Lawpoint Uganda

The court held that where a valid and enforceable arbitration agreement exists, the court's jurisdiction is ousted and the dispute must be subjected to arbitration. The court cited the Court of Appeal's decision in Babcon Uganda Limited versus Mbale Resort Hotel Limited, CACA No. 87 of 2011, where it was observed that....The court further noted that enforcement of arbitration agreements is intended to respect freedom of contract and foster party autonomy, and that the court's

The Court observed that the progressive alienation of Basongora land, from the colonial period through to successive post-colonial Governments, occurred in complete disregard of the common law doctrine of pre-existing rights and the doctrine of native or aboriginal title. The Court cited the landmark Australian High Court decision of Eddie Koiki Mabo and Others v Queensland (No.2) [1992] HCA 23, in which Brennan J stated as follows: "The term 'native title' conveniently descr

The court clarified the law on estate transactions, reaffirming that transactions on estate property, including leasing, renting out or selling, require the consent of all beneficiaries, and that a beneficiary cannot validly dispose of or lease out the whole or another beneficiary's share without proper authorisation, citing Biribonwa Patrick & ors v Nyombi Herbert, Civil Appeal No. 0067 of 2022.

On the element of mens rea, the court applied both the standard of "knowledge" (conscious awareness) and "reason to believe" (sufficient cause to believe, assessed objectively). Relying on academic commentary from the International Journal of Law Management & Humanities (2019), the court noted that either standard, if established, is sufficient to prove the required mental element.

The Court further clarified that, while courts retain wide discretion to award compensatory damages in lieu of recovery of land where restitution is impractical, such as due to irreversibility of transactions, a plaintiff’s election of remedy, or the impracticality of physical recovery, any such award must be supported by evidence or proper professional valuation, canvassed by the parties, and grounded in the fair market value of the land at the time of judgment pursuant to s

Where the Applicant fails to demonstrate that the pending application has a likelihood of success, the balance of convenience tilts in favour of allowing the successful party to enjoy the fruits of the judgment. Courts have consistently emphasised that litigation must come to an end and that a successful litigant should not be unnecessarily deprived of the fruits of their judgment

The Court further observed that by summarily determining Civil Suit 1120 of 2025, it was likely to preempt the outcome of Civil Suit 535 of 2024 and render it nugatory as stated by the applicants. The Court clarified that if the Civil Division found that the encashment was illegal or wrongful, that finding would directly affect (and likely defeat) the claim in the suit before it. In other words, the suit before this Court was dependent on and intertwined with the issue before

The Court's interpretation of "employed in a public body" under Section 10(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act is not confined to persons legally and formally holding a public office. The substantive public employment relationship, even if a particular acting role has technically lapsed, is sufficient to attract criminal liability where the officer knowingly and willfully continues to exercise that role's powers.

It is my considered view that even without actual cash flow, any tax payer is deemed to have paid the interest for tax purposes at capitalisation thus triggering withholding tax at that stage, regardless....once capitalised, the interest ceased to be characterised as interest and became part of the principal loan, on which the lender was entitled to further interest. UTI B.V. recognised interest income in its books of account for 2012–2017 and paid tax on those amounts in the

The Court first noted the termination letter gave no reasons and only provided notice, suggesting a no‑fault termination. As held in Stanbic Bank v Nassanga, a straight termination (no-fault) needs no reason or hearing if notice is paid: “if termination can be for a reason or none then termination does not require a hearing”. Here, the letter paid two months’ salary but said nothing about misconduct, which prima facie would be lawful under the Employment Act Section. 64(1)(a)

The Court identified two key elements of fraud on the facts, first, the concealment of the true nature of the transaction, namely that the agreements were intended as security for a loan rather than as instruments of a genuine sale; and second, the deliberate mischaracterisation of the transaction as a sale, which had the effect of depriving the parties of appropriate equitable remedies, such as an account of the sums advanced and repaid.

A service provider induces infringement where it actively encourages infringement through specific acts, such as express promotion, marketing, or other conduct demonstrating an intent to promote infringing use. Knowledge of infringement alone is insufficient; there must be affirmative conduct directed at

Where a worker alleges occupational injury, disease, or disability arising from employment, the Workers Compensation Act (Cap. 225) provides the exclusive and adequate statutory framework. Employees and their advocates must channel such claims through the statutory workers' compensation Act, not constitutional litigation for rights enforcements

The Court emphasized statutory priority: “The surviving spouse shall have preference over any other person in the administration of the estate of a deceased intestate.” It held: The Plaintiff, as widow, is first entitled The Defendant, as a brother, has no beneficial interest Co-administration would “only entrench discord and delay distribution”

The Court noted that the right to a fair hearing is a non-derogable right under Article 44(c) of the Constitution, and that a criminal conviction or incarceration does not extinguish this right. Invoking the Judicature (Electronic Filing, Service and Virtual Proceedings Rules) 2025, specifically Regulation 28(a) and (e), the Court reasoned that an incarcerated person can participate in civil proceedings via a virtual audio link, underscoring that imprisonment is not a barrier

A careful examination of S.24(6) and paragraph 1(z) shows that these two provisions are in conflict. This conflict is not apparent and only to force in cases where the Aid-funded project under S.24(6) is either a hydro-electric power,solar geothermal,bio-gas or wind energy project. Suppliers of goods and services to the contractors and subcontractors of Aid-funded, hydro-electric power, solar, geothermal, bio-gas or wind energy projects, cannot avail themselves of this p

Whilst the drawer may lawfully countermand payment under Section 74(a), the Court made clear that such authority does not extinguish the underlying obligation to pay. The defendant's admission in his witness statement that he issued the cheque and stopped payment was fatal to his defence.

While the court acknowledged the High Court's inherent power to sever joint tenancies the exercise of this power is contingent on the underlying tenancy being uncontested. Where the very registration of joint tenancy is impugned as fraudulent, the joint tenancy dispute cannot be determined without first resolving the fraud issue, which requires an ordinary suit.

"It is well-settled that where the termination of an employee is based on an investigation, principles of natural justice dictate that the employee in issue must be given the report before the disciplinary hearing to enable them to respond to its findings."

The High Court noted that “A dead person may be substituted during the pendency of the suit by the person’s legal representatives. The court emphasized that absent substitution under the Succession Act, Cap 268, the appeal cannot be sustained. The court clarified that appeals require legal persons as parties, and the death of the appellant terminates the appeal unless proper substitution occurs. Section 80(1)(a) of the Civil Procedure Act allows the court to conclude proceed

"There is a major difference between a breach of a mere condition and a breach of a condition precedent. In the former, the assured can still make a claim against the insurer despite the breach, whereas non-compliance with the latter automatically releases the insurer from liability for the claim that is tainted by the breach."

“To convict on the basis of circumstantial evidence, the chain of events must be so complete that it establishes the culpability of the appellant, and no one else, without any reasonable doubt. The chain must never be broken at any stage… Suspicion, however strong, cannot provide a basis for inferring guilt.”

“Where the deceased was last seen with the accused, there is a duty placed on the accused to give an explanation relating to how the deceased met his or her death.” And further: “The doctrine of ‘last seen’ means that the law presumes that the person last seen with a deceased bears full responsibility for his death… In the absence of a satisfactory explanation… the Court will be justified in drawing the inference that the accused person killed the deceased.” The Court held th

A person who occupied land unchallenged by the registered owner for 12 or more years before the 1995 Constitution came into force are bonafide occupants under Section 29(2)(a) of the Land Act. Such occupants cannot be arbitrarily evicted and their occupation is not unlawful, meaning a trespass claim will fail on the third element.