Wakilii

Sabiti & Another v Kihuku & 2 Others (Civil Suit 857 of 1989)

High Court · [1992] UGHC 61 · 1992 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application by defendants under Chamber Summons seeking rejection of plaint for failure to disclose a cause of action
Decision
Application for rejection of plaint dismissed; substantive suit to proceed

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court held that the plaint disclosed a cause of action. For a cause of action to exist, the plaintiff must have enjoyed a violated right, the defendant must have violated that right causing loss, and the defendant must be liable. The court found the plaint contained sufficient averments that the defendants applied for land in a different location but obtained a lease for land occupied by the plaintiffs under customary tenure, implying fraud. The application for rejection of the plaint was dismissed with costs.

Outcome

Application for rejection of plaint dismissed; substantive suit to proceed

Facts

The defendants in a civil suit instituted a Chamber Summons seeking rejection of the plaintiffs' plaint on grounds that it disclosed no cause of action and was barred by limitation. The plaintiffs alleged they occupied land by customary tenure. The defendants applied for a lease for land in a different location (Makazi, Nyabwingongi) but were instead granted a lease for the land occupied by the plaintiffs. The plaint alleged this involved fraud. The defendants argued the plaint contained inadequate averments of the plaintiffs' rights and failed to disclose a cause of action. The plaintiffs contended that under section 25 of the Public Land Act 1969, customary tenants had a mandatory right to be granted a lease.

Issues

  1. Whether the plaint disclosed a cause of action against the defendants.
  2. Whether the suit was barred by limitation under section 6 of the Limitation Act.
  3. Whether sections 56 and 184 of the Registration of Titles Act protected the defendants from the plaintiffs' claim.

Orders

  • Application dismissed with costs.
  • Order delivered on 1 December 1992.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Pleadings — Disclosure of Cause of Action
For a plaint to disclose a cause of action, three elements must be present: the plaintiff must have enjoyed a right which was violated; the defendant must have violated that right causing loss or damage to the plaintiff; and the defendant must be liable for such violation.
Civil Procedure — Pleadings — Adequacy of Averments
A plaint may disclose a cause of action without stating all the relevant facts. The court must determine whether a cause of action is disclosed based on the contents of the plaint itself, not on extraneous material such as judgments in other proceedings.
Land & Property — Customary Tenure — Rights of Customary Tenants
Where a plaint alleges that defendants applied for a lease for land in one location but obtained a lease for different land occupied by the plaintiffs under customary tenure, such allegation implies fraud and discloses a cause of action. Customary tenants have rights under section 25 of the Public Land Act 1969 and must be heard before their lease application is rejected in preference to another applicant.

Legislation cited (15)

Cases cited (8)

  • Letang v Cooper [1965] 2 QB 242
  • Matokov v Auto Garage Ltd & Another [1971] EA 553
  • [1971] EA 514
  • Sempa Mbabali v Kiiza [1985] HCB 46
  • Auto Garage v Matokov (No. 3) [1971] EA 545
  • Lake Motors Ltd v Overseas Motors Transport Ltd [1959] EA 605
  • Polepole Trading Co v UCB (High Court Civil Suit No. 16 of 1979)
  • Matovu & others v M Sseviri & Uganda Land Commission [1979] HCB 174

Full judgment

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

Sabiti & Another v Kihuku & 2 Others (Civil Suit 857 of 1989) [1992] UGHC 61 (26 November 1992)
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.