |
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A commercial dispute must ordinarily be instituted in the Commercial Division unless compelling reasons justify retention; transfer ordered.
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Civil procedure — appropriate forum for commercial disputes — specialized Commercial Division — requirement to advance compelling reasons to retain commercial matters in general registry — transfer rather than dismissal where no compelling reasons shown.
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30 November 2016 |
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Interlocutory injunction continued to prevent sale of charged land pending trial because damages would be inadequate.
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Civil Procedure — Interim Injunctions — Application of American Cyanamid principles to restrain sale of charged land
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Property Law
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Registered Lands Act — Compliance with statutory requirements for sale: notice, advertisement/tender and reserve price
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Remedies — Effect of RLA s.71(3) and availability of interlocutory equitable relief pre‑transfer
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29 November 2016 |
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Senior Chief may remove a village headman after a fair hearing; successor valid where customary matrilineal succession proved.
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Customary Law — Chieftaincy Succession — Matrilineal vs Patrilineal succession — Proof required under section 64 Courts Act
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Administrative Law
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Chiefs’ Authority — Appointment and removal of Village Headmen — Chiefs Act s.9 read with General Interpretation Act s.32
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Procedural Fairness — Necessity to hear parties and assess loss of confidence — Constitution s.43 principles
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28 November 2016 |
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A challenge to a prosecutorial decision is a public‑law matter to be pursued by judicial review, not by originating summons.
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Civil Procedure — Judicial Review — Whether public‑law challenges to prosecutorial decisions must be brought under Order 53 rather than by originating summons — O'Reilly v Mackman principle
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Criminal Procedure — Prosecutorial Discretion — Challenge to decision to prosecute — Remedy by judicial review, not ordinary declaratory proceedings
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25 November 2016 |
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Whether applicants charged with homicide should be released on bail pending trial and on what conditions.
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Criminal Law — Bail — Bail pending trial — Grant of bail where prosecution does not oppose and imposition of conditions
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Criminal Procedure — Conditions of Bail — Surrender of travel documents; periodic police reporting; sureties; restriction on leaving district
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24 November 2016 |
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Applicant granted bail pending trial with conditions after the State raised no objection.
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Criminal Law — Bail — Granting bail pending trial — Conditions including surrender of travel documents, sureties and cash bond
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24 November 2016 |
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Retrial ordered where lower court made unsupported property and maintenance orders and failed to assess desertion.
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Family Law
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Divorce — Desertion as pleaded ground — Need to canvass and analyse evidence on desertion
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Property Division — Requirement for full inventory, valuation and evidence of contributions before distributing matrimonial property
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Child Maintenance — Requirement to ascertain respondent's means and children's needs before varying maintenance orders
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18 November 2016 |
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Whether the respondent was liable for fire damage caused by a loose service connection and inadequate insulation.
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Electricity supply — Negligence and duty of care — Service line/D-iron connection — Insulation and routine inspection — Causation established by eyewitness, fire officer and electrical expert — Liability for fire damage; Electricity (Wiring) Regulation 15(1)(a).
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16 November 2016 |
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The defendant utility was held liable for fire damage due to negligent connection and failure to ensure a safe service line.
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Negligence — electricity supply — duty to ensure safe connection at service line/D‑iron — consumer installation responsibilities — Electricity (Wiring) Regulations — expert evidence on origin of fire (downward burnout) — causation of property loss.
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16 November 2016 |
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Summary judgment refused where defendant raised triable factual issues including correct defendant and occupier liability.
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Civil Procedure — Summary Judgment (Order 14 Rule 3) — Whether there is a bona fide defence or an issue to be tried that precludes summary judgment
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Tort — Negligence/Occupier Liability — Driver's statutory duty to warn under Road Traffic (Public Services Vehicles) (Operations) Regulations s181(4)(f) — Whether breach establishes negligence per se
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Evidence — Factual Dispute — Distance of pit and identity of the proper defendant — Disputes of fact that require trial
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16 November 2016 |
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Whether bail pending appeal is appropriate where an unrepresented applicant was not informed of a statutory defence.
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Criminal Law
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Bail Pending Appeal — Tests for grant of bail: likelihood of success or risk sentence will be served
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Statutory Defence — Duty to inform unrepresented accused of special defence (reasonable belief as to complainant's age)
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Criminal Procedure — Bail Conditions — Surrender of travel documents, sureties, reporting and filing requirements
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16 November 2016 |
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Whether the applicants should be granted bail pending trial despite an implicated co‑accused confession and alleged flight risk.
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Criminal Law — Bail — Granting bail in murder cases — Interest of justice and burden on the State under s 42(2)(e) of the Constitution and Bail Guidelines Act 2007
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Criminal Procedure — Confession by co-accused — Admissibility against co-accused and s 176(2) of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code
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15 November 2016 |
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Interlocutory injunction refused; court preserved defendant’s possession of the disputed chieftaincy pending trial.
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Civil Procedure — Interlocutory Injunctions — Preservation of status quo and application of American Cyanamid principles
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Customary Law — Chieftaincy Succession — Disputed elevation and role of Traditional Authority decision as an issue for substantive hearing
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11 November 2016 |
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11 November 2016 |
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Court granted leave and a seven‑day extension to appeal due to delayed judgment delivery and non‑notification.
