Bantariza v Habre International Trading co. Ltd (Civil Appeal 10 of 1997)

Court of Appeal · [1998] UGCA 50 · 1998 Appeal Allowed ✦ AI-generated summary ↓ Download

Jurisdiction

Uganda

Case Type

Civil appeal from a High Court judgment dismissing a suit for trespass to land

Decision

Appeal allowed; judgment entered for the appellant with an order that the respondent remove his illegal structures from the land

The full judgment

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Holding

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding that the trial judge erred in finding the respondent's title valid. The lease minute referred to a different applicant and plot, the respondent obtained no ministerial consent, and the respondent's certificate of title had been cancelled for fraud on 5/12/88 — before the appellant obtained his title on 1/8/89. Under section 76 of the Registration of Titles Act, a certificate cancelled for fraud is void and ceases to have legal effect. Once an illegality is brought to the court's notice it cannot be condoned. Judgment was entered for the appellant with an order that the respondent remove his illegal structures.

Facts

A piece of land, Kyadondo Block 244 Plot 4805 at Muyenga, Kampala, was once vested in the National Water and Sewerage Corporation, which disclaimed interest. The appellant applied for it, made the required payments on 9/8/89, and was issued a certificate of title on 31/12/91 for five years from 1/8/89 after the land was subdivided. He later found the respondent company trespassing on part of the land and sued for removal of illegal structures and damages. The respondent claimed it held a lease from 1985 for five years. Evidence showed the minute under which the respondent's lease was granted referred to a different applicant (Mukalazi Technical Services) and a different plot, that no ministerial consent had been obtained, and that the respondent's certificate of title had been cancelled for fraud on 5/12/88. The respondent's lease would have expired on 1/2/90. The trial judge believed the respondent and dismissed the appellant's suit.

Issues

Whether the appellant proved his claim of ownership of the suit land on a balance of probabilities.
Whether the respondent's lease and certificate of title over the suit land were valid given the cancellation for fraud and irregularities in the granting minute.
Whether the learned trial judge erred in his evaluation of the evidence in dismissing the suit.

Orders

Appeal allowed.
Judgment and orders of the High Court set aside.
Judgment entered for the appellant.
Order that the respondent removes his illegal structures from the appellant's land forthwith.
Costs awarded to the appellant in the Court of Appeal and the High Court.

Key headnotes

Registration of Titles — Cancellation of Certificate for Fraud — Legal Effect

Once a certificate of title is cancelled for fraud under section 76 of the Registration of Titles Act, it is void as against all parties and privies to the fraud and ceases to have any legal effect.

Lease Grant — Irregularities — Minute Referring to Different Applicant and Plot

Where the minute under which a lease was granted refers to a different applicant and a different plot of land, the irregularity is not a mere internal administrative matter but goes to the root of the grant and renders the title void ab initio.

Illegality — Duty of Court

Once an illegality is brought to the notice of the court, it should not be condoned regardless of the parties' conduct or pleadings.

Appellate Re-evaluation — Unchallenged Evidence

A trial judge errs where he makes findings in contradiction to unchallenged evidence on the record, and an appellate court will re-evaluate the evidence and reverse a conclusion reached without proper regard to it.

Legislation cited (1)

Registration of Titles Act s.76

Cases cited (1)

Makula International Ltd v Cardinal Nsubuga & Another [1982] HCB 11

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.