Wakilii

Namaghmba Ofumbi v nABIRAH & Anor (Misc. Appl. No. 1109 of 2018)

High Court · [2019] UGHCLD 23 · 2019 Application Granted — Suit Struck Out AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to strike out underlying civil suit for want of authority, arising from Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018
Decision
Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018 struck out; matter referred to CID for criminal investigation; advocates referred to Law Council for professional misconduct inquiry

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that where multiple documents bearing a party's signature are disputed as forgeries and the party's instructions contradict earlier sworn testimony, the underlying civil suit is tainted by illegality and must be struck out. Court cannot uphold proceedings founded on suspected fraud and forgery. Matter referred to CID for criminal investigation and advocates referred to Law Council for inquiry.

Outcome

Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018 struck out; matter referred to CID for criminal investigation; advocates referred to Law Council for professional misconduct inquiry

Facts

Elizabeth Mirika Namaghemba Ofumbi was named as plaintiff in Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018 suing through her children (the respondents) under an alleged Power of Attorney, claiming forgery of her signature on a loan agreement affecting land in Kyadondo Block 214 Plot 3545. Misc. Application No. 1109 of 2018 was filed in her name by Kangaho & Co. Advocates seeking to strike out the civil suit on grounds she never gave authority. On 23 November 2018, when cross-examined before the Assistant Registrar, Elizabeth stated she never filed any case and was only in court because she was told she had a case against her children. Subsequently, on 29 March 2019, she appeared again denying having given instructions to Kangaho & Co. Advocates. Multiple affidavits bearing her signature contradicted each other. Respondents' counsel argued Kangaho had no authority; applicant's counsel alleged the respondents improperly took over representation and influenced the applicant to change her position. Both sides accused each other of professional misconduct.

Issues

  1. Whether the Applicant instructed the Respondents to represent her and file Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018 and if not, whether Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018 should be struck out for being incompetently filed in this Court.
  2. Whether the Applicant instructed M/s. Kangaho & Co. Advocates to file Misc. Application No. 1109 of 2018.

Orders

  • Civil Suit No. 431 of 2018 struck off the court roll.
  • Parties to present themselves before the CID in charge of fraud to commence inquiries into all court documents bearing Elizabeth Mirika Namaghemba Ofumbi's signature allegedly forged.
  • The inquiry should inform the Court who masterminded the frauds.
  • The advocates referred to the Law Council for inquiry into their part in orchestrating any frauds attributable to them.
  • Each party to bear own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Illegality — Effect on Court Proceedings — Duty of Court
Where an illegality is brought to the attention of the court, it overrides all questions of pleadings including admissions made thereon, and the court is enjoined not to entertain any matter hinged on an illegality.
Civil Procedure — Authority to Sue — Power of Attorney — Striking Out for Want of Authority
Where a party whose authority is relied upon to institute proceedings categorically denies before the court having given such authority and the authenticity of multiple documents bearing the party's signature is disputed, the suit is incompetently before the court and must be struck out.
Civil Procedure — Court Records — Judicial Notice — Weight of Sworn Testimony
Where a party has been cross-examined before a judicial officer and their testimony is recorded in a ruling not appealed against, the court must take judicial notice of that record and treat subsequent contradictory statements as afterthoughts lacking credibility.

Legislation cited (3)

Cases cited (1)

  • Makula International Ltd v H.E. Cardinal Nsubuga and Another (1982) HCB II

Full judgment

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

Namaghmba_Ofumbi_Vs_nABIRAH_&_Anor_(Misc._Appl._No._1109_of_2018)_[2019]_UGHCLD_23_(3_May_2019)
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.