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Attorney General v Matayo & 3 Others (HCT-01-CV-MA 48 of 2024)

High Court · [2024] UGHC 931 · 2024 Application Granted — Suit Dismissed as Statute-Barred AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Preliminary objection raised by way of notice of motion seeking to strike out a civil suit on grounds of limitation, lack of cause of action, and res judicata
Decision
Civil Suit No. 31 of 2023 dismissed as statute-barred

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court upheld a preliminary objection and dismissed a civil suit filed by 5,525 plaintiffs claiming compensation for a 1992 eviction from Mpokya. The suit was filed in 2021, 29 years after the cause of action accrued. The court held that the claim was statute-barred under section 5 of the Limitation Act, which requires land recovery actions to be brought within 12 years. Acknowledgements of liability by the Attorney General in other unrelated cases involving different plaintiffs could not constitute a fresh accrual of the right of action under sections 22 and 23 of the Limitation Act.

Outcome

Civil Suit No. 31 of 2023 dismissed as statute-barred

Facts

In 1992, the plaintiffs and 5,521 others were allegedly evicted by the Government of Uganda from land in Mpokya, Kabarole district. Following the eviction, a verification exercise found that 35,000 families had been evicted. The plaintiffs claimed they were never compensated. In November 2021, they filed Civil Suit No. 31 of 2023 seeking declarations that the eviction was unlawful, compensation for lost property, general damages, and costs. The Attorney General denied the claims, asserting that known evictees had been compensated and that similar suits involving other Mpokya evictees had previously been determined. The Attorney General filed a preliminary objection asserting that the suit disclosed no cause of action, was statute-barred, and was res judicata. The plaintiffs responded that the government had continuously engaged them with promises to settle claims since 1992, citing minutes from a 2002 meeting and previous judgments in related cases.

Issues

  1. Whether the suit is barred by law of limitation.
  2. Whether the plaint discloses a cause of action.
  3. Whether the matter is res judicata.

Orders

  • The preliminary objection raised by counsel for the applicant on limitation is upheld.
  • Civil Suit No. 31 of 2023 is dismissed for being barred by the law of limitation.
  • The applicant is awarded the costs of this application and Civil Suit No. 31 of 2023 against the 1st to 4th respondents.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Limitation of Actions — Land Recovery — Twelve-Year Period — Section 5 of the Limitation Act
An action to recover land, including an action for trespass which concerns possessory rights to land, must be brought within twelve years from the date on which the right of action accrued, and a suit filed after that period is statute-barred.
Civil Procedure — Limitation of Actions — Fresh Accrual of Right of Action — Acknowledgement of Liability in Unrelated Cases
Acknowledgements of liability or admissions made by a defendant in cases where the plaintiff claiming fresh accrual was not a party do not constitute acknowledgement within the meaning of sections 22 and 23 of the Limitation Act, and cannot give rise to a fresh accrual of the right of action for that plaintiff.
Civil Procedure — Limitation of Actions — Strict and Inflexible Application — No Consideration of Merits
Statutes of limitation are strict and inflexible enactments that are not concerned with the merits of a case but with protecting potential defendants from defending stale claims, and once the limitation period has expired, a defendant is entitled to insist on his strict rights under the statute.
Civil Procedure — Preliminary Objections — Point of Law Disposing of the Suit
Where the decision on a preliminary point of law substantially disposes of the whole suit, the court may dismiss the suit under Order 6 Rule 29 of the Civil Procedure Rules without determining the remaining issues.

Legislation cited (10)

Cases cited (13)

  • Odyek Alex and Another v Gena Yokonani and Others (HCCA No. 9 of 2017)
  • Soroti Municipal Council v Akello Juliet and Another (HCMA No. 15 of 2020)
  • Yaya Farajalla v Obur Ronald and 3 Others (CACA No. 81 of 2018)
  • Kiwanuka Fredrick Kakumutwe v. Kibirige Edward (supra)
  • Amos Kiiza and 9,300 Others v Attorney General and Another (HCCS No. 35 of 2020)
  • Dr Arinatwe Raphael and 37 Others v Attorney General (HCCS No. 21 of 2012)
  • Hilton v Sulton Steam Laundry [1946] 1 KB 61
  • Joseph Bamwebeihire and 3942 Others v Attorney General (HCSS No. 102 of 2009)
  • Alex Nduhura and 1243 Others v Attorney General and Kabarole District Council (HCSS No. 468 of 2019)
  • Byaruhanga John and 2499 Others v Attorney General (HCSS No. 246 of 2003)
  • Benon Turyamureba and 1230 Others v Attorney General (HCCS No. 207 of 1993)
  • HCMA No. 555 of 2018
  • HCMA No. 192 of 2000

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Attorney General v Matayo & 3 Others (HCT-01-CV-MA 48 of 2024) [2024] UGHC 931 (19 September 2024)
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.