Wakilii

Byanyima v Attorney General (Civil Appeal 69 of 2011)

Court of Appeal · [2002] UGCA 10 · 2002 Appeal Partly Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from High Court judgment on assessment of special and general damages
Decision
Appeal partly allowed; general damages increased to Shs. 150,000,000 with costs; special damages findings affirmed

Observed later treatment

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Holding

The Court of Appeal partly allowed the appeal. On special damages, it upheld the trial judge's refusal to award claims for the perimeter fence, other structures, loss of cattle and loss of income, because the appellant's evidence was contradictory and at variance with the pleadings, and special damages must be specifically pleaded and strictly proved. On general damages, the Court held that the trial judge's award of Shs. 30,000,000 for over ten years' trespass on a 1548.4-hectare ranch was inordinately low, failing to account for the size of the land and inconvenience to the appellant. It increased the award to Shs. 150,000,000 with costs.

Outcome

Appeal partly allowed; general damages increased to Shs. 150,000,000 with costs; special damages findings affirmed

Facts

The appellant was the registered proprietor of a 1548.4-hectare leasehold ranch (Ranch No. 6) in Ankole, acquired in 1958 and well developed by 1990 with valley tanks, a dip tank, improved pasture, night bomas and over 1200 head of cattle. In 1990 people unknown to the appellant forced their way onto his ranch, destroyed his fence and structures. The appellant reported to police and government authorities and appealed to the government for help, but was instead asked to surrender part of his ranch to squatters, whom he believed had been brought by the government. He sued the Attorney General in a representative capacity and others, seeking eviction of the squatters, special damages and general damages. The High Court found the government responsible, ordered vacation of the land, declared the appellant the rightful owner, granted a permanent injunction, and awarded special damages of Shs. 12,000,000 for three valley dams and general damages of Shs. 30,000,000. The appellant appealed the disallowed special damages and the level of general damages.

Issues

  1. Whether the trial judge erred in holding that special damages had not been wholly proved as pleaded.
  2. Whether the award of general damages of Shs. 30,000,000 was inordinately low having regard to the circumstances of the case.

Orders

  • Appeal allowed with costs in this court and below.
  • General damages increased from Shs. 30,000,000 to Shs. 150,000,000.
  • Trial judge's refusal of the disputed special damages upheld.

Rules and key headnotes

Damages — Special Damages — Requirement to Specifically Plead and Strictly Prove
Special damages must be specifically pleaded and strictly proved; where the claimant's evidence is contradictory or at variance with the pleadings, the claim for special damages cannot be sustained.
Damages — Special Damages — Pleadings Without Sufficient Particularity
A pleading of destruction of 'other structures' without specifying the particular structures lacks sufficient particularity and cannot ground an award of special damages, especially where the amount claimed in evidence differs from the pleaded sum.
Damages — General Damages — Appellate Interference with Quantum
An appellate court may interfere with an award of general damages only where the trial judge applied a wrong principle of law, misapprehended the evidence, or the amount is so inordinately high or low as to represent a wholly erroneous estimate of the damage.
Damages — General Damages — Trespass to Land — Relevant Considerations
In assessing general damages for continuing trespass to land, the court must take into account the duration of the trespass, the size of the land affected, and the inconvenience caused to the proprietor; failure to consider such factors may render an award inordinately low.
Tort — Trespass to Land — Actionability Per Se
Trespass to land is actionable per se without proof of any loss, and general damages are compensatory, intended to restore the injured party to the position he would have been in had the wrong not occurred.

Cases cited (7)

  • Christopher Kiggundu and Another v Uganda Transport Co (1975) Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 7 of 1993)
  • Matiya Byabalema and Others v Uganda Transport Company (1975) Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 10 of 1993)
  • Henry H. Ilanga v Manyoka (1961) EA 705
  • Nance v British Columbia Electric Railway Co Ltd [1951] AC 601
  • Flint v Lovel [1935] 1 KB 354
  • Davies V. Powett Puffyrum Ass (1842) A.C. 601
  • Associated Architects v Christine Nazziwa (Civil Appeal No. 5 of 1981)

Full judgment

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

Byanyima v Attorney General (Civil Appeal 69 of 2011) [2002] UGCA 10 (9 September 2002)
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.