Wakilii

Moses K. Katuramu v Attorney General and Another (Civil Appeal No. 2 of 1985)

Court of Appeal · [1986] UGCA 27 · 1986 Appeal Allowed ✦ AI-generated summary ↓ Download
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from a High Court order striking out parts of a plaint as time-barred
Decision
Appeal allowed; the plaintiff's claims for assault and unlawful arrest reinstated

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Cited — treatment unverified cited in 28 (treatment unverified) Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — not an assertion that this case is good law.

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Holding

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding that although a plaint does not include a reply, a reply filed in answer to a defence forms part of the plaintiff's pleadings and must be read together with the plaint. Where a plaintiff omits the grounds of exemption from limitation in the plaint but states them in a reply (here, that he was in prison confinement), the court should consider that reply, which may supplement or cure a deficiency in the plaint. The trial judge erred in ignoring the reply and striking out the torts of assault and unlawful arrest under Order 7 rule 11(d). Courts should ensure justice and pay less respect to technicalities.

Facts

The appellant was arrested on 4 February 1982 on the instructions of the second respondent and detained in prison by the first respondent until his release on 14 July 1983. Within one year of his release he filed an action against both respondents for assault, unlawful arrest and unlawful detention. The first respondent filed a defence on 5 October 1984 without pleading limitation. The second respondent filed a defence on 28 September 1984 pleading that the action was time-barred. On 1 October 1984 the appellant filed a reply to the second respondent's defence stating that he had been in prison confinement and did not know whether there were lawful reasons justifying his arrest and detention. The trial judge struck out the torts of assault and unlawful arrest as time-barred, holding that the plaintiff had not complied with Order 7 rule 6 by showing grounds of exemption in the plaint, and ignoring the reply.

Issues

  1. Whether a plaintiff's reply to a written statement of defence can be read together with the plaint for the purpose of showing grounds of exemption from limitation under Order 7 rule 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules.
  2. Whether the trial judge erred in striking out the torts of assault and unlawful arrest as time-barred without considering the ground of exemption pleaded in the reply.

Orders

  • Appeal allowed with costs.
  • Order of the High Court striking out the torts of assault and unlawful arrest set aside.

Key headnotes

Pleadings — Reply — Whether reply forms part of the plaint for showing exemption from limitation under Order 7 rule 6
Although a plaint does not include a reply, a reply filed in answer to a defence forms part of the plaintiff's pleadings and must be read together with the plaint; it may supplement or cure a deficiency in the plaint, including the omission of grounds of exemption from limitation required by Order 7 rule 6.
Limitation — Order 7 rule 6 Civil Procedure Rules — Substance over technicality
In interpreting limitation provisions a court must ensure justice and pay less respect to technicalities; where a plaintiff has stated the grounds of exemption from limitation in a reply, it would take too narrow a view to ignore that reply merely because the grounds were not contained in the plaint itself.
Limitation — Effect of failure to plead exemption in the plaint where no reply filed
Where a suit appears from the plaint to be barred by limitation and the ground of exemption is not stated in the plaint and no reply is filed, the plaint must be rejected; but where the ground of exemption is stated in a reply, the reply must be considered together with the plaint.

Legislation cited (6)

  • Civil Procedure and Limitation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1969 s.4
  • Civil Procedure and Limitation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1969 s.8(2)
  • Civil Procedure Rules Order 6 rule 7
  • Civil Procedure Rules Order 6 rule 8
  • Civil Procedure Rules Order 7 rule 6
  • Civil Procedure Rules Order 7 rule 11(d)

Cases cited (7)

  • Hall V. Eve, All E.R. (1874-1880)
  • Iga V wakerere University (1972) E.A. 65; Iga v. Makerere University (1971) I.U.L.R. 121
  • African Overseas Trading Co. V Transukh S. Acharya 1963 E.A 468
  • G.P.Jani Properties Ltd. (In Voluntary Liquidation) V Dar es Salaam City Council 1966 E.A.281
  • Bruce v Odhams Press Ltd (1936) 1 ALL ER 287
  • Mrs .M.A. Ochola v.J.H.Wasswa & Another, HCCS no. 981/78
  • Sayikwo Murome V.Yovan Kuko & Another, HCCS No. 161/85
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.