Wakilii

Modia Investmnets Uganda Limited v Sseremba and 4 Others (Civil Suit 68 of 2011)

High Court · [2023] UGHCLD 361 · 2023 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for declaration of title, cancellation of fraudulent titles, eviction, mesne profits, damages, and injunction
Decision
Plaintiff declared lawful proprietor; defendants' titles cancelled; defendants ordered evicted; permanent injunction granted; mesne profits and general damages awarded to plaintiff

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court held that the plaintiff, Modia Investments (U) Ltd, is the lawful proprietor of Plot 177 Block 208 Kyadondo. The defendants' titles to Plots 1363, 2501, 2502, and 2503 were fraudulently procured by superimposing them over the plaintiff's validly registered title and were accordingly null and void. The plaintiff's title, registered in 1972, predated and took priority over the defendants' titles created in 1979 and 1981. The defendants were trespassers. The court ordered cancellation of the fraudulent titles, eviction, a permanent injunction, mesne profits, and general damages.

Outcome

Plaintiff declared lawful proprietor; defendants' titles cancelled; defendants ordered evicted; permanent injunction granted; mesne profits and general damages awarded to plaintiff

Facts

The plaintiff, a Ugandan company, acquired Plot 177 Block 208 Kyadondo from mortgagee Kampala Financial Services Ltd in 2010. When attempting to survey the land on 4 August 2010, the plaintiff encountered resistance from the defendants who claimed ownership based on certificates of title for Plots 1363, 2501, 2502, and 2503, all purportedly carved from the same physical land. The plaintiff's title originated from a 1972 mailo registration under Prince Badru Kakungulu. The defendants claimed their titles also derived from Badru Kakungulu, but were registered in 1979 and 1981. Evidence showed the defendants' titles were created by subdividing the plaintiff's deed plan without consent or sanction from the Commissioner Land Registration, constituting fraudulent double plotting. The plaintiff's mother title remained intact throughout, never having been officially subdivided. The Area Schedule records confirmed the irregular subdivision and, upon complaint, the Commissioner cancelled the fraudulent plot entries in the Kalamazoo register, reverting them to Plot 177, though the defendants retained physical title certificates.

Issues

  1. Whether the certificate of title held by each of the parties is a valid certificate.
  2. Which of the parties is entitled to the suit land.
  3. Whether there has been trespass on the part of the defendants or their predecessors in title.
  4. Whether there has been fraud on the part of any of the parties or their predecessors in title.
  5. What remedies are available to the parties.

Orders

  • A declaration that the plaintiff is the lawful proprietor of Plot 177 Block 208 Kyadondo and the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th defendants are trespassers liable for eviction.
  • The Commissioner Land Registration is directed to cancel the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th defendants' certificates of title comprised in Plots 1363, 2501, 2502 and 2503 Block 208, Kyadondo at Kawempe.
  • A permanent injunction issues restraining the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th defendants from further trespass on to the suit land.
  • The Plaintiff is awarded mesne profits of UGX 30,190,000.
  • The Plaintiff is awarded general damages of UGX 150,000,000.
  • The defendants are liable for the mesne and general damages jointly and severally.
  • Costs of the suit to the Plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Land Registration — Priority of Title — Registration of Titles Act s.48
Where two parties claim title to the same land, the certificate of title registered earlier in time takes priority over a later-registered title, unless the earlier registered proprietor committed fraud in registration.
Fraud in Land Registration — Double Plotting — Superimposition of Titles
Fraud is committed when a land title is created by double plotting and superimposed over an existing validly registered title without authority or consent of the registered proprietor or the Commissioner Land Registration. Such fraudulently obtained titles are null and void and confer no proprietary interest in land.
Subdivision of Land — Requirement of Official Sanction and Cancellation of Mother Title
A valid subdivision of registered land requires that the original proprietor submit the mother title to the lands office and that the mother title be cancelled upon subdivision. A purported subdivision effected without these formalities and without the sanction of the Commissioner Land Registration is irregular and produces no valid title.
Bonafide Purchaser for Value — Burden of Proof
The plea of bonafide purchaser for value is a legal defence. The party raising it bears the burden of proving valuable consideration, absence of notice of fraud, and the circumstances of acquisition. Failure to adduce evidence on these matters results in the defence failing.
Corporate Capacity — Non-Citizen Restriction — Land Act s.40
A company incorporated in Uganda whose Articles of Association contain a provision restricting transfer or issue of shares to citizens only is not a non-citizen within the meaning of Land Act s.40, and may lawfully acquire and hold mailo or freehold land. A company resolution amending the Articles to include such a restrictive clause, if duly registered with URSB, cures any prior non-compliance.
Corporate Transactions — Requirement for Company Resolution
For a company to transact business or institute legal proceedings, there must be authority to do so, but this authority need not necessarily be in the form of a company resolution. The authority may be derived from the company's Articles of Association, or may be ratified by subsequent acts such as granting power of attorney, which cures any original want of authority.
Trespass to Land — Unlawful Occupation Under Invalid Title
Where a party occupies land in reliance on a certificate of title that is subsequently found to be fraudulently procured and void, that party's occupation constitutes trespass against the rightful registered proprietor, notwithstanding the occupier's subjective belief in the validity of the title.

