Wakilii

Byomuhangi v Twesiime (Civil Appeal 5 of 2022)

High Court · [2023] UGHCCD 183 · 2023 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from Magistrate Grade One at Fort Portal arising from land ownership dispute
Decision
Appeal dismissed; respondent's ownership of suit land confirmed; appellant's eviction order and permanent injunction upheld

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

AI-generated summary. This summary was generated by AI from the full text of the judgment. It may contain errors or omissions—always read the source judgment before relying on it.

Holding

Held that where two parties claim competing equitable interests in unregistered land based on purchase agreements executed by their respective fathers, the equitable maxim that where there are two equal equities the first in time prevails applies. The respondent's father purchased the land in October 1981, one year before the appellant's father's purported purchase in October 1982. The respondent therefore had superior equitable title. Appeal dismissed with costs to the respondent.

Outcome

Appeal dismissed; respondent's ownership of suit land confirmed; appellant's eviction order and permanent injunction upheld

Facts

The respondent sued the appellant in the magistrate's court to recover approximately 1 acre of land at Rwendongo Nyaruzigati village, Kabarole district. The respondent claimed the land belonged to her late father Cosma Bazimbwa who purchased it from U. Murekezi in October 1981. After her parents' deaths in 2010, the appellant took possession. The appellant claimed he inherited the land from his late father Aloysius Besigye who purchased it from Erineriko Gakyaro in October 1982. The trial magistrate found for the respondent as the only surviving beneficiary of Cosma Bazimbwa and issued an eviction order, permanent injunction, and awarded UGX 2,000,000 in general damages. The appellant appealed.

Issues

  1. Whether the trial magistrate erred in declaring the respondent the lawful owner of the suit land as the only surviving beneficiary of the late Cosma Bazimbwa.
  2. Whether the trial magistrate erred in ordering the appellant's eviction from the suit land.
  3. Whether the trial magistrate erred in ordering a permanent injunction against the appellant.
  4. Whether the trial magistrate erred in awarding general damages for trespass of UGX 2,000,000.

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the respondent.
  • Land across the road from the suit land where the appellant has his second house is maintained for the appellant.

Rules and key headnotes

Land & Property — Competing Equitable Interests — Priority Between Unregistered Purchasers
Where two parties claim competing equitable interests in the same unregistered land based on purchase agreements executed by their respective predecessors in title, the equitable maxim that where there are two equal equities the first in time prevails applies to determine priority.
Evidence — Proof of Title — Unregistered Land — Occupancy Alone Insufficient
Proof of mere occupancy and user of unregistered land, however long that occupancy and user may be, without more, is not proof of customary tenure or ownership.
Civil Procedure — Memorandum of Appeal — Form Requirements — Order 43 Rule 1(2)
A memorandum of appeal must set forth concisely and under distinct heads the grounds of objection to the decree appealed from without argument or narrative. Grounds that merely restate the trial court's decision without highlighting the error committed do not meet the test of proper grounds of appeal.

Legislation cited (2)

Cases cited (9)

  • Nyero Jema v Olweny Jacob and 4 Others (HCCA No. 50 of 2018)
  • Attorney General v Florence Baliraine (CACA No. 79 of 2003)
  • Isharaza Mathew v Beyunga Deusdedit (HCCA No. 5 of 2004)
  • Moro Okolla v John Lalobo [1979] HCB 54
  • Katusabe Margaret v Kaboyo Paddy (HCCA No. 7 of 2021)
  • Banjo Masereka v Zeresi Biira Baluku and Another (HCCA No. 23 of 2020)
  • Fr. Narsensio Bugumisa and 3 Others v Eric Tiberaga (SCCA No. 17 of 2004)
  • Lovinsa Nankya v Nsibambi (1980) HCB 81
  • Bwetegeine Kiiza and Another v Kadooba Kiiza (Civil Appeal No. 59 of 2009)

Full judgment

↓ Download PDF

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

Byomuhangi v Twesiime (Civil Appeal 5 of 2022) [2023] UGHCCD 183 (28 April 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.