Wakilii

Mrs. Christine Anywar & Rose Alilo v Mr. Christopher Alioma, Mr. Leni Gilbert Boniface, Andama Martin & The Red Pepper Publications Ltd (Civil Suit 27 of 2015)

High Court · [2023] UGHC 208 · 2023 Suit Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for libel and defamation dismissed for non-appearance
Decision
Suit dismissed for non-appearance of parties

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court dismissed a libel and defamation suit for non-appearance of both plaintiffs and defendants at the scheduled hearing despite substituted service having been duly effected by affixing the hearing notice to the court notice board. The court was satisfied that service was proper under Order 5 Rule 18 and dismissed the suit under Order 9 Rule 17 of the Civil Procedure Rules, with each party to bear its own costs.

Outcome

Suit dismissed for non-appearance of parties

Facts

The plaintiffs filed a suit for libel and defamation on 2 July 2015. The defendants filed written statements of defence in July and August 2015. On 23 May 2019, Justice Stephen Mubiru referred the matter to mediation, but no mediation report was filed. The last proceeding before dismissal was on 18 March 2020, when the matter was adjourned to 6 July 2020 for hearing. No further proceedings occurred until 16 October 2023, when the court ordered substituted service by affixing the hearing notice to the High Court Gulu notice board on 29 September 2023. On the hearing date of 16 October 2023, neither the parties nor their counsel appeared despite proof of service.

Issues

  1. Whether the suit should be dismissed for non-appearance of the parties after substituted service was effected.

Orders

  • Civil Suit No. 27/2015 is hereby dismissed under Order 9 Rule 17 of the Civil Procedure Rules, SI 71-1 for non-appearance of the Parties.
  • Each Party shall bear its own costs.

Legislation cited (3)

Full judgment

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Mrs. Christine Anywar & Rose Alilo v Mr. Christopher Alioma, Mr. Leni Gilbert Boniface, Andama Martin & The Red Pepper Publications Ltd (Civil Suit 27 of 2015) [2023] UGHC 208 (16 October 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.