Legislation cited (17)

Cases cited (28)

  • Lakeside Properties v Sam Engola and 4 Others (High Court Civil Suit No. 251 of 2010)
  • Rubaga Building Co. Ltd v Gopal Devsi Vekaria and Another (High Court Civil Suit No. 534 of 2014)
  • Bugerere Coffee Growers Ltd v Sebadduka and Another [1970] 1 EA 147
  • Adugabo Vs Ibe C.S No. CA/B/258/2012
  • Yaya v Obur and Others (High Court Civil Appeal No. 81 of 2018)
  • Mukisa Biscuits Manufacturing Co. Ltd v West End Distributors Ltd [1969] EA 696
  • Tororo Cement v Frokina International Ltd (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 2 of 2001)
  • Ann Nakanwagi (Through her lawful Attorney Simon Waiswa) v Abdu Mawejje (High Court Civil Suit No. 770 of 2016)
  • Man Kaur Vs Harta Singh JT 2010(10) SC 365 (2010) 10 SCC 512
  • Danish Mercantile v Beaumont and Another [1951] CH 680
  • Navchandra Kakubhai v Kakubhai Kalides & Co. (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 10 of 1994)
  • Foss v Harbottle (1843) 67 ER 189
  • United Assurance Co. Ltd v Attorney General (Civil Appeal No. 1 of 1986)
  • Buikwe Coffee Estates and Others v Lutabi and Another (1962) EA 326
  • Production Ltd v Soon Yeon Hong and Another (High Court Miscellaneous Application No. 190 of 2008)
  • Ms Tatu Naiga & Co. Emporion v Vergee Bros Ltd (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 8 of 2002)
  • Kasala Growers Co-op Society v Kakooza Jonathan and Another (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 19 of 2010)
  • St. Mark Educational Centre v Makerere University (Civil Appeal No. 4 of 1997)
  • J.W.R Kazoora v M.L.S Rukuba (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 13 of 1992)
  • Nana Y. Owusu & 2 Ors Vs Hydraform Estates Ltd, SCCA No.34/62/2013 [2014] GHASC 150
  • Pilcher v Rawlings (1871-72) 7 LR Ch App 259
  • Hannigton Njuki v William Nyanzi (High Court Civil Appeal No. 434 of 1996)
  • Paul Kiseka Ssaka v 7th Adventist Church (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 8 of 1993)
  • Native Provincial Bank v Anisworth [1965] AC 1175
  • Lutaaya v Stirling Civil Engineering Co. Ltd [2009] 1 EA 279
  • Adrabo Stanley v Madira Jimmy (High Court Civil Suit No. 24 of 2013)
  • Painento Semalulu v Nakitto Eva Kasule (High Court Civil Appeal No. 04 of 2008)
  • James Bwogi & Sons Enterprises v KCC and Another (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 9 of 2017)

Full judgment

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Modia_Investmnets_Uganda_Limited_v_Sseremba_and_4_Others_(Civil_Suit_68_of_2011)_[2023]_UGHCLD_361_(3_November_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.