Wakilii

Kisuule and Another v Nantaaya and Another (Civil Suit No. 1107 of 2021)

High Court · [2023] UGHCLD 46 · 2023 Application Partly Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Ruling on preliminary objection to striking out of defendant's Written Statement of Defence
Decision
Matter to proceed inter partes with plaintiff to file rejoinder within two weeks

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court ruled that although an order had been made for the matter to proceed exparte against the 1st defendant after her Written Statement of Defence was struck out, the justice of the case demanded that the matter be heard inter partes. The court held that errors or omissions by counsel should not be visited upon the litigant. The plaintiff was ordered to file a rejoinder within two weeks.

Outcome

Matter to proceed inter partes with plaintiff to file rejoinder within two weeks

Facts

The plaintiffs, suing as administrators of an estate, brought a civil suit in the Land Division. The Assistant Registrar had previously struck out the 1st defendant's Written Statement of Defence on grounds that it was evasive and contravened Order 6 rule 30 of the Civil Procedure Rules, and ordered the matter to proceed exparte. The 1st defendant's counsel sought leave to file a fresh Written Statement of Defence out of time through MA No. 237 of 2023. The plaintiffs raised a preliminary objection that the defendants were improperly before court given the undischarged exparte order.

Issues

  1. Whether the 1st defendant was properly before court after the Assistant Registrar struck out her Written Statement of Defence and ordered the matter to proceed exparte.
  2. Whether the 1st defendant should be granted leave to file a Written Statement of Defence out of time.

Orders

  • The matter to be heard inter partes.
  • The plaintiff shall file a rejoinder to the Written Statement of Defence within two weeks from date of delivering this ruling.
  • MA No. 237 of 2023 is overtaken by events.
  • Costs in the cause.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Striking Out of Pleadings — Discretion to Allow Matter to Proceed Inter Partes Despite Exparte Order
Where a Written Statement of Defence has been struck out and an order made for a matter to proceed exparte, the court retains discretion to allow the matter to be heard inter partes where the justice of the case so demands, particularly where errors or omissions are attributable to counsel rather than the litigant.

Legislation cited (2)

Full judgment

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

Kisuule_and_Another_v_Nantaaya_and_Another_(Civil_Suit_No._1107_of_2021)_[2023]_UGHCLD_46_(27_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.