Wakilii

Najjemba and Another v Attorney General (Miscellaneous Application 1858 of 2022)

High Court · [2023] UGHCLD 351 · 2023 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for leave to amend plaint by substituting and adding new plaintiffs, and for orders regarding payment of enhanced compensation following judgment on admission in the head suit
Decision
Application dismissed with costs to the Respondent

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Application dismissed. The court held that intending plaintiffs who have not formally expressed interest to be bound by court orders and have not participated in proceedings cannot be substituted or added as parties through an application brought by others. The proposed amendment would alter a judgment on admission already entered, introduce a new cause of action prejudicial to the respondent, and deprive the respondent of the defence of limitation. The intending plaintiffs did not bring the application themselves and cannot be made to pursue a suit where they risk being condemned to costs in proceedings they did not express interest to join.

Outcome

Application dismissed with costs to the Respondent

Facts

The applicants sought leave to amend the plaint in Civil Suit No. 477 of 2015 by substituting themselves with new plaintiffs and adding an administrator of an estate as a fifth plaintiff. The head suit concerned land that was registered to the late Andereya Mubito Lubike in 1972. The applicants acquired the suit land in October 2014. On 19 December 2019, the court entered judgment on admission against the Attorney General in the sum of UGX 1,570,963,224 based on a revised valuation report. The applicants now sought orders for payment of enhanced compensation based on current harmonized market value, including disturbance and mesne profits. The intending plaintiffs did not bring the application themselves but were proposed as substitutes by the current applicants.

Issues

  1. Whether leave should be granted to amend the plaint by substituting the original plaintiffs with new plaintiffs and adding an additional plaintiff.
  2. Whether the court should order payment of enhanced compensation based on harmonized current market value of the suit land.
  3. Whether the intending plaintiffs are necessary parties to the suit.

Orders

  • Application dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the Respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Joinder of Parties — Necessary Parties — Requirements
For parties to be joined, they must demonstrate that their presence is necessary for the effective and complete settlement of all questions involved in the suit, either because the orders sought would legally affect their interest and it is desirable to avoid multiplicity of suits, or because the defendant could not effectually set up a desired defence unless that person is joined or an order made would bind that other person.
Joinder of Parties — Application by Non-Parties — Standing
Where intending plaintiffs have not formally brought an application themselves to be joined as parties, they cannot be made to pursue a suit through an application brought by others, because in the event that they lose the case they could be condemned to costs in a case they did not express interest to join.
Amendment of Pleadings — Substitution of Parties After Judgment
An application to amend a plaint by substituting plaintiffs after a judgment on admission has been entered is an attempt to alter the judgment and change the material circumstances of the case, and will be refused where it introduces a new cause of action prejudicial to the respondent and would deprive the respondent of the valid defence of limitation of actions.

Legislation cited (8)

Cases cited (5)

  • Departed Asians Property Custodian Board v Jaffer Brothers Ltd [1999] 1 EA 55
  • Gokaldas Laximidas Tanna v Store Rose Muyinza (HCCS No. 7076 of 1987)
  • Kingori vs. Chege and joined Others [2002]2 KLR 243
  • Kamau v Makomboki Tea Factory Ltd [2008] 1 EA 154
  • Santana Fernandes v Kaala Arjan & Sons & 2 Others [1961] EA 693

Full judgment

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

Najjemba_and_Another_v_Attorney_General_(Miscellaneous_Application_1858_of_2022)_[2023]_UGHCLD_351_(9_February_2023)
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.