Principle Archive

An appellate court will only disturb findings of fact if the trial judge made no use of the advantage of seeing witnesses. If the trial judge…

The exercise of power under Section 217 of the Criminal Procedure Code to substitute a conviction does not infringe fair hearing if the evidence adduced gave…

If an accused is charged with one offence and the evidence shows he committed a different offence with which he might have been charged, he may…

To convict for criminal breach of trust, the prosecution must prove: (a) the accused was a clerk or servant of the person reposing trust; (b) the…

A person who is in contempt of a subsisting court order is not entitled to the court's discretion to enable him to continue with the breach.…

It is a serious matter to flout a court order and then seek a discretionary remedy. A party in contempt cannot invoke the equitable and discretionary…

Where an applicant is in continuing disobedience of a court order and has no intention of complying, it is improper for the court to grant a…

A previous inconsistent statement cannot be used to discredit a witness unless it is shown to the witness and used in cross-examination, as required by sections…

On a plea of alibi, the court should not disregard the evidence unless there is stronger evidence against it. The onus of disproving alibi rests on…

Where the alibi of two co-accused is inseparable, they must sink or swim together. If one is acquitted on alibi, the other must also be acquitted.

Where a trial court disbelieves the evidence of a witness and discharges one accused due to doubt, an appellate court cannot use the same discredited evidence…

Incidental or collateral findings, not raised by the parties on the pleadings or canvassed at trial, cannot sustain res judicata or issue estoppel.