Wakilii

Mulhubira v Ambitious Construction Company (Miscellaneous Application 15 of 2024)

High Court · [2024] UGHC 655 · 2024 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for leave to appeal from High Court ruling dismissing contempt of court application
Decision
Application for leave to appeal dismissed

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

An application for leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal brought by Notice of Motion must be filed within 14 days of the decision. Rule 83(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions, which excludes time for preparation of the record from computation of time, applies only to the instituting of an appeal under Rule 83(1), not to applications for leave to appeal under Rule 40(2). Application dismissed for being filed out of time.

Outcome

Application for leave to appeal dismissed

Facts

The Applicant sought leave to appeal a High Court ruling delivered on 29 September 2023 that dismissed his application alleging contempt of court. The Applicant filed a Notice of Appeal and requested the record of proceedings. On 30 October 2023, the Applicant filed a Notice of Motion seeking leave to appeal. The Respondent raised a preliminary objection that the application was filed out of time. The Applicant argued that the time between 29 September 2023 and 24 October 2023, when the record was provided, should be excluded from the 14-day time limit by virtue of Rules 4(a) and 83(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions.

Issues

  1. Whether the application for leave to appeal was filed within the time prescribed by Rule 40(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions.
  2. Whether Rules 4(a) and 83(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions exclude the time for preparation of the record from the 14-day period for filing an application for leave to appeal.

Orders

  • Application dismissed with costs to the Respondent for being filed out of time contrary to Rule 40(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Appeals — Leave to Appeal — Time Limits under Rule 40(2) Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions
An application for leave to appeal from the High Court to the Court of Appeal brought by Notice of Motion at the instance of the applicant must be filed within 14 days of the decision against which leave to appeal is sought, and there is no provision for exclusion of time for preparation of the record from this 14-day period.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Computation of Time — Application of Rule 83(2) Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions
Rule 83(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions, which excludes time for preparation and delivery of the record from computation of time, applies only to the computation of time for instituting an appeal under Rule 83(1) by lodging a Memorandum of Appeal and Record of Appeal, not to applications for leave to appeal.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Leave to Appeal — Informal Application versus Notice of Motion under Rule 40(2)
Rule 40(2) of the Judicature (Court of Appeal Rules) Directions provides two options for seeking leave to appeal: informal application at the time when the decision is given, or by Notice of Motion within 14 days of the decision if the informal application fails or if the court so orders; the provision for immediate informal application at the time of the decision indicates that computation of time for leave to appeal was never intended to exclude time between application for the court record and its availing.

Legislation cited (2)

Full judgment

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Mulhubira v Ambitious Construction Company (Miscellaneous Application 15 of 2024) [2024] UGHC 655 (25 June 2024)
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.