Wakilii

Gombe Medical Services Ltd and Another v James Lubega (Miscellaneous Appeal No. 46 of 2025)

High Court · [2025] UGHCLD 176 · 2025 Appeal Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Appeal from Deputy Registrar's decision dismissing application for temporary injunction
Decision
Temporary injunction granted restraining respondent from evicting appellants or interfering with their occupation pending determination of main suit

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 although the appeal was filed outside the seven-day statutory period prescribed under Section 79(1) of the Civil Procedure Act, the court admitted it in the interest of justice given the peculiar circumstances involving a health services enterprise and the need to preserve the status quo. The court found that the appellants demonstrated a prima facie case and would suffer irreparable damage from eviction threats during the pendency of the main suit. A temporary injunction was granted restraining the respondent from evicting the appellants or interfering with their occupation of the suit premises pending determination of the main suit.

Outcome

Temporary injunction granted restraining respondent from evicting appellants or interfering with their occupation pending determination of main suit

Facts

The appellants, Gombe Medical Services Ltd and Intercity Health Access Ltd, appealed against the Deputy Registrar's decision dismissing their application for a temporary injunction in Civil Suit No. 208 of 2024. The 1st appellant operates a medical facility on premises comprised in Kibuga Block 10 Plot 458 at Balintuma Road, Namirembe, Rubaga Division, Kampala. The respondent, James Lubega, is the landlord who filed the main suit seeking eviction orders. The appellants sought an injunction to restrain the respondent from evicting them or interfering with their occupation pending determination of the main suit. The Deputy Registrar dismissed the application on 29 May 2025. The appellants filed their appeal on 19 June 2025, outside the seven-day statutory period. Evidence showed eviction threats against the appellants despite the respondent's denial of immediate eviction intentions.

Issues

  1. Whether the appeal is proper before this court?
  2. Whether the appeal discloses sufficient grounds to set aside the ruling and the orders of the learned Deputy Registrar?

Orders

  • Appeal allowed.
  • A temporary injunction is hereby issued restraining the respondent, his agents, representatives, assignees or nominees from evicting, closing off, blocking the premises or otherwise interfering with the applicant's peaceful occupation and quiet enjoyment of the premises and property comprised in Kibuga Block 10 Plot 458 land Balintuma Road, Namirembe Rubaga Division pending the determination of the main suit.
  • Costs of this appeal abide the outcome of the main suit.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Appeals — Time Limits — Computation of Time for Filing Appeal from Registrar's Decision
Time for filing an appeal from a Registrar's decision under Section 79(1) of the Civil Procedure Act starts running from the date the decision was delivered (pronounced in open court), not from the date appearing on the ruling or when the order was served. In the ECCMIS era, a ruling is deemed delivered when uploaded on the ECCMIS platform.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Time Limits — Exclusion of Time Under Section 79(2) Civil Procedure Act
Section 79(2) of the Civil Procedure Act, which provides for exclusion of time taken in preparing the order and record of proceedings, can only be invoked where the appellants applied for the order and the record of proceedings.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Time Limits — Admission of Appeal Filed Out of Time for Good Cause
An appellate court may for good cause admit an appeal though the period of limitation prescribed has elapsed. An act for which time has been prescribed and not complied with can still be validated even when done outside the prescribed time without leave, in the interest of justice.
Civil Procedure — Temporary Injunctions — Conditions for Grant — Irreparable Damage
Irreparable damage does not mean that there must be physical impossibility of repairing the injury but means that the injury or damage must be substantial or material and cannot be adequately compensated in damages. Eviction threats against a party operating a health services enterprise during the pendency of a suit constitute irreparable damage justifying a temporary injunction to maintain the status quo.
Civil Procedure — Temporary Injunctions — Purpose — Preservation of Status Quo
A temporary injunction application looks at maintaining the status quo pending the determination of the main suit and does not extend to the determination of rights and interests of the parties in the suit property. The court should preserve the status quo to prevent the main suit from being rendered nugatory.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (11)

  • Nyamutale Solomon and 3 Others v Bugaaki Sub-County Local Government (HCCA No. 004 of 2024)
  • Mohammad Majyambere v Bhakeresa Khalil (Miscellaneous Application No. 727 of 2011)
  • Beiersdorf East Africa Limited and Another v Dembe Trading Enterprises Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 1182 of 2022)
  • Kasirye Byaruhanga & Co Advocates v UDB (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 2 of 1997)
  • Shanti v Hindocha & Others [1973] EA 207
  • MP Electronics Ltd and Another v Ashishi Shantal Kamani and 2 Others (Civil Appeal No. 1266 of 2023)
  • Hon. Anifa Kawoya v Attorney General and Another (Constitutional Petition No. 042 of 2010)
  • E.A Industries v Trufoods [1972] EA 420
  • Robert Kavuma v Hotel International (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 08 of 1990)
  • Gashumba Maniruguha v Sam Nkudiye (Civil Appeal No. 24 of 2015)
  • Giella v Cassman Brown & Co. [1973] EA

Full judgment

↓ Download PDF

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

Gombe_Medical_Services_Ltd_and_Another_v_James_Lubega_(Miscellaneous_Appeal_No._46_of_2025)_[2025]_UGHCLD_176_(19_August_2025)
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.