Wakilii

Robinah Tabamune v The Commissioner Land Registration [2026] UGHCLD 4

High Court · 2026 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application by notice of motion in the High Court (Land Division) for an order directing the Commissioner Land Registration to remove a caveat
Decision
Application granted; Commissioner Land Registration ordered to remove the caveat from the suit land

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court held that where a deceased caveator had, before his death, executed a donation agreement and transfer forms conveying the suit land to the applicant, his interest in the land ceased and the caveat he had lodged became redundant. Under section 129 of the Registration of Titles Act the Registrar is obliged to remove a caveat that has been withdrawn, has lapsed, or has otherwise ceased to affect the land. The rule in Kakebe Paul v Sebandeke Ibrahim requiring the legal representatives of a deceased caveator to be sued was distinguished, since the donated land no longer formed part of the deceased's estate and no beneficiary interest required protection. The application succeeded with no order as to costs.

Outcome

Application granted; Commissioner Land Registration ordered to remove the caveat from the suit land

Facts

The applicant married Jackson Musoke in 1961 and they lived together until his death on 5 August 2018. Musoke was the registered proprietor of land comprised in Kyadondo Block 210 Plot 162 at Kyebando, measuring 0.43 hectares, on which he had himself lodged a caveat in 1995 under Instrument No. KLA 172339. On 16 January 2018 he executed a donation agreement transferring the suit land to the applicant, and on 25 January 2018 he executed transfer instruments in her favour. He later purported to bequeath the same land to her in his last will. A report of the Directorate of Forensic Services dated 20 November 2024 confirmed that the donation agreement, transfer form and will bore his genuine signatures. Two biological daughters of the deceased deposed that they had no objection to removal of the caveat. A search certificate furnished by the Respondent dated 24 November 2025 showed the land still registered in Jackson Musoke's name with the caveat as the only encumbrance. The executors of the deceased's estate were not joined as parties.

Issues

  1. Whether the caveat lodged on land comprised in Kyadondo Block 210 Plot 162 at Kyebando under Instrument No. KLA 172339 had ceased to affect the caveator's interest and should be removed by the Respondent.
  2. Whether an applicant may obtain removal of a caveat lodged by a deceased registered proprietor without suing the legal representatives of the deceased caveator's estate.

Orders

  • The Respondent remove the caveat lodged on land comprised in Kyadondo Block 210 Plot 162 measuring 0.43 hectares situate at Kyebando under Instrument No. KLA 172339.
  • No orders as to costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Land & Property — Caveats — Removal under Registration of Titles Act s.129 where caveat has ceased to affect the land
Where a caveat has been withdrawn, has lapsed, or has otherwise ceased to affect the land or any interest in the land in respect of which it was lodged, the Registrar is obliged under section 129 of the Registration of Titles Act to remove it from the Register Book.
Land & Property — Caveats — Death of caveator — Effect of inter vivos donation and executed transfer on the caveator's protected interest
A caveator who executes a donation agreement and transfer forms in respect of the caveated land relinquishes his claim to that land, so that the caveat he lodged ceases to protect any interest and becomes redundant; the caveator's subsequent death does not preserve the caveat.
Civil Procedure — Parties — Whether legal representatives of a deceased caveator must be joined in an application to remove a caveat
The requirement that the legal representatives of a deceased caveator be sued in proceedings for removal of a caveat exists to protect the interests of beneficiaries in the estate, and does not apply where the caveated land was validly disposed of by the deceased during his lifetime and therefore does not form part of his estate.
Succession & Estates — Composition of the estate — Property donated inter vivos erroneously included in a will
Property effectively donated and transferred by a deceased person during his lifetime does not form part of his estate on death, and its erroneous inclusion in his will does not restore it to the estate.

Legislation cited (13)

Cases cited (1)

Full judgment

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Robinah Tabamune v The Commissioner Land Registration [2026] UGHCLD 4 (2 January 2026)
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.