Wakilii

Farm Inputs Care Centre Limited v Klein Karoo Seeds Marketing (pty) Limited (Miscellaneous Application 861 of 2021)

High Court · [2021] UGCOMMC 177 · 2021 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for review of an order dismissing a belated application for leave to appear and defend a suit under summary procedure
Decision
Application for review dismissed with costs to the respondent

Observed later treatment

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Holding

The court held that it had jurisdiction to review an order on grounds of error apparent on the face of the record even where the original judge had been transferred. However, the applicant failed to demonstrate any self-evident error. The court's finding that the applicant had not proved timeous instruction of counsel was based on proper consideration of the evidence and submissions before it. An application for review cannot be used as an appeal in disguise to challenge the merits of a decision.

Outcome

Application for review dismissed with costs to the respondent

Facts

The respondent sued the applicant under summary procedure for US$70,797.19 being the price of seeds supplied on credit. Service was effected on 12 December 2018. The applicant did not seek leave to appear and defend within the prescribed time, and default judgment was entered on 19 February 2019. On 3 July 2019, the applicant applied to set aside the default judgment, attributing the delay to counsel's mistake. The applicant claimed it had instructed counsel upon receipt of summons but only discovered counsel's failure seven months later when served with a taxation hearing notice. The court dismissed that application on 25 March 2021, finding no evidence of timeous instruction of counsel and noting the applicant's lack of diligence. The applicant then sought review of that dismissal order.

Issues

  1. Whether the court has jurisdiction to review an order made by a judge who has since been transferred from the division.
  2. Whether there was an error apparent on the face of the record in the court's dismissal of the application for leave to appear and defend.
  3. Whether the court improperly raised and determined an issue that was not before it.

Orders

  • Application for review dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Review of Judgments — Jurisdiction — Review by Judge Other Than Original Judge
An application for review premised on the discovery of new and important matter or evidence, or on the existence of a clerical or arithmetical mistake or error apparent on the face of the decree or order, may be considered by any judge other than the one who passed the decree or order sought to be reviewed.
Civil Procedure — Review of Judgments — Error Apparent on Face of Record — Definition and Scope
An error apparent on the face of the record must be self-evident and should not require an elaborate argument to be established. It is an error which strikes one on mere looking at the record and would not require any long drawn process of reasoning on points where there may conceivably be two opinions. An error which has to be established by a process of reasoning cannot be said to be an error apparent on the face of the record.
Civil Procedure — Review of Judgments — Distinction Between Review and Appeal
An application for review has a limited purpose and cannot be allowed to be an appeal in disguise. A review should not seek to challenge the merits of a decision but rather irregularities in the process towards the decision. The court exercising the power of review cannot sit in appeal over its own decision. An order cannot be corrected merely because it is erroneous in law or on the ground that a different view could have been taken by the court.
Civil Procedure — Framing of Issues — Court's Power to Determine Issues Not Specifically Raised
Although an issue may not have been specifically raised during the hearing, where both parties had a full and fair opportunity to litigate the issue after full contest in which both parties had a fair opportunity to prove their respective case, it can be determined and necessarily decided by the court. The court may frame issues from allegations made on oath, allegations in pleadings, and contents of documents produced by either party.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (8)

  • Outa Levi v Uganda Transport Corporation [1975] HCB 353
  • Nyamogo & Nyamogo Advocates v Kago [2001] 2 EA 173
  • Sardar Mohamed v Charan Singh [1959] EA 793
  • Tanitalia Ltd v Mawa Handels Anstalt [1957] EA 215
  • Ahmed H Mulji v Shirinbai Jadavji [1963] EA 217
  • Andrew Bamanya v Shamsherali Zaver (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 70 of 2001)
  • Ggoloba Godfrey v Harriet Kizito (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 7 of 2006)
  • Zam Nalumansi v Sulaiman Bale (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 2 of 1999)

Full judgment

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

Farm Inputs Care Centre Limited v Klein Karoo Seeds Marketing (pty) Limited (Miscellaneous Application 861 of 2021) [2021] UGCommC 177 (24 September 2021)
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.