Wakilii

Seruwu and Another v Namuddu and Another (as administrators of the estate of late Ssegawa) (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 2019)

High Court · [2021] UGHCCD 234 · 2021 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from Chief Magistrate's Court judgment in trespass suit
Decision
Appeal dismissed with costs; trial court judgment upholding respondents' ownership and finding appellants to be trespassers affirmed

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Holding

The High Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the trial magistrate's finding that the respondents were the rightful owners of the disputed kibanja. The appellants' claim that the sale agreement was forged failed for lack of sufficient evidence. Evidence at locus in quo established that the appellants had planted new boundary marks to encroach on the respondents' land, thereby committing trespass. The court awarded general damages of UGX 1,000,000 for crops harvested and inconvenience caused.

Outcome

Appeal dismissed with costs; trial court judgment upholding respondents' ownership and finding appellants to be trespassers affirmed

Facts

The respondents, as administrators of the estate of the late Edward Ssegawa, claimed that the deceased purchased a kibanja of approximately one acre from Angelo Mwanje in 1992 for UGX 1,600,000 under a written sale agreement. The late Ssegawa took possession and cultivated the land. His mother and wife were buried on the kibanja. In 2009, the appellants, who are grandsons of the late Angelo Mwanje, allegedly trespassed onto the kibanja. The appellants contended that the sale agreement was forged and that only a small burial plot had been sold to the late Ssegawa. At locus in quo, the trial court observed two sets of boundary marks: old marks covering the entire kibanja and new marks planted by the appellants to divide the land. The trial magistrate found for the respondents, holding that the appellants were trespassers.

Issues

  1. Who is the rightful owner of the disputed kibanja?
  2. Whether the Defendants trespassed onto the kibanja belonging to the Plaintiff?
  3. What remedies are available to the parties?

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed.
  • Judgment and orders of the trial magistrate upheld.
  • General damages of UGX 1,000,000 awarded to the respondents for crops harvested and inconvenience caused.
  • Costs of the appeal awarded to the respondents.

Rules and key headnotes

Land & Property — Trespass to Land — Definition and Elements
Trespass to land occurs when a person makes an unauthorised entry upon land and thereby interferes, or portends to interfere, with another person's lawful possession of that land.
Evidence — Handwriting Opinion Evidence — Admissibility and Weight
Under section 45 of the Evidence Act, when the court has to form an opinion as to the person by whom any document was written or signed, the opinion of any person acquainted with the handwriting of the person by whom it is supposed to be written or signed is a relevant fact.
Evidence — Inconsistencies and Contradictions — Effect on Credibility
Grave inconsistencies and contradictions in a witness's evidence, unless satisfactorily explained, will usually but not necessarily result in the evidence being rejected. Minor inconsistencies, unless they point to deliberate untruthfulness, will be ignored.
Civil Procedure — Locus in Quo — Purpose and Limitations
The purpose of visiting the locus in quo is to check on the evidence by the witnesses, and not to fill gaps in their evidence, lest the court may run the risk of turning itself into a witness in the case.
Civil Procedure — First Appeal — Duty of Appellate Court
On a first appeal, the appellate court is under an obligation to re-hear the case by subjecting the evidence presented to the trial court to a fresh and exhaustive scrutiny and re-appraisal before coming to its own conclusion. In a case of conflicting evidence, the appeal court must make due allowance for the fact that it has neither seen nor heard the witnesses, and must weigh the conflicting evidence and draw its own inferences and conclusions.

Legislation cited (1)

Cases cited (7)

  • Father Nanensio Begumisa and Others v Eric Tiberaga (SCCA No. 17 of 2000)
  • Fernandes v Noroniha [1969] EA 506
  • De Souza v Uganda [1967] EA 784
  • Yeseri Waibi v Edisa Byandala [1982] HCB 28
  • Nsibambi v Nankya [1980] HCB 81
  • Alfred Tajar v Uganda (EACA Criminal Appeal No. 167 of 1969)
  • Justine EMN Lutaaya v Stirling Civil Engineering Company (Civil Appeal No. 11 of 2002)

Full judgment

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

Seruwu and Another v Namuddu and Another (as administrators of the estate of late Ssegawa) (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 2019) [2021] UGHCCD 234 (10 March 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.