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Elizabeth Nakkazi Ssebuliba v George William Musoke Kibumbwa and Another (Miscellaneous Application 541 of 2025)

High Court · [2026] UGHCLD 12 · 2026 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to set aside dismissal for want of prosecution and reinstate a civil suit
Decision
Application for reinstatement dismissed; dismissal of Civil Suit No. 12 of 2007 stands

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Holding

The applicant sought reinstatement, under Order 9 rule 23 of the Civil Procedure Rules, of a land recovery suit dismissed for want of prosecution in 2022, blaming her illness and her advocates' failure to notify her of hearing dates. The court held that sufficient cause was not shown: the applicant knew of the suit, had appeared in 2018, yet took no step for four years, and the medical evidence did not establish incapacity between 2018 and 2022. The rule that counsel's negligence should not be visited on a client is not absolute; litigants must themselves be vigilant and follow up their cases. The three-year delay in applying confirmed a lack of diligence. Application dismissed with no order as to costs.

Outcome

Application for reinstatement dismissed; dismissal of Civil Suit No. 12 of 2007 stands

Facts

The applicant filed High Court Civil Suit No. 12 of 2007 for recovery of land, instructing Lutakome & Co. Advocates and paying instruction fees. The last recorded step on the file was on 11th October 2018, when both parties appeared and were directed to file a joint scheduling memorandum and witness statements. Nothing further was filed. Hearing notices were endorsed by court on 31st August 2022 and, according to the 2nd respondent, served. On 15th September 2022 the suit was dismissed for want of prosecution, the applicant's advocates informing court that they had lost contact with her. The applicant said she had fallen sick, lost her phone and changed her line, and only learnt of the dismissal in 2025 when served with a decree and a bill of costs in taxation proceedings. Her medical evidence showed treatment for diabetes, hypertension and an eye condition, with hospital attendances from 2017 and eye surgery in 2023, but no hospitalisation between 2018 and 2022. She applied for reinstatement in February 2025, nearly three years after the dismissal. The 2nd respondent opposed the application, asserting indolence and abuse of process.

Issues

  1. Whether there was sufficient cause for reinstatement of Civil Suit No. 12 of 2007 which had been dismissed for want of prosecution.

Orders

  • Civil Suit No. 12 of 2007, as dismissed by a decree dated 15th August 2022, is not reinstated.
  • There is no order for costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Dismissal for Want of Prosecution — Reinstatement — Meaning of Sufficient Cause
Sufficient cause for setting aside a dismissal under Order 9 rule 23 of the Civil Procedure Rules is assessed by reference to whether the application was brought promptly, whether there is a valid explanation for the delay, and whether the applicant exercised diligence; the governing test is whether the applicant honestly intended to attend the hearing and did his or her best to do so.
Civil Procedure — Mistake or Negligence of Counsel — Limits of the Rule Against Imputation to the Client
The principle that the mistake, error or negligence of an advocate should not be visited on the client is not absolute but depends on the circumstances of the case, and inordinate delay or failure to observe plain requirements of the law is not a mistake of counsel from which a client may be excused.
Civil Procedure — Duty of Litigants — Vigilance in Following Up Their Own Cases
A litigant, including a lay person, owes a personal duty to be vigilant and to follow up the progress of the case with the advocate or with the court, since the advocate is only the litigant's agent; total inaction over several years amounts to dilatory conduct and negligence disentitling the litigant to reinstatement.
Civil Procedure — Non-appearance — Illness as Sufficient Cause — Proof Required
Illness may constitute sufficient cause for non-appearance only where the evidence establishes that the applicant was incapacitated during the material period; medical evidence of treatment outside that period, or of an illness that did not prevent the applicant from acting through a representative, will not suffice.

Legislation cited (4)

Cases cited (11)

  • Graiga Vs. Kenseen [1943] 1 ALLER 108
  • Crown Beverages Ltd v Stanbic Bank (Miscellaneous Application No. 181 of 2005)
  • Mumello v Bank of Tanzania (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 2002)
  • Tanga Cement Company Ltd v Jumanne D. Masangwa and Amos A. Mwalwanda (Civil Application No. 6 of 2001)
  • Nakiridde v. Hotel International (1987) HCB 85
  • Banco Arabe Espanol v Bank of Uganda (Civil Appeal No. 8 of 1998)
  • Kateyo Eliezer v Makerere University LCMA 147/2021
  • Eternal Church of God v Kasoke (Miscellaneous Application No. 1 of 2016)
  • Bishop Jacinto Kibuuka v Uganda Catholic Lawyers Fraternity & Ors 696 of 2018
  • Eriga Jos v Vuzzi Azza & Ors (Miscellaneous Application No. 9 of 2017)
  • Kananura vs. Kaijuka (CR 15 of 2016)

Full judgment

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

Elizabeth Nakkazi Ssebuliba v George William Musoke Kibumbwa and Another (Miscellaneous Application 541 of 2025) [2026] UGHCLD 12 (27 January 2026)
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.