Wakilii

Ngabire v Malongo Sub county Local Government (Miscellaneous Application No. 62 of 2020)

High Court · [2021] UGHCCD 261 · 2021 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for review of High Court decision in Misc. Cause No. 19 of 2018
Decision
Matter remitted for fresh hearing de novo

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that negligence of counsel in failing to attach evidence to the applicant's affidavit or adduce it at hearing constitutes sufficient cause for review under Order 46 of the Civil Procedure Rules and should not be visited on the litigant. The earlier ruling dismissing the judicial review application was set aside and the matter ordered to be reheard de novo.

Outcome

Matter remitted for fresh hearing de novo

Facts

The applicant, an elected councillor of Malongo Parish, filed Miscellaneous Cause No. 19 of 2018 seeking judicial review of her alleged unlawful dismissal from office. The application was dismissed on 28 November 2019 for lack of sufficient evidence. The applicant claimed she had provided documentary evidence to her advocate, but the advocate failed to attach the documents to her affidavit or adduce them at hearing. Some of the evidence was attached to counsel's submissions rather than to the applicant's affidavit. The applicant sought review on grounds of sufficient cause (counsel's negligence) and error apparent on the face of the record (failure to properly evaluate evidence). The respondent opposed, arguing the applicant had the documents in her possession and was estopped from blaming counsel, and that no decree had been extracted making the review application incompetent.

Issues

  1. Whether the application for review is competent in the absence of an extracted decree or order.
  2. Whether the applicant has proved that there is sufficient cause for the grant of the application for review.
  3. Whether there is an error apparent on the face of the record.

Orders

  • Application for review granted.
  • The ruling and orders in Miscellaneous Cause No. 19 of 2018 are set aside.
  • The matter shall be reheard de novo, taking into consideration the evidence of the applicant.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Review — Competence — Whether Extracted Decree Required
An application for review under Section 82 of the Civil Procedure Act and Order 46 of the Civil Procedure Rules is competent where final orders have been given in a ruling with the effect of finalising the matter between the parties, even where no formal decree or order has been extracted.
Civil Procedure — Review — Sufficient Cause — Negligence of Counsel
Negligence of counsel in failing to attach evidence to a client's affidavit or adduce it at hearing constitutes sufficient cause for review and should not be visited on the litigant, particularly where the litigant is a lay person who relied on the advocate's superior knowledge of procedure.
Civil Procedure — Review — Error Apparent on Face of Record — Definition
An error apparent on the face of the record must be manifest and self-evident, not requiring examination of the record or elaborate argument to establish. An error that requires re-evaluation of evidence does not meet the test of an error apparent on the face of the record.
Civil Procedure — Evidence — Affidavits — Proper Form
Evidence supporting an application must be contained in affidavits, not in counsel's submissions. Attaching evidence to submissions instead of the applicant's affidavit is not merely a mistake but negligent conduct on the part of the advocate.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (13)

  • Ojara Otto Julius v Okwenga Benson (Miscellaneous Civil Application No. 23 of 2017)
  • Rousos v Gulam Husein Habib (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 9 of 1993)
  • Bishop Jacinto Kibuuka v The Uganda Catholic Lawyers Society & 2 Others (Miscellaneous Application No. 696 of 2018)
  • Edson Kanyabwera v Pastori Tumwebaze (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 6 of 2004)
  • Mugo v Wanjiri [1970] EA 481
  • Njagi v Munyiri [1975] EA 179
  • Rosette Kizito v Administrator General and Others (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 9 of 1986)
  • Andrew Bamanya v Shamsherali Zaver (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 70 of 2001)
  • Ggoloba Godfrey v Harriet Kizito (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 7 of 2006)
  • Zam Nalumansi v Sulaiman Bale (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 2 of 1999)
  • Joel Kato & Another v Nuulu Nalwoga (Miscellaneous Application No. 4 of 2012) [2012] UGSC 2
  • Batuk K. Vyas v Surart Borough Municipality & Others (1953) Bom 133
  • Nyamogo & Nyamogo Advocates v Kago [2001] 2 EA 173

Full judgment

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

Ngabire v Malongo Sub county Local Government (Miscellaneous Application No. 62 of 2020) [2021] UGHCCD 261 (20 April 2021)
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.