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Civil Procedure
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Appeals — Enlargement of time to appeal — Good and substantial reasons and prima facie grounds required — Order III r 4, Supreme Court of Appeal Rules
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Leave to appeal out of time — Delay caused by late delivery and non‑notification of judgment — Excusing delay
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Procedural law — Inapplicability of High Court Rules/Rules of Supreme Court to Supreme Court of Appeal — Supreme Court of Appeal Act governs practice
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9 November 2016 |
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9 November 2016 |
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Dispute over a bank overdraft secured by land is a "commercial matter" and must be transferred to the Commercial Division.
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Commercial Division — Transfer of proceedings — Definition of "commercial matter" under Courts (Amendment) Act 2016 — Banker–customer dispute and secured overdraft constitute a commercial matter — Registrar's power to transfer matters — Order to transfer within 14 days.
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3 November 2016 |
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Applicant entitled to release after two years pending High Court confirmation where lower court record is missing.
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Criminal Law — Sentencing and Custody — Effect of absent High Court confirmation on service of sentence and duty to release — Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code s15; Prison Act s107
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3 November 2016 |
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3 November 2016 |
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Applicants arrested for alleged homicide were unconditionally released due to absence of a tangible basis for arrest.
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Criminal Procedure
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Bail — Release pending trial — Insufficient basis for arrest and State not opposing release
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Arrest and Detention — Review of basis for arrest — Court may order unconditional release where no tangible basis exists
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3 November 2016 |
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3 November 2016 |
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Plaintiff's defamation claim dismissed for failing to prove the published photograph did not depict the alleged third party.
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Defamation — identification by photograph — burden on plaintiff to prove published image depicts plaintiff rather than another person; publication of court proceedings; qualified privilege defence raised; failure to adduce comparative evidence results in dismissal.
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1 November 2016 |
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Keeper of a dangerous wild animal held liable for injury outside park; statutory indemnity did not apply.
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Tort — Negligence — Keeper of dangerous wild animal — Duty to prevent escape — Statutory indemnity (National Parks and Wildlife Act s121(5)) inapplicable where injured person was outside protected area — Damages and costs awarded.
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1 November 2016 |
| October 2016 |
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Ex parte injunction discharged where applicant failed to disclose contractual 30‑day notice requirement and thus came with unclean hands.
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Civil Procedure — Interim Injunctions — Duty of Full and Frank Disclosure and Clean Hands
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Arbitration — Interim Orders — Court’s Power to Grant Injunctions in Relation to Arbitration — Arbitration Act s 13(6)
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Contract — Artist Management Agreement — Contractual Notice Requirement for Termination — Effect on Entitlement to Injunctive Relief
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31 October 2016 |
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28 October 2016 |
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27 October 2016 |
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Counsel may swear bail affidavits but must verify assertions; false affidavits risk discipline and may defeat bail.
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Criminal procedure — Bail applications — Admissibility of affidavits sworn by counsel; affidavits on information and belief; duty to verify; Bail (Guidelines) Act 2000; disciplinary remedies for false affidavits.
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26 October 2016 |
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Counsel may swear affidavits in bail applications but must verify and state grounds; bail granted with conditions.
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Criminal procedure — Bail applications — Admissibility of affidavits sworn by counsel; affidavits on information and belief; duty to state grounds and verify; Bail (Guidelines) Act powers; sanctions for false affidavits; grant of bail where State unopposed.
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26 October 2016 |
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A single Justice lacks power to hear appeals or premature interlocutory injunction applications; appeal must be entered and heard by a three‑judge panel.
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Appeal procedure — Jurisdiction of single Justice of Supreme Court of Appeal — Section 7 SCA Act — Entry of appeal and record settlement under Order III rules 5–19 (rules 10–11, 19) — Interlocutory injunction pending appeal — Prematurity and abuse of process.
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24 October 2016 |
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Detention becomes unlawful if a sentence is not confirmed within one year; court ordered immediate release.
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Criminal Procedure — Habeas Corpus — Failure to confirm sentence within one year renders continued detention unlawful — Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code s15(5); Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act s16(6)(a)(ii)
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24 October 2016 |
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Applicant unlawfully detained beyond one-year confirmation period; High Court ordered immediate release.
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Criminal Law
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Habeas Corpus — Unlawful detention pending confirmation of sentence — Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act s 16(6)(a)(ii)
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Prison administration — Duty to release where no confirmation communicated after one year — Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code s 15(5)
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Lost or destroyed court records — Destruction of lower court file does not justify continued detention
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24 October 2016 |
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Bail refused where strong identification evidence and offence seriousness created a real risk of the applicants absconding.
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Criminal Law — Bail — Granting of bail — Effect of strong identification evidence and seriousness of offence on risk of absconding
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21 October 2016 |
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21 October 2016 |
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21 October 2016 |
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18 October 2016 |
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An employer's report to police does not make it liable for employees' arrests absent proof it directed or procured the arrests.
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Tort
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False imprisonment — Whether employer's report to police amounts to directing or procuring arrests
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Malicious prosecution and defamation — Liability where police act on their own investigation, not at employer's direction
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14 October 2016 |
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Appeal dismissed for raising new conversion claim; magistrates lack general jurisdiction over marriages by repute.
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Civil Procedure — Appeal — New claims raised on appeal — Appellate court will not decide issues not before the subordinate court
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Family Law
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Marriage by Repute/Permanent Cohabitation — Jurisdiction — Magistrate courts lack general jurisdiction absent statutory provision or customary-law recognition
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Customary Law — Proof and Application — Court must have evidence of applicable customary law before applying customary remedies
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14 October 2016 |