Wakilii

Katuntu and 2 Others v Kankya and 22 Others (Civil Suit No. 36 of 2021)

High Court · [2023] UGHCCD 44 · 2023 Suit Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Oral application by defendants to dismiss suit for abatement under Order 11A of the Civil Procedure Rules
Decision
Suit dismissed for abatement due to plaintiffs' failure to take out summons for directions and prosecute the matter

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court held that a suit abates automatically under Order 11A rules 2 and 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules where the plaintiff fails to take out summons for directions within 28 days from the date of the last reply or rejoinder and demonstrates negligence and lack of interest in prosecuting the matter. The court dismissed the suit with costs to the defendants.

Outcome

Suit dismissed for abatement due to plaintiffs' failure to take out summons for directions and prosecute the matter

Facts

The plaintiffs filed Civil Suit No. 36 of 2021 on 17 September 2021. The last written statement of defence was filed on 21 October 2021. The plaintiffs filed a miscellaneous application for temporary injunction which was determined on 8 December 2021. After the determination of the application and the filing of the last defence, the plaintiffs and their counsel took no steps to prosecute the matter or take out summons for directions as required under the Civil Procedure Rules. The plaintiffs' counsel failed to appear when the case was fixed for mention and made no effort to respond when defendants raised the point of law regarding abatement. Defendants applied orally to have the suit dismissed on grounds of abatement under Order 11A and for want of prosecution.

Issues

  1. Whether the suit had abated under Order 11A rules 2 and 6 of the Civil Procedure Rules for failure to take out summons for directions within 28 days from the date of the last pleading.
  2. Whether the suit should be dismissed under Order 9 rule 22 of the Civil Procedure Rules for want of prosecution.
  3. Whether the suit should be dismissed under Order 17 rule 4 of the Civil Procedure Rules for failure to conduct scheduling within 6 months.

Orders

  • Suit abated under Order 11A rules 2 and 6 of the Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2019.
  • Suit dismissed with costs to the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 18th, 19th, 21st, 22nd and 23rd defendants.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Summons for Directions — Mandatory Requirement — Effect of Non-Compliance
Under Order 11A rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules, a plaintiff is required to take out summons for directions within 28 days from the date of the last reply or rejoinder, and failure to comply results in automatic abatement of the suit under rule 6.
Civil Procedure — Abatement of Suit — Plaintiff's Negligence and Lack of Interest
Where a plaintiff demonstrates a remarkable level of negligence and lack of interest in prosecuting a suit by failing to take out summons for directions, failing to appear when the case is fixed for mention, and failing to respond to a point of law raised by defendants, the court may invoke Order 11A rules 2 and 6 to find that the suit has abated.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (4)

  • Abdul Ddamulira v MSS Xsabo Power Ltd (Miscellaneous Application No. 46 of 2021)
  • Geofrey Waswa v Amy for Africa Ltd and 2 Others (Civil Suit No. 127 of 2020)
  • Kagimu Moses Gava and 7 Others v Sekatawa Muhammad and 11 Others (Civil Appeal No. 25 of 2020)
  • Gama Distillers Ltd v Bikanza Ezra (Civil Suit No. 60 of 2021)

Full judgment

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

Katuntu and 2 Others v Kankya and 22 Others (Civil Suit No. 36 of 2021) [2023] UGHCCD 44 (17 February 2023)
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.