Wakilii

Katende Paskazia v Ssengozi and Others (Miscellaneous Application No. 203 of 2024)

High Court · [2024] UGHCLD 366 · 2024 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for amendment of pleadings following death of co-plaintiff in pending civil suit
Decision
Application granted; applicant to proceed as sole plaintiff in the main suit after amendment of plaint

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Application granted. Where one of two joint plaintiffs dies during civil proceedings and the cause of action survives to the remaining plaintiff, the court must make an entry on the record of the death under Order 24 rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules and allow amendment of the plaint to remove the deceased plaintiff's name. The surviving plaintiff may continue the suit alone.

Outcome

Application granted; applicant to proceed as sole plaintiff in the main suit after amendment of plaint

Facts

On 16 October 2021, Katende Paskazia and Elizabeth Namiiro filed Civil Suit No. 906 of 2021 as joint plaintiffs claiming they had purchased land in 2014 from the 1st defendant but had not received transfer forms. They sought cancellation of a subsequent registration in favour of the 2nd defendant. On 1 June 2023, the 2nd plaintiff Elizabeth Namiiro died at St. Francis Hospital Nsambya. She was the applicant's biological sister, a religious nun with no surviving spouse or children. The applicant applied to amend the plaint to remove the deceased co-plaintiff's name and continue the suit alone. The 1st respondent opposed the application, raising procedural objections and alleging settlement negotiations. The applicant provided a death certificate proving Namiiro's death.

Issues

  1. Whether the court should make an entry that the 2nd plaintiff in Civil Suit No. 906 of 2021 died.
  2. Whether the cause of action in Civil Suit No. 906 of 2021 survives to the applicant.
  3. Whether the plaint should be amended to remove the name of the deceased 2nd plaintiff.

Orders

  • Application granted.
  • An entry shall be entered on the court record that the 2nd plaintiff Elizabeth Namiiro died on 1st June 2023 at 3:00pm at St. Francis Hospital Nsambya.
  • The cause of action in HCCS No. 906 of 2021 continues and survives to the applicant as the sole plaintiff.
  • The plaint in HCCS 906 of 2021 be amended to remove the name of 2nd plaintiff not later than 7th March 2024 and the defendants file amended defences by 3rd April 2024.
  • The main suit (Civil Suit No. 906 of 2021) shall be mentioned on 29th April 2024 at 10:00am for further directions.
  • Costs shall be in the cause.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Death of Party — Survival of Cause of Action — Order 24 Rule 2
Where there are multiple plaintiffs and one dies during the subsistence of civil proceedings, and the cause of action survives to the surviving plaintiff or plaintiffs, the court must make an entry on the court record of the death and the suit shall proceed at the instance of the surviving plaintiff or plaintiffs under Order 24 rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules.
Civil Procedure — Amendment of Pleadings — Power of Court — Order 6 Rule 19
Order 6 rule 19 of the Civil Procedure Rules empowers the court to amend pleadings at any stage of the proceedings and allow either party to alter or amend his or her pleadings in such manner and on such terms as may be just, and all such amendments shall be made as may be necessary for the purpose of determining the real questions in controversy between the parties.
Evidence — Affidavit Evidence — Uncontroverted Averments — Presumption of Acceptance
It is settled law that where certain facts are sworn to in an affidavit, the burden to deny them is on the other party and in case of failure to do so, they are presumed to have been accepted.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (2)

  • John Kaye v Attorney General (Constitutional Court Application No. 25 of 2012)
  • Tarema Justus v Kiteteyi Robina and 2 Others (HCCR No. 1 of 2017)

Full judgment

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

Katende_Paskazia_v_Ssengozi_and_Others_(Miscellaneous_Application_No._203_of_2024)_[2024]_UGHCLD_366_(26_February_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.