Wakilii

Trustees of the Sunni Muslim Community v Fernandes (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 1949)

East African Court of Appeal · [1949] EACA 7 · 1949 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Appeal from High Court of Uganda against an order extending time for compliance with judgment conditions
Decision
Appeal dismissed on preliminary objection; Court indicated appellants may appeal after formal decree is issued or may apply for leave to appeal the order

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The Court held that no appeal lies where no formal decree exists, and there is no right of appeal against an order made under Order 45, Rule 5 of the Uganda Civil Procedure Rules extending time for compliance. Section 75 of the Civil Procedure Ordinance prohibits appeals from orders not expressly made appealable, and Order 40 does not provide for appeals from time extension orders under Order 45, Rule 5.

Outcome

Appeal dismissed on preliminary objection; Court indicated appellants may appeal after formal decree is issued or may apply for leave to appeal the order

Facts

The appellants obtained judgment on 26 November 1948 for possession of premises in Jinja. The trial Judge ordered immediate possession but directed the order be discharged if the respondent paid taxed costs and provided security by 12 noon on 18 December 1948. No formal decree was issued. The respondent failed to comply by the deadline. On 22 December 1948, the trial Judge, in the absence of parties and on his own motion, extended the time to 20 December 1948 under Order 45, Rule 5, based on the District Registrar's note that non-compliance was due to the Registrar's absence from Jinja on 18 December, not the respondent's fault. The appellants appealed this extension order.

Issues

  1. Whether an appeal lies where no formal decree has been issued by the trial court.
  2. Whether there is a right of appeal against an order made under Order 45, Rule 5 of the Uganda Civil Procedure Rules extending time for compliance with judgment conditions.

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Appeals — Appealable Orders — No Decree Issued
An appeal cannot lie where no formal decree has been issued by the trial court, as the right of appeal under section 69 of the Civil Procedure Ordinance is from decrees or orders, and in the absence of a decree there is nothing against which to appeal.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Orders Under Order 45, Rule 5 — Extension of Time
There is no right of appeal against an order made under Order 45, Rule 5 of the Civil Procedure Rules extending time for compliance with a judgment, as section 75 of the Civil Procedure Ordinance prohibits appeals from orders not expressly made appealable, and Order 40 does not provide for appeals from time extension orders.
Civil Procedure — Remedies — Application for Leave to Appeal
Where an order is not directly appealable, a party may apply to the court that made the order for leave to appeal under Order 40, Rule 1, sub-rule 2, and if leave is refused, may apply to the appellate court, but only after first applying to the lower court.

Legislation cited (8)

Full judgment

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

Trustees of the Sunni Muslim Community v Fernandes (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 1949) [1949] EACA 7 (1 January 1949)
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.