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Merali v Rex (Cr. App. 47-1929)

East African Court of Appeal · [1929] EACA 149 · 1929 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Criminal appeal from conviction by Resident Magistrate, Nairobi
Decision
Conviction and sentence upheld

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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AI-generated summary. This summary was generated by AI from the full text of the judgment. It may contain errors or omissions—always read the source judgment before relying on it.

Holding

Held that registration under the Registration of Business Names Ordinance is necessary for lorries trading on the road, and the road between the places to which the lorries ply can be regarded as the place of business for purposes of the Ordinance. Statements made by the accused in bankruptcy proceedings in the presence of the Official Receiver are admissible evidence in a criminal prosecution. Appeal dismissed.

Outcome

Conviction and sentence upheld

Facts

The appellant was convicted by the Resident Magistrate, Nairobi, under the Registration of Business Names Ordinance for failing to register that he was carrying on business in the name of his son, a minor. The appellant admitted trading in his son's name. The Registrar under the Ordinance gave evidence that the appellant had not registered his business as required. The appellant operated lorries trading on the road between various places.

Issues

  1. Whether registration under the Registration of Business Names Ordinance is required for lorries trading on the road.
  2. Whether the road between places to which lorries ply can be regarded as a place of business for purposes of the Ordinance.
  3. Whether statements made by the accused in bankruptcy proceedings are admissible evidence in a criminal prosecution.

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed.
  • Finding and sentence of the Resident Magistrate confirmed.

Rules and key headnotes

Registration of Business Names — Lorries Trading on Road — Place of Business
For lorries which trade on the road, registration under the Registration of Business Names Ordinance is necessary, and the road between the places to which the lorries ply can be regarded as the place of business for purposes of the Ordinance.
Admissibility — Statements in Bankruptcy Proceedings
Statements made by an accused person in bankruptcy proceedings in the presence of the Official Receiver are admissible as evidence in subsequent criminal proceedings.

Legislation cited (1)

  • Registration of Business Names Ordinance (Cap. 92) s.3

Full judgment

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

Merali v Rex (Cr. App. 47-1929) [1929] EACA 149 (1 January 1929)
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.