Wakilii

Registered Trustees of Kampala Arch Diocese v Muyimba & 50 Others T A Nsambya Market Vendors Association & Capital Shoppers (Miscellaneous Application 2117 of 2024)

High Court · [2025] UGHCLD 1 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application arising from Civil Suit No. 707 of 2017 seeking to strike out a third-party notice filed by the 2nd respondent for being filed out of time, or alternatively for leave to file a defence out of time
Decision
Third-party notice struck out; applicant's primary prayer granted

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court held that a third-party notice must be filed within 15 days from the date leave is granted, in accordance with Order 1 rule 14(4) and Order 8 rule 1(2) of the Civil Procedure Rules. The 2nd respondent filed the third-party notice 27 days after obtaining leave on 30 May 2024, well beyond the prescribed timeline. The court found no sufficient cause for the delay and struck out the third-party notice for non-compliance with the statutory timelines.

Outcome

Third-party notice struck out; applicant's primary prayer granted

Facts

The Registered Trustees of Kampala Arch Diocese were joined as a third party in Civil Suit No. 707 of 2017 by Capital Shoppers Ltd (2nd respondent). On 30 May 2024, the 2nd respondent obtained leave to file a third-party notice. The notice was eventually filed on 26 June 2024 and served on 10 July 2024. The applicant's counsel had mistakenly failed to assign a colleague to respond to the third-party notice before proceeding on leave, and upon return discovered the time to file a defence had expired. The applicant brought this application seeking either to strike out the third-party notice for being filed out of time, or alternatively for leave to file a defence out of time.

Issues

  1. Whether the third-party notice should be struck out for being filed out of time without leave of court.
  2. Whether the Applicant has demonstrated sufficient cause for the delay to warrant leave to file its Written Statement of Defence out of time.

Orders

  • The third-party notice by the 2nd respondent filed on 26 June 2024 is struck out for having been filed out of time.
  • The 2nd respondent shall bear the costs of the application.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Third-Party Notices — Time Limits for Filing — Computation of Time
A third-party notice must be filed within the time limited for filing a defence, which is 15 days from the date leave is granted to issue such notice, in accordance with Order 1 rule 14(4) read together with Order 8 rule 1(2) of the Civil Procedure Rules.
Civil Procedure — Third-Party Notices — Filing Out of Time — Requirement for Sufficient Cause
Where a defendant files a third-party notice out of time, the defendant must demonstrate sufficient cause for the delay. Absent such sufficient cause, the notice is liable to be struck out for non-compliance with statutory timelines.
Civil Procedure — Costs — Liability for Procedural Default
Where a party's procedural default results in the striking out of an application or notice, that party bears the costs of the proceedings necessitated by the default.

Legislation cited (3)

Cases cited (1)

  • Stop and See (U) Ltd v Tropical Africa Bank Ltd (Miscellaneous Application No. 333 of 2010)

Full judgment

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

Registered_Trustees_of_Kampala_Arch_Diocese_v_Muyimba_&_50_Others_T_A_Nsambya_Market_Vendors_Association_&_Capital_Shoppers_(Miscellaneous_Application_2117_of_2024)_[2025]_UGHCLD_1
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.