Wakilii

Olweny and 4 Others v Wokorach Ojok (Miscellaneous Application 81 of 2022)

High Court · [2024] UGHC 1069 · 2024 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for leave to file an appeal out of time, arising from High Court Civil Appeal No. 126/2020, itself arising from Civil Suit No. 26/2013 at Magistrate Patongo
Decision
Application allowed; applicants granted leave to file fresh appeal within prescribed timelines; earlier defective notice and memorandum struck out

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court granted leave to appeal out of time where the lower court's delay in providing certified proceedings and judgment (from 15 April to 21 May 2021), combined with COVID-19 national lockdowns, constituted sufficient cause under section 79(2) of the Civil Procedure Act. The court struck out a notice of appeal and a memorandum of appeal filed before the judgment was delivered, holding them premature and incompetent, but allowed fresh filing within specified timelines.

Outcome

Application allowed; applicants granted leave to file fresh appeal within prescribed timelines; earlier defective notice and memorandum struck out

Facts

The applicants sought leave to appeal out of time from a judgment delivered on 9 December 2020. They filed a notice of appeal on 23 December 2020. The High Court Deputy Registrar requested certified proceedings and judgment from the lower court by letter dated 15 April 2021, which were provided by 21 May 2021. The applicants filed written submissions on 30 August 2021. During this period, Uganda experienced COVID-19 national lockdowns. The application for leave was filed on 12 January 2022, over one year after the thirty-day appeal period expired on 8 January 2021. The court also noted a memorandum of appeal stamped as filed on 13 July 2020, five months before the judgment was delivered.

Issues

  1. Whether the applicants have shown sufficient cause for the court to judiciously exercise its discretion to grant them leave to appeal out of time.

Orders

  • Miscellaneous Application No. 81/2022 is allowed and the applicants are granted leave to appeal the decision of the lower (trial) court out of time.
  • The Deputy Registrar, High Court Kitgum Circuit shall avail the applicants the certified judgment and proceedings of the lower court within one (1) week not later than Monday, 18th November, 2024.
  • The applicants may file a fresh memorandum of appeal within a fortnight thereafter not later than Monday, 2nd December, 2024.
  • The notice of appeal filed on 23rd December 2020 and memorandum of appeal filed on 13th July 2020 designated as Civil Appeal No. 086/2020 (Kitgum No. 126/2020) are both struck out.
  • Each party shall meet their own costs of this application.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Appeals — Extension of Time — Sufficient Cause — Court Delays in Providing Record
Where the lower court takes time to provide certified proceedings and judgment required for an appeal, that period is discounted in computing the thirty-day limitation period under section 79(2) of the Civil Procedure Act, and constitutes sufficient cause for granting leave to appeal out of time, as the duty to provide the record ultimately lies with the courts.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Extension of Time — Sufficient Cause — COVID-19 Pandemic
Government-imposed national lockdowns in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which curtailed normal activity and movement, constitute sufficient cause for granting leave to appeal out of time under section 79 of the Civil Procedure Act.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Institution of Appeal — Memorandum of Appeal
A valid appeal is instituted only by a memorandum of appeal as provided by Order 43 Rule 1 of the Civil Procedure Rules, not by a notice of appeal alone, notwithstanding that a court filing number may have been designated to the notice.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Premature Filing — Memorandum Filed Before Judgment
A memorandum of appeal filed before delivery of the judgment sought to be appealed is premature, incompetent, and improperly filed, therefore defective in law, since there is no decision to challenge and the party cannot at that stage claim to be aggrieved.

Legislation cited (7)

Cases cited (6)

  • Rosette Kizito v The Administrator General and Others (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 91 of 1986)
  • Boney Katatumba v Waheed Kareem (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 27 of 2007)
  • Joseph Muluta v Sylvano Katama (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 2 of 1999)
  • Nsubuga v Kavuma [1978] HCB 307
  • Maria Onyango Ochola and Others v J. Hannington Wasswa (Supreme Court Civil Application No. 22 of 1993)
  • Mukwano Industries Ltd v Katushabe Amina and Another (HCMA No. 853 of 2019)

Full judgment

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

Olweny and 4 Others v Wokorach Ojok (Miscellaneous Application 81 of 2022) [2024] UGHC 1069 (11 November 2024)
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.