Wakilii

Nassuna v Kamoga Matovu and Others (Miscellaneous Application 1024 of 2023)

High Court · [2023] UGHCLD 499 · 2023 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for review of ruling dismissing civil suit, arising from Civil Suit No. 17 of 2022
Decision
Application for review dismissed; earlier ruling upheld

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court dismissed the application for review. The earlier ruling dismissing the civil suit was not an error apparent on the face of the record because the stay orders in the prior applications were temporary, pending determination of the substantive suit. The applicant failed to prove that her counsel lacked instructions, as the court record showed a notice of change of advocates and the applicant admitted awareness of the hearing but chose not to attend. Points of law, including res judicata, may be raised at any stage of proceedings.

Outcome

Application for review dismissed; earlier ruling upheld

Facts

The applicant sought review of a ruling dated 6 April 2023 dismissing Civil Suit No. 17 of 2022. The applicant argued that the dismissal of Miscellaneous Applications Nos. 475 and 476 of 2022 constituted an error apparent on the face of the record because those applications had been stayed by Justice Nkonge in a ruling dated 13 June 2022. The applicant also contended that the civil suit determination was flawed because her counsel (M/s Neon Advocates) lacked instructions to proceed with the hearing. The respondents argued that Justice Nkonge's stay orders were temporary, pending determination of the substantive suit, and that the applicant had filed a notice of change of advocates and admitted awareness of the hearing date but chose not to attend court.

Issues

  1. Whether the application discloses grounds for review to warrant the setting aside of the ruling in Civil Suit No. 17 of 2022.
  2. Whether there was an error apparent on the face of the record in dismissing Miscellaneous Applications Nos. 475 and 476 of 2022.
  3. Whether there was sufficient reason to grant review on the basis that counsel lacked instructions.

Orders

  • Miscellaneous Application No. 1024 of 2023 is dismissed.
  • The orders of the court in Civil Suit No. 17 of 2022 are upheld and maintained.
  • The applicant shall bear the costs of this application.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Review — Error Apparent on the Face of the Record — Meaning and Scope
An error apparent on the face of the record must be clear and obvious, requiring no extraneous matter to demonstrate its correctness. An error which requires a long drawn process of reasoning or on points where two opinions are conceivable cannot be said to be an error apparent on the face of the record. If the view adopted by the court is a possible one, it cannot constitute an error apparent on the face of the record even though another view was also possible.
Civil Procedure — Review — Temporary Stay Orders — Effect on Subsequent Proceedings
Where a court temporarily stays an application pending determination of a substantive suit that will conclusively resolve the issues raised in the application, the subsequent dismissal of the application following determination of the substantive suit does not constitute an error apparent on the face of the record. A temporary stay is intended to last only for a short time and not permanently, and the outcome of the substantive suit abides and permanently resolves the concerns raised in the stayed application.
Civil Procedure — Res Judicata — Doctrine and Test
The doctrine of res judicata embodies the principle that there must be an end to litigation and that no one should be vexed twice for the same cause. The test is whether the plaintiff in the second suit is trying to bring before the court, in another way and in the form of a new cause of action, a transaction which has already been put before a court of competent jurisdiction in earlier proceedings and which has been adjudicated upon. The plea applies not only to points upon which the first court was actually required to adjudicate but to every point which properly belongs to the subject of litigation and which the parties, exercising reasonable diligence, might have brought forward at the time.
Civil Procedure — Representation by Counsel — Scope of Instructions — Burden of Proof
Where a notice of change of advocates has been filed on court record and the party admits awareness of the hearing but chooses not to attend, the court is entitled to rely on the notice and presume that counsel was properly instructed. A party who alleges that counsel lacked instructions bears the burden of proving that allegation with credible evidence. Without such evidence, the court will accept that counsel was acting on the party's instructions.
Civil Procedure — Points of Law — Raising at Any Stage — Illegality
Points of law, including questions of illegality, may be raised at any time or at any stage of the proceedings, with or without prior knowledge of the parties. Such points may be brought by way of formal application or orally depending on the circumstances of the case. The Civil Procedure Rules do not require that points of law be raised only through formal applications.

Legislation cited (10)

Cases cited (7)

  • Nyamogo and Nyamogo Advocates v Kago (2001) 2 EA 173
  • Uganda Telecom Ltd v ZTE Corporation (Civil Appeal No. 3 of 2017)
  • Yusuf v Nokorach (1971) EA 104
  • Ponsiano Semakula v Susane Maqala and Others (1993) KALR 213
  • Boutique Shasim Limited v Norattam Bhatia and Another (Civil Appeal No. 36 of 2007)
  • Mathias Lwanga Kaganda v Uganda Electricity Board (HCCS No. 124 of 2003)
  • Ndaula Ronald v Haji Nadduli Abdul (Election Petition No. 20 of 2006)

Full judgment

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

Nassuna_v_Kamoga_Matovu_and_Others_(Miscellaneous_Application_1024_of_2023)_[2023]_UGHCLD_499_(18_August_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.