Wakilii

Irumba and 2 Others v Achurubwe (Miscellaneous Application No. 18 of 2021)

High Court · [2022] UGHCCD 143 · 2022 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to recall and set aside an order appointing an administrator of an estate, arising from Miscellaneous Cause No. 35 of 2020
Decision
Order of 9th December 2020 set aside for lack of jurisdiction; parties bound by earlier order granting limited letters of administration

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court set aside an order appointing the respondent as administrator of an estate on the ground that the Assistant Registrar lacked jurisdiction to make such an appointment, as this power is not among those conferred by the Civil Procedure Rules Order 50. The court held that the illegality could not be ignored and must be corrected.

Outcome

Order of 9th December 2020 set aside for lack of jurisdiction; parties bound by earlier order granting limited letters of administration

Facts

Peter Achurobwe died intestate on 29th April 1982. His son Mugisa Moses was appointed administrator and distributed the estate in 2005, filing an inventory on 1st August 2008. The distribution was confirmed in C.S. No. 10 of 2009. On 1st October 2020, the respondent (widow of the deceased) filed Misc. Cause No. 35 of 2020 seeking to be appointed administrator to distribute her share, as the former administrator had died. On 9th December 2020, the Assistant Registrar appointed her as administrator. The applicants (beneficiaries of the estate) sought to set aside this order, arguing the estate had already been distributed and the respondent was using the grant to cause family unrest.

Issues

  1. Whether the order of court issued on 9th December 2020 appointing the Respondent as Administrator of the Estate should be recalled and set aside.
  2. Whether the Assistant Registrar had jurisdiction to appoint an administrator of an estate.

Orders

  • The order of court issued on 9th December 2020 appointing the Respondent as Administrator of the Estate of the late Peter Achurobwe is set aside.
  • The filed inventory based on the Grant illegally issued on 9th December 2020 cannot be passed.
  • The Respondent is bound by the order in H.C. Misc. Cause No. 35 of 2020 granting limited letters of administration.
  • Each party to bear his or her own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Succession & Estates — Grant of Letters of Administration — Jurisdiction of Assistant Registrar
An Assistant Registrar of the High Court has no jurisdiction to appoint an administrator of an estate, as this power is not among those conferred by Order 50 of the Civil Procedure Rules.
Civil Procedure — Illegality — Power of Court to Set Aside Orders Made Without Jurisdiction
Where an illegality is brought to the attention of the court, the court cannot ignore it and must set aside the illegal order, following the principle in Makula International Ltd v Cardinal Nsubuga.

Legislation cited (5)

  • Civil Procedure Act s.98
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.5 r.1
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.5 r.2
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.5 r.3
  • Civil Procedure Rules O.50

Cases cited (1)

  • Makula International Ltd v Cardinal Nsubuga and Another (Civil Appeal No. 4 of 1981)

Full judgment

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Irumba and 2 Others v Achurubwe (Miscellaneous Application No. 18 of 2021) [2022] UGHCCD 143 (9 September 2022)
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.