Wakilii

Mutawe v Sanlam General Insurance (Labour Dispute Miscellaneous Application No. 101 of 2016)

Industrial Court · [2017] UGIC 9 · 2017 Preliminary Objection Upheld AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to vacate registrar's order staying execution of labour officer's award, with preliminary objection raised to affidavit in reply
Decision
Affidavit in reply struck out; preliminary objection upheld

Observed later treatment

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Holding

The Industrial Court sustained a preliminary objection to an affidavit in reply sworn by an advocate from the respondent's law firm. The court held that regulation 9 of the Advocates Professional Conduct Regulations bars advocates from giving evidence on contentious matters, and that the advocate's averments on factual matters should have been deponed by the client. The affidavit was struck out as defective.

Outcome

Affidavit in reply struck out; preliminary objection upheld

Facts

The applicant filed an application seeking to vacate a registrar's order in M.A. No. 24/2016 that stayed execution of a labour officer's award at Nakawa. The application was supported by the applicant's affidavit. The respondent filed an affidavit in reply sworn by Timothy Lugayizi, an advocate with the law firm representing the respondent. Before hearing the application, counsel for the applicant raised a preliminary objection contending that Lugayizi had no capacity to swear the affidavit in reply because regulation 9 of the Advocates Professional Conduct Regulations bars advocates from making affidavits in contentious matters. The respondent's counsel argued that the deponent was not in personal conduct of the case and deponed only to facts he was knowledgeable about, including questions of law.

Issues

  1. Whether an advocate in chambers hired by a party has capacity to swear an affidavit in reply in a contentious matter under regulation 9 of the Advocates Professional Conduct Regulations.

Orders

  • Preliminary objection sustained.
  • Affidavit in reply struck out.
  • No order as to costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Evidence — Affidavits — Capacity of Advocate to Swear Affidavit in Contentious Matter
An advocate in chambers hired by a party is precluded by regulation 9 of the Advocates Professional Conduct Regulations from swearing an affidavit in reply on contentious matters, even if the advocate is not in personal conduct of the case, where the averments concern factual matters that should be deponed by the client.
Civil Procedure — Affidavits — Defective Affidavit — Effect of Contravention of Regulation 9
Where an affidavit in reply contains averments by an advocate on contentious factual matters in contravention of regulation 9 of the Advocates Professional Conduct Regulations, and those averments are material to the affidavit, the entire affidavit is defective and liable to be struck out.

Legislation cited (1)

  • Advocates Professional Conduct Regulations regulation 9

Cases cited (1)

  • Busingye Properties Vs Jianhige Frassio Luyondo M. A. 2013/2013

Full judgment

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

Mutawe_v_Sanlam_General_Insurance_(Labour_Dispute_Miscellaneous_Application_No._101_of_2016)_[2017]_UGIC_9_(27_March_2017)
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.