Wakilii

Semakula v Musoke (Miscellaneous Application No. 1346 of 2019)

High Court · [2020] UGHCLD 15 · 2020 Appeal Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Taxation appeal from Deputy Registrar's taxation of costs in Land Division matter
Decision
Taxation proceedings set aside as a nullity; matter remitted for proper taxation in accordance with regulations

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that taxation proceedings conducted by the Deputy Registrar while a substantive application for review and interim stay were pending before the Judge were irregular and rendered the review application nugatory. Taxation conducted ex-parte without proper notice despite parties having appeared and objected to the proceedings on the prior date was irregular and an abuse of process. The entire taxation was a nullity for failure to follow due process. Appeal allowed, taxation proceedings set aside.

Outcome

Taxation proceedings set aside as a nullity; matter remitted for proper taxation in accordance with regulations

Facts

The appellant challenged a taxation of costs conducted by the Deputy Registrar in Land Division proceedings. The appellant had filed Miscellaneous Application No. 592/2019 for review and Miscellaneous Application No. 593/2019 for interim stay, both fixed before the Judge. On 18 June 2019, parties appeared with lawyers and submissions were made that taxation ought to be stayed, with the matter adjourned to 21 August 2019 at 12:30 pm. Despite this, the Deputy Registrar proceeded to conduct taxation on 21 August 2019 ex-parte. The appellant argued the taxation was irregular as it proceeded while substantive applications were pending, was conducted ex-parte without proper notice, and resulted in manifestly excessive costs.

Issues

  1. Whether the Deputy Registrar erred in proceeding with taxation proceedings while a substantive application for review and interim stay were pending before the Judge.
  2. Whether the taxation proceedings were conducted ex-parte without notice to the appellant contrary to Regulation 50 of the Advocates (Remuneration and Taxation of Costs) Regulations.
  3. Whether the taxed costs were manifestly excessive.

Orders

  • Appeal allowed on all grounds.
  • Taxation proceedings set aside as illegal.
  • Costs granted to the appellant.

Rules and key headnotes

Taxation of Costs — Irregular Proceedings
It is irregular for a Deputy Registrar to fix and proceed with taxation of costs when a substantive application for review of the order awarding costs is pending before a Judge, as such action renders the review application nugatory.
Taxation of Costs — Notice Requirements
Under Regulation 50 of the Advocates (Remuneration and Taxation of Costs) Regulations SI267-4, taxation proceedings must be conducted with notice to the party against whom costs were awarded; proceeding ex-parte when parties had previously appeared and objected, with the matter adjourned to a specific date and time, constitutes an irregularity and abuse of process.
Taxation of Costs — Nullity for Procedural Non-Compliance
Taxation proceedings conducted in breach of procedural requirements under Regulation 50 of the Advocates (Remuneration and Taxation of Costs) Regulations SI267-4 and without following due process constitute a nullity and will be set aside on appeal.

Legislation cited (3)

Cases cited (1)

  • Hwang Sing v Tajodin Hussein (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 19 of 2008)

Full judgment

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

Semakula_v_Musoke_(Miscellaneous_Application_No._1346_of_2019)_[2020]_UGHCLD_15_(10_March_2020)
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.