Wakilii

Bakakunda v Tibamanya and 10 0thers (HCT-00-CV-LD-CS 13 of 2017)

High Court · [2023] UGHCFD 35 · 2023 Judgment for Plaintiff (Partial) AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil suit for removal of caveat, declaration of fraudulent inclusion of land in title, and cancellation of title
Decision
Suit partially succeeded; land fraudulently included in defendants' title to be severed and returned to the estate; caveat lifted

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court held that the defendants were entitled to lodge a caveat as registered proprietors but found they fraudulently or wrongly included land that was not sold to them. The late Bagamba sold only the land from his home down to the swamp but retained the upper portion where his home and plantation were located. The caveat was lifted and the title was ordered severed to exclude the portion forming part of Bagamba's estate.

Outcome

Suit partially succeeded; land fraudulently included in defendants' title to be severed and returned to the estate; caveat lifted

Facts

The plaintiff, granddaughter of the late Bagamba Yowana who died intestate in 1984, applied for letters of administration over his estate which included 35 acres at Bwera I Village. The 1st defendant lodged a caveat claiming the land belonged to his late father who had purchased it from Bagamba in 1972. Evidence showed that in 1972 Bagamba sold land to Kigambe George from his home down to the swamp, retaining the upper portion where his home and plantation were located. Kigambe fenced the purchased portion and used it for grazing while Bagamba continued living on the retained portion until his death in 1984, where he and family members were buried. The defendants later obtained title to the entire property including the portion Bagamba had retained.

Issues

  1. Whether the caveat lodged by the defendants on the application for letters of administration is maintainable.
  2. Whether the defendants fraudulently obtained the suit land.
  3. What remedies are available to the parties.

Orders

  • Declaration that the defendants fraudulently or wrongly included part of the land that formed part of the estate of the late Bagamba Yowana into their title.
  • Declaration that the portion of the suit land located where the late Bagamba's home was, going upwards where his banana plantation was, forms part of the estate of the late Bagamba Yowana.
  • Order directing the Commissioner Land Registration to sever off the portion of land from FRV 562, Folio 2, Plot 4, Block 107 at Bwera I, Kichehe, Kitagwenda currently registered in the names of the defendants.
  • The costs of survey and mutation of the said portion shall be borne by the defendants.
  • Permanent injunction issued restraining the defendants from trespassing on the portion declared to form part of the estate of the late Bagamba Yowana.
  • Order lifting and vacating the caveat lodged by the 1st defendant on the petition for grant of letters of administration over the estate of the late Bagamba Yowana.
  • The petitioner shall amend the petition to reflect only the portion decreed to the estate of Bagamba Yowana.
  • General damages declined as the plaintiff's suit only partially succeeded.
  • The defendants shall pay the costs of the suit to the plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Caveats — Caveatable Interest — Requirements for Maintaining Caveat Against Grant of Letters of Administration
For one to lodge and maintain a caveat against the grant of probate or letters of administration, he or she must have caveatable interest, which ordinarily means an interest in the estate of the deceased to which the caveator would be otherwise entitled or a special interest therein. A registered proprietor with a certificate of title to land claimed as part of the estate has caveatable interest.
Registration of Title — Certificate of Title — Indefeasibility and Exceptions for Fraud
A certificate of title issued under the Registration of Titles Act is conclusive proof of ownership and indefeasible except in cases of fraud. A party alleging fraud must attribute it to the transferee by showing dishonest act or knowledge of such act, and must prove fraud strictly on a standard above mere balance of probabilities.
Formation of Contract — Written Agreements — Validity Without Signatures
The signature of the parties to a written contract is not a precondition to the existence of contractual relations, as a contract can be accepted equally well by conduct. In ascertaining whether there was a valid and binding agreement, the court can look into the conduct of the parties before or after execution of the contract and examine the whole of the correspondence between the parties.
Documentary Evidence — Oral Evidence to Prove Existence of Agreement
Although the Evidence Act bars admission of oral evidence to vary or add to the terms of a written agreement, a written agreement may be contained in more than one document and oral evidence can be admitted to prove the existence of an agreement. All evidence relating to a transaction in different aspects must be evaluated as a whole with the aim of giving effect to the proper intention of the parties.
Consideration — Sufficiency — Proof by Oral Evidence
Consideration need not be adequate but must be sufficient, meaning something of value and tangible. Where a written agreement is silent about consideration, oral evidence may be admitted to prove that consideration was paid.
Pleadings — Departure from Pleadings — Prohibition on Leading Evidence Outside Pleadings
A party is bound to prove the case as alleged in the pleadings and as covered in the issues framed. A party cannot be permitted to lead evidence outside the pleadings and will not be allowed to succeed on a case not set up in the pleadings except by way of amendment. The system of pleadings operates to define with clarity and precision the real matters in controversy upon which the court will adjudicate.

Legislation cited (11)

Cases cited (14)

Full judgment

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

Bakakunda v Tibamanya and 10 0thers (HCT-00-CV-LD-CS 13 of 2017) [2023] UGHCFD 35 (6 October 2023)
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.