Wakilii

Mukasa v APAS Financial Service Limited (Civil Appeal No. 056 of 2012)

High Court · [2014] UGHCCD 88 · 2014 Appeal Struck Out AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from dismissal of suit by Chief Magistrate's Court for non-appearance, struck out on preliminary objection
Decision
Appeal struck out as incompetent; no determination on merits

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court struck out the appeal as incompetent for being filed seven months out of time without leave. Section 79(3) of the Civil Procedure Act, which excludes time taken to obtain the record, applies only where the appellant became aware of the decision within the 30-day limitation period and promptly requested the record. The appellant, having learned of the dismissal in December 2011, two months after the event, was already time-barred and was required to apply for extension of time under s.96 before filing the memorandum of appeal.

Outcome

Appeal struck out as incompetent; no determination on merits

Facts

The appellant's suit in the Chief Magistrate's Court at Mukono was dismissed under Order 17 r.4 of the Civil Procedure Rules on 26 September 2011 due to the appellant's non-appearance. The appellant first wrote to the trial court on 15 December 2011 requesting proceedings to enable him to file an appeal. He received the record in April 2012 and filed the memorandum of appeal on 26 April 2012, seven months after the decree. The appellant did not apply for extension of time to file the appeal out of time. The respondent raised a preliminary objection that the appeal was filed outside the 30-day limitation period prescribed by s.79 of the Civil Procedure Act.

Issues

  1. Whether the appeal was filed out of time and therefore incompetent.
  2. Whether the appellant's failure to file within 30 days was excused by delay in obtaining the trial record.
  3. Whether the appellant was required to file an application for extension of time to appeal.

Orders

  • Appeal struck out as incompetent for being filed out of time.
  • Costs awarded to the respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Appeals — Time Limits — Section 79 Civil Procedure Act
Under s.79 of the Civil Procedure Act, every appeal must be filed within 30 days of the date of the decree or order appealed from, and failure to do so renders the appeal incompetent unless leave to file out of time is obtained.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Extension of Time — Application Required
Where an appellant learns of the decree outside the 30-day limitation period, he must file an application for extension of time under s.96 of the Civil Procedure Act either in the trial court or the appellate court before filing the memorandum of appeal.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Time Limits — Exclusion of Time for Obtaining Record
Section 79(3) of the Civil Procedure Act, which excludes time taken by the court to prepare the record, applies only where the appellant became aware of the decision within the 30-day limitation period and promptly instituted actions to obtain the record to enable him to file the appeal.

Legislation cited (8)

Cases cited (1)

  • Albert Kifusa v Suzan Kifusa (1982) 1 LSD

Full judgment

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

Mukasa v APAS Financial Service Limited (Civil Appeal No. 056 of 2012) [2014] UGHCCD 88 (3 July 2014)
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.