Wakilii

St. Daniel Comboni College v Odama (Misc. Application No. 0023 of 2011)

High Court · [2012] UGHC 142 · 2012 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to set aside consent judgment entered by Assistant Registrar following a High Court ruling reinstating a suit before Magistrate Grade 1 court
Decision
Consent judgment set aside; matter to proceed before Magistrate Grade 1 as previously ordered; respondent to refund illegal payment

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that the consent judgment entered by the Assistant Registrar was illegal and set aside. The High Court's ruling of 10/12/2010 had ordered that Civil Suit No. 10 of 2010 be heard by a Magistrate Grade 1, not by the Assistant Registrar. The Registrar acted without jurisdiction by conducting the hearing and entering judgment when the matter had been directed to a Magistrate's court. Consent judgments may be set aside on grounds of illegality, fraud, or mistake. The illegality in this case was established and the consent judgment was set aside.

Outcome

Consent judgment set aside; matter to proceed before Magistrate Grade 1 as previously ordered; respondent to refund illegal payment

Facts

The respondent filed a suit in the Chief Magistrate's Court of Nebbi in 2008 against the applicant. The suit was dismissed and the respondent's application for reinstatement was also dismissed. The respondent successfully applied to the High Court for revision. On 10/12/2010, the High Court ordered that Civil Suit No. 10 of 2010 be reinstated and heard by a Magistrate Grade 1 at Nebbi or Arua. However, on 08/04/2011, the Assistant Registrar of the High Court conducted a hearing at the Registrar's Chambers attended by parties and their advocates, resulting in a consent judgment. On 07/10/2011, the Registrar issued an order directing the applicant to pay shs. 40,000,000/= within one week. The applicant changed advocates and was advised that the consent judgment was illegal. The applicant paid shs. 25,000,000/= under the consent judgment. The applicant then filed this application seeking to set aside the consent judgment.

Issues

  1. Whether the consent judgment entered by the Assistant Registrar on 08/04/2011 was illegal and should be set aside.
  2. Whether the Assistant Registrar had jurisdiction to entertain the file and record a consent judgment contrary to the High Court's ruling of 10/12/2010.
  3. Whether a consent judgment can be set aside on grounds of illegality.

Orders

  • The consent judgment/decree of 8th April 2011 entered into between the parties and sealed by the Assistant Registrar is set aside on grounds of illegality.
  • The respondent shall refund the sum of shs. 25,000,000/= received under the illegal consent judgment and deposit it on the account of the Chief Magistrate Court Nebbi within 30 days from the date of this order.
  • The amount of shs. 25,000,000/= shall remain on account until the final completion of Civil Suit No. 10/2010.
  • The High Court order of 10/12/2010 reinstating Civil Suit No. 10/2010 to be heard by Magistrate Grade 1 ought to be implemented.
  • Application succeeds with costs to the applicant.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Consent Judgments — Grounds for Setting Aside — Illegality
Consent judgments are treated as fresh agreements and may only be interfered with on limited grounds such as illegality, fraud, or mistake. Where a consent judgment is entered in circumstances that constitute an illegality, the court will set it aside.
Civil Procedure — Registrar's Powers — Order 50 Rules 2 and 3 — Limitations
Order 50 Rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Rules permits the Registrar to enter judgment in uncontested cases and cases where parties consent to judgment in agreed terms. However, this power only applies where the matter is properly before the High Court. A Registrar has no jurisdiction to enter a consent judgment where a court order has directed that the matter be heard by a Magistrate Grade 1 and the High Court has become functus officio.
Civil Procedure — Court Orders — Compliance and Implementation — Consent Cannot Override
Parties cannot consent to reverse a court order or judgment of court. Where a court has made specific orders directing how a matter shall proceed, those orders must be implemented unless set aside, appealed from, or reviewed. A consent arrangement contrary to such orders is illegal.
Civil Procedure — Registrar's Powers — Functus Officio — Excess of Jurisdiction
Where a High Court has delivered a ruling reinstating a suit before a Magistrate's court and has exhausted its jurisdiction, the Registrar of the High Court acts without jurisdiction and illegally by conducting a hearing, entering a consent judgment, and making further orders in execution proceedings when no such matter is properly before the High Court.
Civil Procedure — Illegal Payments — Refund Ordered by Court
Where money has been paid pursuant to an illegal consent judgment, the court will order a refund of such payment. Courts do not keep a blind eye on illegality. The payment made under an illegal arrangement is itself illegal and must be reversed.

Legislation cited (3)

Cases cited (5)

  • Bulasio Komde v Bulandina Nankya & Another [1985] HCB 22
  • Attorney General & Another v James Mark Kamoga & Another (Civil Appeal No. 0008 of 2004)
  • Kasozi & Two Others v Peoples Transport Services Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 27 of 1993)
  • Attorney General and U.L.C. v James Kamoga
  • Goodman Agency Ltd v Attorney General & Hassa Agencies Ltd (Constitutional Petition No. 003 of 2008)

Full judgment

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

St. Daniel Comboni College v Odama (Misc. Application No. 0023 of 2011) [2012] UGHC 142 (13 July 2012)
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.