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Mumbere and 2 Others v Uganda Wildlife Authority (Civil Suit 65 of 2022)

High Court · [2024] UGHC 888 · 2024 Judgment for Plaintiffs AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Consolidated civil suits for compensation arising from human-wildlife conflict
Decision
Judgment entered in favour of the plaintiffs with declarations and orders for general damages, exemplary damages, interest, and costs

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court held that Uganda Wildlife Authority was liable in negligence and under strict liability for failing to contain a lion within its conservation area, resulting in the lion attacking and severely injuring two plaintiffs and killing the third plaintiff's livestock. The court applied the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur and the rule in Rylands v Fletcher, finding that the defendant owed a statutory duty to manage wildlife and failed to exercise proper care. The court rejected the defences of volenti non fit injuria and contributory negligence. Each injured plaintiff was awarded general damages of UGX 320,000,000. The third plaintiff was awarded UGX 5,000,000 for loss of livestock. Exemplary damages of UGX 80,000,000 were also awarded given the defendant's refusal to provide assistance or acknowledge liability.

Outcome

Judgment entered in favour of the plaintiffs with declarations and orders for general damages, exemplary damages, interest, and costs

Facts

On 8 April 2022, a lion escaped from Kibale National Park and attacked communities in Mpeefu Sub-County, Kagadi District. At approximately 5:00 am, the lion killed three sheep and a goat belonging to the third plaintiff. Around 10:00 am, the lion viciously attacked the first plaintiff in his garden, biting and scratching his hands, face, shoulders, and chest, causing grievous injuries. The first plaintiff was rushed to Buhinga Regional Referral Hospital. Shortly thereafter, the same lion attacked the second plaintiff in his garden, grievously injuring his left thigh, left arm, and back. The second plaintiff was treated at Kagadi Hospital. Uganda Wildlife Authority officials, accompanied by police and later UPDF soldiers, arrived to locate and neutralize the lion. The lion was eventually shot dead around 11:30 am after causing havoc in the community. Despite repeated requests, the defendant refused to compensate the plaintiffs or provide medical assistance.

Issues

  1. Whether the 1st and 2nd Plaintiffs were attacked by wildlife.
  2. Whether the 3rd Plaintiff's livestock was killed by wildlife.
  3. Whether the Defendant is liable for the attack on the 1st-2nd Plaintiff and the 3rd Plaintiff's livestock.
  4. What remedies are available to the parties.

Orders

  • Declaration that the defendant was negligent when it failed to contain a lion in its conservation area leading to the attack and resulting personal injuries and loss of livestock.
  • General damages of UGX 320,000,000 awarded to each of the 1st and 2nd plaintiffs.
  • General damages of UGX 5,000,000 awarded to the 3rd plaintiff.
  • Exemplary damages of UGX 80,000,000 awarded.
  • Interest on general and exemplary damages at 24% per annum from the date of judgment until full payment.
  • Costs of the suit awarded to the plaintiffs.

