Limitation periods in Uganda
In brief
A claim brought after its limitation period is time-barred and will be struck out, however strong its merits. The core periods run from the Limitation Act, Cap. 290: six years for simple contract and tort, three years for personal injury, one year for defamation, and twelve years to recover land. Claims against Government carry a shorter two-year period and a mandatory pre-action statutory notice.
1. Governing law
Limitation in Uganda is primarily statutory. Time runs from the date the cause of action accrues, and once it expires the right to sue (not merely the remedy) is barred. A plaint that is time-barred on its face is liable to be rejected under Order 7 rule 11 of the Civil Procedure Rules. Time can be extended or postponed in defined situations — disability, and fraud, concealment or mistake under section 25 of the Limitation Act — but these are exceptions to be pleaded and proved, not assumptions.
2. Key statutes & rules
- Limitation Act, Cap. 290 — s.3(1)(a) (contract and tort: 6 years); s.3(2) (defamation: 1 year); s.4 (personal injury: 3 years); s.5 (recovery of land: 12 years); s.25 (fraud, concealment, mistake).
- Civil Procedure and Limitation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, — s.3(1) (tort against Government / local authority: 2 years); s.2 (pre-action statutory notice: 45 days for contract, 90 days otherwise).
- Civil Procedure Rules, Order 7 rule 11 — rejection of a plaint barred by any law.
3. Practical guidance
Fix the accrual date precisely — when the breach occurred, the damage was suffered, or (for continuing wrongs) when the conduct last continued.
Identify the correct cause-of-action category; the period turns on it (contract vs tort vs personal injury vs land).
If the defendant is Government, a local authority or a scheduled corporation, diarise the 2-year period AND serve the statutory notice first (45 or 90 days) before filing.
Check for disability or fraud/concealment that postpones time, and plead it expressly if relied on.
File before expiry — do not rely on an extension you have not yet obtained.
This note is a practitioner orientation, not legal advice, and does not create an advocate–client relationship. Ugandan law changes and chapter and section numbers were revised in the 2023 Laws of Uganda. Verify every statute, rule and authority against the current primary source — and the specific facts of your matter — before filing or relying on it.