Wakilii

Kisiribombo v Tumwine & Ors (Civil Appeal 19 of 2018)

Supreme Court · [2020] UGSC 43 · 2020 Appeal Dismissed ✦ AI-generated summary ↓ Download
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Second appeal from the Court of Appeal concerning recovery of trust property and limitation
Decision
Appeal dismissed; Court of Appeal decision in favour of the respondent beneficiaries upheld

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Holding

The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, holding that Section 19 of the Limitation Act, which exempts actions in respect of fraud or fraudulent breach of trust from prescribed limitation periods, applies not only to trustees but also to third parties claiming through a trustee who knowingly receive trust property and are not bona fide purchasers for value without notice. The appellant, who purchased suit land from a widow lacking letters of administration and assisted in irregularly procuring them, knew of the beneficiaries' prior equitable interests and did not qualify as a bona fide purchaser without notice. Accordingly, no limitation period barred the beneficiaries' claim to follow the trust property into his hands.

Facts

The late John Reuben Nyakatukura, declared a missing person in 1972, owned land comprised in LRV 990 Folio 15 Kashari Block 1 Plot 26. The Administrator General obtained a management order in 1976 and letters of administration over his estate in 1977. In 1986, before obtaining her own letters of administration (granted 1987), the deceased's widow Violet Nyakatukura sold part of the suit land to the appellant, Saul Kisiribombo, who later procured registration of the title in 1989. The appellant knew the widow lacked capacity and assisted her in obtaining letters of administration to validate the sale. A caveat lodged by beneficiaries in 1986 to protect the estate was irregularly removed to facilitate the appellant's registration. In 2010 the deceased's son and other beneficiaries sued the Administrator General and the appellant, seeking return of the land to the estate. The High Court and Court of Appeal found in favour of the beneficiaries, holding the appellant was not a bona fide purchaser and the suit was not time barred.

Issues

  1. Whether the respondents are beneficiaries under a trust envisaged by Section 19(1) of the Limitation Act.
  2. Whether the respondents' suit against the appellant was barred by limitation.
  3. Whether a defendant raising a defence of limitation under Section 19(1) of the Limitation Act must demonstrate that he is a bona fide purchaser for value without notice of fraud.
  4. Whether the land comprised in LRV 990 Folio 15 Kashari Block 1 Plot 26 formed part of the estate of the late John Reuben Nyakatukura.
  5. Whether there was a fraudulent breach of trust by the trustee.
  6. What remedies are available.

Orders

  • The appeal is dismissed with costs to the respondents.
  • The costs granted in the Court of Appeal and in the High Court are upheld.

Key headnotes

Limitation — Trust Property — Section 19 Limitation Act — Application to Third Parties
Section 19 of the Limitation Act, which exempts an action by a beneficiary in respect of fraud or fraudulent breach of trust from the prescribed limitation period, applies not only to the trustee but also to a third party claiming through the trustee who has wrongfully received trust property into his possession.
Bona Fide Purchaser — Notice of Fraud — Duty of Due Diligence
A purchaser of land forming part of a deceased's estate who knows of the beneficiaries' prior equitable interests, knows the vendor lacks capacity to deal with the estate, and participates in steps to validate the irregular transfer is not a bona fide purchaser for value without notice of fraud and cannot rely on a defence of limitation.
Intestate Estate — Personal Representative as Trustee
Under Section 25 of the Succession Act all property in an intestate estate devolves upon the personal representative upon trust for the persons entitled, so a personal representative holding the assets of an intestate holds them in trust for the beneficiaries.
Limitation — Postponement — Section 25 — Fraud and Concealment
Where an action is based on fraud, the limitation period does not begin to run until the plaintiff has discovered the fraud or could with reasonable diligence have discovered it, and beneficiaries who took legal steps to protect their interests cannot be said to have slept on their rights so as to be defeated by laches.

Legislation cited (8)

  • Limitation Act s.5
  • Limitation Act s.19
  • Limitation Act s.19(1)(a)
  • Limitation Act s.25
  • Succession Act s.25
  • Succession Act s.1(r)
  • Trustees Act s.1(r)
  • Land Act

Cases cited (6)

  • Yoswa Kityo v Kirya Kaddu (1982) HCB 58
  • G.L. Baker v Medway Building and Supplies Ltd [1958] 2 All ER 532
  • Williams v Central Bank of Nigeria [2014] UKSC 10
  • Nelson v Larholt [1947] 2 All ER 751
  • Fredrick J.K. Zaabwe v Orient Bank Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 4 of 2006)
  • Stanbic Bank Uganda Ltd v Uganda Crocs Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 4 of 2004)
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.