Rules and key headnotes

Negligence — Duty of Care — Statutory Duty to Manage Wildlife
Uganda Wildlife Authority owes a statutory duty of care under the Uganda Wildlife Act 2019 to ensure sustainable management of wildlife conservation areas, including monitoring and controlling problem animals, and is liable in negligence when it fails to prevent dangerous wildlife from escaping conservation areas and causing harm to persons or property.
Negligence — Res Ipsa Loquitur — Escape of Dangerous Animal
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur applies where a dangerous wild animal under the exclusive control of a wildlife authority escapes from a protected area and causes injury; in the ordinary course of things, such an animal cannot escape if proper care is exercised, and in the absence of explanation by the authority, negligence is presumed.
Strict Liability — Dangerous Animals — Keeper's Liability
Strict liability is imposed on keepers of wild animals naturally dangerous to humans; a lion is such an animal, and any harm caused by it results in strict liability for its keeper regardless of whether the animal has escaped or is merely outside the keeper's effective control at the time it causes harm.
Strict Liability — Rylands v Fletcher — Dangerous Thing on Land
Under the rule in Rylands v Fletcher, where an entity brings a dangerous thing (including a wild animal) onto its land and it escapes and causes damage, the entity is strictly liable, and contributory negligence or voluntary assumption of risk by the victim is not a valid consideration in cases of strict liability.
Defences — Volenti Non Fit Injuria — Burden of Proof
To establish the defence of volenti non fit injuria, the defendant must prove that the plaintiff expressly or impliedly agreed to incur the risk voluntarily, with full knowledge of the nature and extent of the risk; where victims are attacked by a wild animal while going about their ordinary activities in their own gardens or while defending their community from a known danger, they have not voluntarily assumed the risk of injury.
Uganda Wildlife Act — Compensation Scheme — No Ouster of Court Jurisdiction
Section 84 of the Uganda Wildlife Act 2019, which provides for compensation claims to be submitted to a Wildlife Compensation Verification Committee, does not oust the jurisdiction of the High Court to hear matters arising under the Act; the provision gives an aggrieved party an option to pursue claims either through the statutory process or through the conventional courts, ensuring access to justice for all parties affected by wildlife-human conflict.
General Damages — Wildlife Attacks — Assessment Factors
In assessing general damages for personal injuries sustained in a wildlife attack, the court considers the severity of injuries, pain and suffering, emotional distress, disability and disfigurement, loss of earnings and earning capacity, viciousness of the incident, the defendant's response and denial of liability, disruption to daily life, future medical needs, and previous awards in similar circumstances.

Legislation cited (9)

Cases cited (24)

  • Nsubuga v Kavuma [1978] HCB 307
  • Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562
  • H. Kateralwire v Paul Lwanga [1989-90] HCB 56
  • Nabwami Grace v Attorney General (High Court Civil Suit No. 227 of 2015)
  • Juma Asire v Nyanza Textile Ltd [1975] HCB 292
  • David Balac & Anor Vs African Lion Safaris, Can LII 2028 (SC)
  • Paris v Stepney Borough Council [1951] AC 367
  • Rylands v Fletcher (1868) LR 3 HL 330
  • Cutler v United Dairies [1933] 2 KB 297
  • Acaye Richard v Saracen (U) Ltd & 2 Others (High Court Civil Suit No. 63 of 2011)
  • Kenya Wildlife Service vs. Rift Valley Agricultural Contractors Limited [2018] eKLR
  • Kenya Wildlife Services vs. joseph Musyoki Kalonzo Nairobi C.A. No.306 of 2015 [2017] eKLR
  • Emmanuel Basaliza v Mujwisa (High Court Civil Suit No. 16 of 2007)
  • Birdsall v Coolidge 93 US 64 (1876)
  • Esso Standard (U) Ltd v Semu Amanu Opio (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 3 of 1993)
  • Dr. Denis Lwamafa v Attorney General (High Court Civil Suit No. 79 of 1983) [1992] 1 KALR 21
  • Hirani Manji Kanji v Uganda Funeral Services (High Court Civil Suit No. 115 of 2022)
  • Kenya Wldlife Services v Kinyua Ikabu [2019] eKLR
  • Bonham Carter v Hyde Park Hotel Ltd (1948) 64 TLR 177
  • Rutaama Geoffrey & Anor v Attorney General & Anor (Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 80 of 2012)
  • Byekwaso v Mohammed [1973] HCB 20
  • Fredrick J Zaabwe v Orient Bank & Others (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 4 of 2006)
  • Obongo & Another v Municipal Council of Kisumu [1971] 1 EA 91
  • Smt. Yashoda Vs Smt. Shobha AIR, (2007) SC 1721

Full judgment

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Mumbere and 2 Others v Uganda Wildlife Authority (Civil Suit 65 of 2022) [2024] UGHC 888 (12 July 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.