Wakilii

Nabisere Jane Leticia and Another v Kasigwa Gerald and Another (Miscellaneous Application No. 658 of 2024)

High Court · [2025] UGHCLD 311 · 2025 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for leave to amend plaint arising from civil suit concerning disputed land registration
Decision
Application for leave to amend plaint dismissed

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court dismissed an application for leave to amend a plaint in a land dispute. The applicants sought to amend their pleadings to reflect that the first respondent had been registered as proprietor of the disputed land after the suit was filed. The court found that while the cause of action remained unchanged, the status quo had changed due to registration. The court held that if it found in favour of the applicants in the main suit, orders could be given to change the status quo, and therefore there was no need to allow the amendment application.

Outcome

Application for leave to amend plaint dismissed

Facts

The applicants filed Civil Suit No. 275 of 2023 concerning disputed land comprised in Kyadondo/Kibuga Block 33 Plot 712 at Mutundwe. The dispute arose from estate management of a deceased owner. The applicants had filed a caveat and sought orders restraining the respondents from registering the first respondent as proprietor. The applicants also filed two interlocutory applications (HCMA No. 678 and 679 of 2023) for temporary and interim restraining orders. Before the interlocutory applications could be heard, the second respondent (Commissioner Land Registration) registered the first respondent's interest in the land, transferring it from the applicants' names to the first respondent's name. The applicants then sought leave to amend their plaint to reflect these new developments, alleging the respondents acted in bad faith, by design and trickery, to pre-empt the main suit and pending applications.

Issues

  1. Whether leave to amend the plaint in Civil Suit No. 275 of 2023 should be granted.

Orders

  • Application dismissed.
  • Each party to bear their own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Amendment of Pleadings — Principles Governing Grant of Leave
Courts should freely allow amendments to pleadings in the interest of promoting justice so that the real question in controversy between the parties is determined, unless the amendment would cause an injustice to the opposite party which cannot be compensated by an award of costs or unless the amendment would introduce a distinct cause of action in place of the original cause.
Amendment of Pleadings — Change in Status Quo After Filing
Where the cause of action in the original plaint and the intended amendment remains unchanged except that the status quo has changed due to subsequent events, and the court retains power to grant orders to change the status quo if it finds in favour of the applicant in the main suit, there is no need to allow an application to amend the plaint to reflect the changed status quo.

Legislation cited (9)

Cases cited (2)

Full judgment

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

Nabisere_Jane_Leticia_and_Another_v_Kasigwa_Gerald_and_Another_(Miscellaneous_Application_No._658_of_2024)_[2025]_UGHCLD_311_(30_September_2025)
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.