Luwiiwi v Uganda Airlines Corporation (Miscellaneous Application 9 of 1992)

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

Holding

Application granted. The High Court allowed the applicant to bring a representative action on behalf of 80 other former employees who were made redundant by Uganda Airlines Corporation. The court was satisfied that the application complied with Order 1 rule 8 of the Civil Procedure Rules, permitting representative action where numerous persons have the same interest in proceedings.

Outcome

Leave granted for representative action to proceed

Facts

The applicant was a former employee of Uganda Airlines Corporation. On 1 August 1991, the Corporation declared 81 employees redundant and, by letter, promised specific redundancy benefits within a reasonable period. The applicant was authorised by 80 other former employees to represent them. To date of the application, the respondent had failed or neglected to pay the redundancy benefits. The applicant sought an order for representative action to enable all 81 former employees to proceed jointly against the Corporation for payment of redundancy benefits. The respondent was served but did not appear, and the court permitted the application to proceed ex parte.

Issues

1. Whether the applicant should be granted leave to bring a representative action on behalf of 80 other former employees against the respondent corporation.

Orders

• The applicant John W.K. Luwiiwi is allowed to bring a representative action on behalf of the other 80 employees who were made redundant by the respondent company.
• The costs of this application will be in the cause.

Rules and key headnotes

Legislation cited (1)

• Civil Procedure Rules Order 1 rules 8 and 22

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