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Kare Distributors Limited and Another v African Rivers Fund [2022] UGHC 268

High Court · 2022 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for stay of proceedings in underlying civil suit and appeal pending determination of separate Court of Appeal matters
Decision
Application for stay of proceedings dismissed

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court dismissed an application for stay of proceedings in the main suit and related appeal pending determination of separate Court of Appeal matters. The court held that no satisfactory reason was shown to warrant a stay, as the Court of Appeal applications sought leave to appeal only against interlocutory rulings on preliminary objections, not final orders. The court found that staying proceedings would occasion a miscarriage of justice and prolong determination of a suit ongoing since 2019, and that the application constituted a delaying tactic and abuse of court process.

Outcome

Application for stay of proceedings dismissed

Facts

The Applicants filed a Notice of Motion seeking orders to stay the hearing and further proceedings in Civil Suit No. 700 of 2019, Civil Appeal No. 58 of 2020, and all applications arising therefrom until Civil Appeal No. 38 of 2020 and Civil Application No. 508 of 2022 were heard and determined by the Court of Appeal. The Respondent opposed the application, alleging it was a continuation of abuse of court process aimed at delaying determination of the suit. Civil Suit No. 700 had been registered in 2019 and had been followed by numerous applications and preliminary objections filed by the plaintiffs themselves. The Court of Appeal applications sought leave to appeal against rulings on preliminary objections in Civil Appeal No. 58 of 2020, not against final orders.

Issues

  1. Whether this is a proper matter for issuance of orders staying proceedings in HCCS 700 of 2019 and CA 58 of 2022 until CA 38 of 2020 and C. App 508 of 2022 are heard by the Court of Appeal.

Orders

  • Application dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the Respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Stay of Proceedings — Discretion of Court — Grounds for Grant
The High Court has discretion to grant a stay of proceedings whenever it considers it equitable to do so, but a stay will not be granted absent satisfactory reasons showing that proceeding would be improper.
Civil Procedure — Stay of Proceedings — Definition and Scope
A stay of proceedings is a relief in the form of suspension of proceedings in an action, which may be temporary until something requisite or ordered is done, or permanent where to proceed would be improper.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Interlocutory Orders — Multiplicity of Appeals
It is not necessary to file separate appeals against interlocutory orders made in the course of a hearing and another appeal against the final decision, as this might lead to a multiplicity of appeals when the matters could conveniently be considered in an appeal from the final decision.
Civil Procedure — Stay of Proceedings — Abuse of Process — Delaying Tactics
A stay of proceedings will be refused where the application constitutes a delaying tactic aimed at frustrating the hearing of the main suit and amounts to abuse of court process, particularly where the suit has been pending for an extended period and the applicants have filed numerous interlocutory applications.

Cases cited (2)

  • National Housing & Construction Corporation v Kampala District Land Board and Another (Civil Application No. 6 of 2002)
  • Sanyu Lwanga Musoke v Sam Galiwango [1997] KALR 47

Full judgment

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

Kare Distributors Limited and Another v African Rivers Fund 2022 UGHC 268 (7 November 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.