Wakilii

Law Development Centre V Lubega Joseph (Miscellaneous Application No. 56 of 2018)

Court of Appeal · [2019] UGCA 150 · 2019 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for leave to appeal and to serve a notice of appeal out of time against a High Court judicial review decision
Decision
Application for leave to appeal out of time dismissed with costs

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The Court of Appeal dismissed an application by the Law Development Centre for leave to file an appeal and serve notice of appeal out of time against a High Court judicial review decision. The applicant blamed its former advocate for failing to file an appeal, but the evidence showed the advocates had given written notice that they ceased acting while time to appeal still remained. The Court found the applicant sat on its rights from September 2017 until February 2018, only acting after the respondent commenced garnishee proceedings to recover taxed costs. There was no justification for the delay, and the attempt to blame the original advocate was untenable. The application was dismissed with costs.

Outcome

Application for leave to appeal out of time dismissed with costs

Facts

The respondent, Joseph Lubega, had obtained writs of certiorari and prohibition in High Court Miscellaneous Cause No. 323 of 2016 quashing the Law Development Centre's decision to recall a diploma in legal practice awarded to him in 2010, with costs. His bill of costs was taxed inter partes on 28 November 2017 and allowed at Shs. 40,027,200. He sought to enforce payment through garnishee proceedings, and an Order Nisi issued on 14 February 2018. The applicant then brought this application on 21 February 2018 seeking leave to appeal out of time, claiming its advocate had failed to file an appeal without informing it. Evidence showed the former advocates notified the applicant in writing on 14 September 2017 that they had ceased acting in five High Court matters including this one, and the applicant's Director acknowledged this in October 2017. Time to appeal still remained when the advocates withdrew.

Issues

  1. Whether the applicant had shown sufficient cause to be granted leave to file an appeal out of time.
  2. Whether the alleged mistakes or negligence of the applicant's former advocate justified the delay in filing the appeal.

Orders

  • Application dismissed with costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Extension of Time — Leave to Appeal Out of Time — Sufficient Cause
An applicant seeking leave to appeal out of time must show sufficient justification for the delay; where time to appeal still remained after the applicant's advocates withdrew and the applicant nonetheless delayed in acting, no sufficient cause is established.
Civil Procedure — Mistake of Counsel — Limits of Reliance on Advocate's Default
An applicant cannot rely on the alleged mistake or negligence of its advocate to excuse delay where the advocates gave written notice of ceasing to act while time to appeal remained and the applicant failed to act prudently thereafter.

Full judgment

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Law Development Centre V Lubega Joseph (Miscellaneous Application No. 56 of 2018) [2019] UGCA 150 (27 June 2019)
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.