Wakilii

Mulindwa & Another v Kyaggwe Coffee Curing (Estates) Limited & 2 Others (Civil Suit 3 of 2019)

High Court · [2024] UGHC 790 · 2024 Preliminary Objection Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Preliminary objection to late filing of witness statements in civil suit pending hearing
Decision
Preliminary objection dismissed; witness statements validated; matter to proceed to hearing

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Court overruled preliminary objection to late filing of witness statements without leave of court. Although the plaintiffs did not comply with the timelines and directions issued by court for filing witness statements after scheduling conference, no prejudice would be occasioned to the defendants since the hearing had not yet commenced and the defendants would have opportunity to cross examine the witnesses. The witnesses were named in the plaintiffs' list of witnesses. Rules of procedure are handmaidens of justice and non-compliance did not affect the defendants' right to a fair hearing.

Outcome

Preliminary objection dismissed; witness statements validated; matter to proceed to hearing

Facts

After scheduling conference on 23 February 2017, court directed all advocates to file parties' witness statements by 21 March 2017. The witness statement of Muluya Moses (a plaintiff) was filed on 2 December 2020 and the supplementary witness statement of Busuulwa Francis was filed on 9 March 2020, both without leave of court. When the suit came up for hearing on 4 October 2022, the 1st defendant's counsel raised a preliminary objection to the late filing, arguing the witness statements should be struck off the record. Plaintiffs' counsel submitted the delay was due to settlement discussions. Both Muluya Moses and Francis Busuulwa were named in the plaintiffs' original list of witnesses. The hearing of the main suit had not yet commenced.

Issues

  1. Whether the lately filed witness statement of Muluya Moses and the supplementary witness statement of Busuulwa Francis should be expunged off court record.

Orders

  • Preliminary objection overruled.
  • Court exercises its discretion to validate the lately filed witness statement of Mr. Muluya Moses and the supplementary witness statement of Mr. Busuulwa Francis.
  • Plaintiffs' counsel to serve the defendants with the validated witness statements within seven (7) days of this ruling.
  • Each party to bear their own costs associated with this preliminary objection.
  • Parties to appear in court on 28th October, 2024 at 9.30 a.m. for the hearing of the main suit.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Witness Statements — Late Filing Without Leave of Court — Discretion to Validate
A trial court has discretionary power to validate a lately filed witness statement where the justice of the matter permits, even where the witness statement was filed without leave of court and outside the timelines directed after scheduling conference, if no prejudice is occasioned to the opposing party and the hearing has not yet commenced.
Civil Procedure — Rules of Procedure — Handmaidens of Justice
Rules of procedure are merely handmaidens of justice and not justice themselves; they only form the procedural framework within which a fair hearing is conducted. Non-compliance with procedural rules does not warrant striking off evidence where the non-compliance does not affect the opposing party's right to a fair hearing and does not prejudice them.
Evidence — Witness Statements — Requirement to File After Scheduling Conference
Under Order 18 rule 5A of the Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2019, the evidence of a witness consists of a witness statement which shall be filed after scheduling conference on direction of the trial judge and served upon the opposite party. A witness who has not filed a witness statement shall not be heard except with leave of court.

Legislation cited (1)

Cases cited (2)

  • Bakaluba Peter Mukasa v Nambooze Betty Bakireke (SC Election Petition Appeal No. 04 of 2009)
  • Seruwagi Mohammed v Yuasa Investments Ltd (Civil Suit No. 324 of 2013)

Full judgment

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

Mulindwa & Another v Kyaggwe Coffee Curing (Estates) Limited & 2 Others (Civil Suit 3 of 2019) [2024] UGHC 790 (30 August 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.