Wakilii

Moit v Osekeny (Civil Appeal No. 17103)

Court of Appeal · [2005] UGCA 97 · 2005 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from a High Court judgment in a suit for unlawful distress for rent
Decision
Appeal dismissed; trial court liability upheld with special damages reduced to Shs 15,014,200 in favour of the respondent

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Holding

The Court of Appeal held that distress for rent must be levied strictly in accordance with the Distress for Rent (Bailiffs) Act. An advocate is not an 'attorney' within section 2 capable of authorising a bailiff, and a bailiff must be a natural person holding a certificate from a certifying officer. The bailiff here lacked a certificate, so the distress was unlawful. A landlord who instructs and ratifies an unlawful distress is liable jointly with the bailiff. The Court upheld liability and most special damages but disallowed the hotel accommodation claim, reducing the special damages award. The appeal was dismissed.

Outcome

Appeal dismissed; trial court liability upheld with special damages reduced to Shs 15,014,200 in favour of the respondent

Facts

In March 1995 the respondent entered a verbal one-year tenancy of the appellant's premises in Soroti at monthly rent of Shs 100,000. The respondent paid a lump sum and later a further payment. The appellant subsequently raised the rent and required upfront payment, warning that failure to pay would lead to vacation. The respondent failed to pay rent for April, May and June 1996. The appellant instructed an advocate, Mr Kakembo, to recover the outstanding rent, who in turn instructed M/s Solar Court Brokers and Bailiffs to attach the respondent's property and evict him. The bailiffs, with local council and police presence, locked the premises with the respondent's property inside, then advertised and sold the goods. The respondent sued, claiming the distress was premature and unlawful and that additional property went missing. The High Court found the distress unlawful and entered judgment against the appellant and bailiff jointly for the value of property and general damages.

Issues

  1. Whether the warrant for distress for rent was lawful.
  2. Whether the respondent had proved his claim for special damages.
  3. Whether the appellant landlord was liable for the unlawful distress carried out by the bailiff.
  4. Whether the trial judge failed to properly evaluate the evidence.

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed.
  • Judgment and orders of the trial court upheld.
  • Judgment entered for the respondent for special damages in the sum of Shs 15,014,200.
  • Costs of the action awarded to the respondent both in the Court of Appeal and the court below.

Rules and key headnotes

Distress for Rent — Who May Levy — Meaning of 'Attorney' under the Distress for Rent (Bailiffs) Act
An advocate instructed to recover rent is not an 'attorney' within the meaning of section 2 of the Distress for Rent (Bailiffs) Act, and nothing in the Act authorises an advocate to in turn authorise a bailiff to levy distress for rent.
Distress for Rent — Certification of Bailiffs — Requirement of Certificate
A bailiff levying distress for rent must be a natural person holding a general or special certificate granted by a certifying officer under the Act; distress levied by a person without such a certificate is unlawful.
Distress for Rent — Liability of Landlord — Sanction and Ratification of Bailiff's Wrongful Act
Where distress is illegal the bailiff is primarily liable, but a landlord who instructs, sanctions or ratifies the bailiff's wrongful act, and takes benefit from it, is liable jointly with the bailiff.
Special Damages — Proof by Receipts and Invoices — Disallowance of Unsupported Heads
Special damages proved by documentary receipts and invoices may be upheld, but a claim for expenses such as alternative accommodation cannot be allowed where the claimant was in breach and would lawfully have been evicted in any event.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (5)

  • Joy Tumushabe and Another v Anglo-African Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 7 of 1999)
  • Kanji Naran Patel v Noor Essa and Another [1965] EA 484
  • Rondel v Worsley [1969] 1 AC 191
  • Clark v Maclennan and Another [1983] 1 All ER 416
  • Fenekasi Semakula v James Musoke [1981] HCB 46

Full judgment

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

Moit v Osekeny (Civil Appeal No. 17103) [2005] UGCA 97 (25 August 2005)
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.