Wakilii

G.W Sembatya V Nandaula Harriet & 2 Ors (Civil Suit No. 918 2000 ) (Civil Suit No. 918 2000)

High Court · [2001] UGHC 56 · 2001 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for temporary injunction arising from pending civil suit for trespass
Decision
Temporary injunction granted restraining respondent from building and cultivating pending determination of underlying trespass suit

Observed later treatment

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Holding

Held that the applicant satisfied all four requirements for a temporary injunction. The application sought to preserve the status quo as the applicant was in present possession. The applicant had a prima facie case based on his sister's permission to occupy the kibanja. The applicant would suffer irreparable injury as continued cultivation by the respondent would leave him and his family with no land to grow food for survival. The balance of convenience favoured the applicant who presently depended on the kibanja for survival over the respondent who was an outsider seeking to oust him.

Outcome

Temporary injunction granted restraining respondent from building and cultivating pending determination of underlying trespass suit

Facts

The applicant and respondent disputed ownership of a customary holding (kibanja) allegedly on Block 303 Nsumbi Ganda. The applicant claimed his sister who inherited the kibanja allowed him to build and live on it. The respondent claimed she bought the kibanja from its previous owner. The respondent sued the applicant for trespass under HCCS No. 186 of 2000. Before that suit was determined, the respondent began building a house on the kibanja and cultivating it. The applicant owned a house on the kibanja where he and his family lived. The applicant brought this application seeking orders to restrain the respondent from building and cultivating the kibanja pending determination of the trespass suit.

Issues

  1. Whether the applicant satisfied the conditions for a temporary injunction to restrain the respondent from building and cultivating on the disputed kibanja.

Orders

  • Application for temporary injunction granted.
  • Respondent restrained from building on the kibanja and cultivating it pending determination of the head suit.
  • Costs of this application to abide the outcome of the head suit.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Temporary Injunctions — Four Requirements
Before a temporary injunction may be granted, an applicant must prove four requirements: that the purpose is to preserve the status quo until the head suit is finally determined; that the applicant has a prima facie case with probability of success; that if the injunction is not granted the applicant would suffer irreparable injury which damages cannot atone; and if the court remains in doubt after considering the first three requirements, it will decide on the balance of convenience.
Civil Procedure — Temporary Injunctions — Preservation of Status Quo
The purpose of a temporary injunction is to preserve the status quo until the head suit is finally determined, meaning to maintain the existing state of possession rather than to restore or create a new state of affairs.
Civil Procedure — Affidavit Evidence — Effect of Non-Reply
Where an applicant swears facts in support of an application and the respondent files no affidavit in reply to deny or contradict those facts, the court may treat those facts as implicitly admitted by the respondent.
Civil Procedure — Temporary Injunctions — Irreparable Injury
Where continued interference with land occupied by an applicant and his family would deprive them of space to grow food for survival and lead to starvation, such injury constitutes irreparable injury which damages cannot atone.
Civil Procedure — Temporary Injunctions — Balance of Convenience
The balance of convenience in an application for a temporary injunction favours the party who presently possesses and depends on the disputed property for survival over a party who is an outsider with no present possession and who has not shown present dependence on the property.

Legislation cited (2)

Cases cited (6)

  • Noor Mohammed Janmohamed v Kassamali Virji (1953) 20 EACA 80
  • Geilla v Cassman Brown Co. Ltd (1973) EA 358
  • EA Industries v Traffords (1972) EA 420
  • Cleaver-flume Lrn itish 1utoriaI' CoI1ee (Africa) Ltd [19751 E.A. 323
  • Badrudin and Another v Pyarali (1975) EA 271
  • Senendo v Attorney General (1972) EA 140

Full judgment

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

G.W Sembatya V Nandaula Harriet & 2 Ors (Civil Suit No. 918_2000 ) (Civil Suit No. 918_2000) [2001] UGHC 56 (17 August 2001)
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.