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Coffee Marketing Board Limited v National Union of Clerical Commercial Professional & Technical Employees (Civil Application 45 of 2020)

Supreme Court · [2022] UGSC 9 · 2022 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to the Supreme Court for extension of time to file/validate a civil appeal arising from Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 60 of 2014.
Decision
Application for extension of time granted and Civil Appeal No. 27 of 2020 validated.

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

On an application for extension of time to file/validate an appeal lodged four days after the statutory limit, the single Justice held that an appeal document filed out of time is voidable rather than a nullity and may be validated by extension under rule 5. The applicant attributed the delay to demonstrations that disrupted court business and to the Court of Appeal Registrar's late certification, and the four-day delay was found not inordinate. Although mistake of counsel was not pleaded, the court may lift the veil to identify the party who would suffer most. Finding sufficient cause, the court granted the application and validated Civil Appeal No. 27 of 2020.

Outcome

Application for extension of time granted and Civil Appeal No. 27 of 2020 validated.

Facts

The Court of Appeal delivered judgment against the applicant in Civil Appeal No. 60 of 2014 on 13 July 2020. Dissatisfied, the applicant filed a notice of appeal and, by letter of 23 July 2020, requested the typed record of proceedings. On 21 September 2020 the Court of Appeal Registrar notified the applicant that the proceedings were ready for collection. The sixty-day period within which the appeal ought to have been filed expired on 20 November 2020. The applicant's counsel forwarded the prepared record to the Court of Appeal for the Registrar's certificate of correctness, obtained a bank draft for security for costs on 15 November 2020 and paid filing fees on 19 November 2020. The applicant attributed its inability to lodge the appeal by 20 November to violent demonstrations during the week of 16-20 November 2020, linked to the national election campaigns, which it said paralysed court business and prevented the Registrar from issuing the certificate of correctness. The applicant obtained the certificate and lodged the appeal (Civil Appeal No. 27 of 2020) on 24 November 2020, four days after the deadline.

Issues

  1. Whether the applicant showed sufficient cause under rule 5 of the Supreme Court Rules to warrant an extension of time to file its appeal.
  2. Whether an appeal lodged out of time may be validated by an extension of time.

Orders

  • Application for extension of time granted.
  • Civil Appeal No. 27 of 2020 validated.
  • Costs shall abide the outcome of the main appeal.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Extension of Time — Validation of Documents Filed Out of Time
An appeal document lodged out of time is voidable and not an incurable nullity, and may be validated by an extension of time under rule 5 of the Supreme Court Rules whether the extension is granted before or after the act of filing has been done.
Civil Procedure — Extension of Time — Sufficient Cause
What constitutes sufficient cause for an extension of time is left to the court's unfettered discretion and may comprise either a reason that prevented the applicant from taking the essential step in time or other reasons why the intended appeal should be allowed to proceed; an application brought promptly is treated more sympathetically than one brought after unexplained inordinate delay.
Civil Procedure — Extension of Time — Mistake or Fault of Counsel
Even where mistake of counsel is not expressly pleaded, in considering all the circumstances the court is not precluded from inferring obscured matters and may lift the veil to identify the party who would suffer most if justice were denied on account of the fault or error of counsel.

Legislation cited (7)

  • Judicature Act s.8
  • Judicature (Supreme Court Rules) Directions SI 13-11 r.5
  • Judicature (Supreme Court Rules) Directions SI 13-11 r.42
  • Judicature (Supreme Court Rules) Directions SI 13-11 r.43
  • Judicature (Supreme Court Rules) Directions SI 13-11 r.43(1)
  • Judicature (Supreme Court Rules) Directions SI 13-11 r.50(1)
  • Judicature (Supreme Court Rules) Directions SI 13-11 r.72

Cases cited (6)

  • Crane Finance Co. Ltd v Makerere Properties Ltd (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 1 of 2001)
  • Crane Finance Co. Ltd v Makerere Properties (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 7 of 2007)
  • Executrix of the Estate of Christine Mary N. Tebajjukira & Anor v Noel Grace Shalita (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 8 of 1998)
  • Shanti v Hindocha [1973] EA 207
  • Boney M. Katotumba v Waheed Karim (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 27 of 2007)
  • James Bwogi & Sons Enterprises Ltd v Kampala City Council & Anor (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 9 of 2017)

Full judgment

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

Coffee Marketing Board Limited v National Union of Clerical Commercial Professional & Technical Employees (Civil Application 45 of 2020) [2022] UGSC 9 (20 January 2022)
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.