Wakilii

Semuddu v Buliamu Matovu (Civil Suit No. 2641 of 2016)

High Court · [2021] UGHCLD 160 · 2021 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for specific performance of land sale agreement
Decision
Plaintiff awarded refund of purchase price and general damages; specific performance denied

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Where a purchaser buys land from a person who is not the registered proprietor, specific performance cannot be ordered against the registered proprietor who was not party to the sale agreement. The sale agreement is void under the Contracts Act 2010. However, under section 54 of the Contracts Act, the purchaser is entitled to recover the purchase price paid to the seller who received the advantage under the void agreement, plus general damages for inconvenience.

Outcome

Plaintiff awarded refund of purchase price and general damages; specific performance denied

Facts

On 9 January 2015, the plaintiff and defendant entered a sale agreement for approximately 2 acres of land comprised in Busiro Block 413 Plot 61 at Bwerenga for UGX 200,000,000. The plaintiff paid the full consideration by 4 March 2015 and entered the land. He later discovered the land measured only 1.74 acres, not 2 acres. The plaintiff also discovered the land was registered in the name of Gemiryango Donozio, not the defendant. The defendant failed to deliver the certificate of title, transfer forms, or mutation forms as agreed, and did not respond to the plaintiff's communications. The defendant did not file a defence despite being granted leave to do so out of time.

Issues

  1. Whether the plaintiff is entitled to the prayers sought for.
  2. What other remedies are available to the plaintiff?

Orders

  • Specific performance denied.
  • Defendant to refund the purchase price of UGX 200,000,000 to the plaintiff.
  • General damages of UGX 5,000,000 awarded to the plaintiff for inconveniences caused.
  • Costs of the suit awarded to the plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Land & Property — Sale of Land — Specific Performance — Non-Registered Proprietor as Vendor
Specific performance of a land sale agreement cannot be ordered against a registered proprietor who was not party to the sale agreement, even where the purchaser has paid the full consideration to a non-proprietor vendor.
Contract Law — Void Agreements — Restitution under Contracts Act
Under section 54 of the Contracts Act 2010, where an agreement is void, a person who received any advantage under that agreement is bound to restore it or pay compensation for it to the person from whom the advantage was received.
Land & Property — Sale of Land — Due Diligence — Purchaser's Negligence
A purchaser who fails to conduct a search and due diligence on the land registry before purchasing land acts with gross negligence, but such negligence does not bar recovery of the purchase price where the sale agreement is void.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (1)

  • Mbabazi and Another v Matco Stores Ltd and Another (Civil Reference No. 15 of 2004)

Full judgment

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

Semuddu_v_Buliamu_Matovu_(Civil_Suit_No._2641_of_2016)_[2021]_UGHCLD_160_(5_November_2021)
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.