Wakilii

Hoima Agricultural Center Limited v Kahoora Division Local Government (Miscellaneous Application 11 of 2022)

High Court · [2024] UGHC 437 · 2024 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for review of dismissal order under Section 82 CPA and Order 46 rule 1(b) CPR
Decision
Application dismissed; prior dismissal of Civil Suit No. 2 of 2016 remains in effect

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that the application for review was dismissed as it constituted an abuse of court process. The applicant had previously filed Miscellaneous Application No. 9 of 2021 seeking to set aside the same dismissal order, which was dismissed. The present application duplicated the earlier application and was an improper attempt to circumvent the prior ruling. Additionally, the respondent's filing of submissions without leave of court could not be considered a step in prosecution of the suit.

Outcome

Application dismissed; prior dismissal of Civil Suit No. 2 of 2016 remains in effect

Facts

The Applicant, Hoima Agricultural Center Ltd, sued the Respondent, Kahoora Division Local Government, in Civil Suit No. 2 of 2016 seeking recovery of UGX 50,000,000. The Respondent filed Miscellaneous Application No. 5 of 2016 for unconditional leave to defend. The summary suit was dismissed on 10 August 2020 under Order 17 rule 6 CPR for want of prosecution after two years of inactivity. The Applicant filed Miscellaneous Application No. 9 of 2021 to set aside the dismissal, which was dismissed. The Applicant then brought the present application (Miscellaneous Application No. 11 of 2022) seeking review of the dismissal order on grounds that it was entered during the pendency of the leave to defend application and constituted an error apparent on the face of the record. The Respondent did not participate in the present application.

Issues

  1. Whether the dismissal of Civil Suit No. 2 of 2016 on 10 August 2020 constitutes a mistake or error apparent on the face of the record justifying review.
  2. Whether the suit was dismissed during the pendency of a related application for unconditional leave to defend, rendering the dismissal erroneous.
  3. Whether the present application amounts to an abuse of court process given the prior dismissal of Miscellaneous Application No. 9 of 2021.

Orders

  • Application dismissed.
  • No order as to costs since the Respondent did not participate.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Review of Judgments and Orders — Abuse of Process
An application for review that duplicates a prior application already dismissed by the court constitutes an abuse of court process and will be dismissed.
Civil Procedure — Abuse of Court Process — Definition
Abuse of court process involves the use of the court process for an improper purpose or a purpose for which the process was not established, including persistent harassment of a party with successive applications raising the same issues.
Civil Procedure — Steps in Prosecution of Suit — Right to Begin
The filing of submissions without leave of court in violation of Order 18 rule 1 CPR on the right to begin, which are thereafter abandoned, cannot be taken as a step towards prosecution of the suit.

Legislation cited (8)

  • Civil Procedure Act s.82
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.46 r.1
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.46 r.1(b)
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.46 r.8
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.52
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.17 r.6
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.36
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.18 r.1

Cases cited (3)

  • Abdul Ssozi v Post Bank Uganda Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 2020)
  • Edison Kanyabwera v Pastori Tumwebaza (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 6 of 2004)
  • Attorney General and Another v James Kamoga and Another (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 8 of 2004)

Full judgment

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

Hoima Agricultural Center Limited v Kahoora Division Local Government (Miscellaneous Application 11 of 2022) [2024] UGHC 437 (22 March 2024)
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.