Odendi v Mubiboyi (Miscellaneous Appeal 144 of 2023)

Observed later treatment

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

Holding

Held that a Notice of Appeal does not commence an appeal before the High Court — an appeal is commenced by a Memorandum of Appeal. Where no Memorandum of Appeal is filed, there is no appeal on record to validate or dismiss. The Deputy Registrar acted within jurisdiction in striking off the Notice of Appeal. The Appellant failed to show good cause for enlargement of time, having abandoned the matter for three years and failed to file a Memorandum of Appeal even after instruction by new counsel. Mistake of counsel does not excuse dilatory conduct where the litigant fails to take active steps to prosecute the appeal. Application dismissed with costs.

Outcome

Application for leave to appeal out of time and to set aside the Deputy Registrar's ruling dismissed

Facts

The Respondent sued the Appellant and her deceased brother for trespass to land in Adjumani District. Judgment was entered for the Respondent in Civil Suit No. 006 of 2018 on 9 September 2020. The Appellant filed a Notice of Appeal on 17 September 2020 via Civil Appeal No. 0024 of 2020 but never filed a Memorandum of Appeal despite court orders and timelines. The Appellant changed counsel twice. On 19 July 2023, the Deputy Registrar struck off the Notice of Appeal from the court record. On 30 November 2023, the Appellant, through new counsel, filed this Miscellaneous Civil Appeal No. 144 of 2023 seeking to set aside the Deputy Registrar's ruling and for leave to appeal out of time. The Appellant attributed the delay to the negligence of former counsel and claimed she was unaware of the hearing dates and the striking-off ruling.

Issues

1. Whether the Trial Deputy Registrar acted without jurisdiction in dismissing the Appeal.
2. Whether the Appellant has shown good cause for enlargement of time to appeal.

Orders

• Application dismissed with costs to the Respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Legislation cited (9)

• Civil Procedure Act s.79
• Civil Procedure Act s.96
• Civil Procedure Act s.98
• Judicature Act Cap 13 s.17(2)
• Civil Procedure Rules Order 43 Rule 1
• Civil Procedure Rules Order 43 Rule 31
• Civil Procedure Rules Order 50 Rule 8
• Civil Procedure Rules Order 52 Rule 1
• Civil Procedure Rules Order 52 Rule 3

Cases cited (8)

• Maria Onyango Ochola & Others v J. Hannington Wasswa (High Court Bulletin 43 of 1996)
• Godfrey Magezi & Another v Sudhir Ruparelia (Civil Application No. 10 of 2002)
• Capt. Phillip Ongom v Catherine Nyero Owota (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 14 of 2001)
• Hadondi Daniel v Yolam Egondi (Court of Appeal No. 67 of 2003)
• Attorney General & Another v Okwi Richard (Miscellaneous Application No. 36 of 2019)
• Tight Security Ltd v Chartis Uganda Insurance Co. Ltd and Another (High Court Miscellaneous Application No. 8 of 2014)
• Pinnacle Projects Limited v Business in Motion Consultants Limited (High Court Miscellaneous Application No. 362 of 2010)
• Brown v Dean [1910] AC 373

Cases citing this judgment (1)

How later Ugandan judgments in the Wakilii corpus have cited this case. Treatment labels come from Sequitur — Uganda’s citator — each backed by a verbatim span from the citing judgment, and are not an assertion that this case is, or is not, good law.

• Moses Makumbi Banalya Yawe v Fredrick Mawejje Yawe (Miscellaneous Application No. 360 of 2025)

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