Wakilii

Basaliza v Kambarage & Anor (HCT – 01 – CV – MA – 0096 OF 2013)

High Court · [2016] UGHCCD 88 · 2016 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to set aside dismissal order and reinstate main application for enforcement of fundamental rights
Decision
Dismissal order set aside and main application reinstated for hearing on the merits

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court has inherent jurisdiction under section 98 of the Civil Procedure Act to set aside a dismissal order made under Order 17 Rule 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules and reinstate a suit. A suit may only be dismissed under Order 17 Rule 6 if no step has been taken for two years. Where a suit is erroneously dismissed before the two-year period has elapsed, the court may invoke its inherent jurisdiction to set aside the dismissal in the interest of justice.

Outcome

Dismissal order set aside and main application reinstated for hearing on the merits

Facts

The Applicant filed an application seeking to enforce his fundamental rights after being made to kneel down for over 10 minutes and humiliated by the 1st Respondent, who was the Resident District Commissioner of Kabarole. On 7 March 2012, the court delivered a ruling dismissing preliminary objections raised by the Respondents. The Applicant's counsel failed to fix the matter for hearing thereafter. On 23 October 2013, the court dismissed the main application under Order 17 Rule 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules for want of prosecution. However, only one year and seven months had elapsed since the ruling on the preliminary objections. The Applicant applied to set aside the dismissal, arguing that the two-year period under Order 17 Rule 6 had not yet lapsed.

Issues

  1. Whether the main application was properly dismissed under Order 17 Rule 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules.
  2. Whether the court has inherent jurisdiction to set aside a dismissal order under Order 17 Rule 6 and reinstate the suit.

Orders

  • Application granted.
  • The dismissal of the main Application HCT-01-CV-MA-091 of 2009 made on 23rd October 2013 is set aside.
  • The main Application is reinstated to be heard and determined on its merits.
  • Costs of this application to abide the outcome of the main application.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Dismissal for Want of Prosecution — Order 17 Rule 6 — Two-Year Requirement
Under Order 17 Rule 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules, a suit may only be dismissed for want of prosecution if no application is made or step taken for a period of two years by either party with a view to proceeding with the suit.
Civil Procedure — Inherent Jurisdiction — Setting Aside Dismissal Under Order 17 Rule 6
The High Court has inherent jurisdiction under section 98 of the Civil Procedure Act to set aside a dismissal order made under Order 17 Rule 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules and reinstate a suit, notwithstanding that Order 17 Rule 6(2) provides that the plaintiff may bring a fresh suit subject to limitation.
Civil Procedure — Inherent Jurisdiction — Availability of Alternative Remedy
There is no rule of law that inherent powers cannot be invoked where another remedy is available. The courts will not normally exercise their inherent powers where a specific remedy is available, but the matter is one of discretion, not jurisdiction.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (3)

  • SOBETRA (U) Ltd v West Nile Electrification Company Limited (HCMA No. 616 of 2014)
  • Rawal v The Mombasa Hardware Ltd [1968] EA 392
  • Adonia v Mutekanga [1970] 1 EA 429

Full judgment

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

Basaliza v Kambarage & Anor (HCT – 01 – CV – MA – 0096 OF 2013) [2016] UGHCCD 88 (27 October 2016)
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.