Principle Archive

An appellate court will not ordinarily interfere with the exercise of a trial court's discretion in granting or refusing bail, especially where there are concurrent findings…

A plaintiff is caught by the plea of estoppel per rem judicatam where: (1) the parties (or their privies) in the previous case are the same…

The right to personal liberty guaranteed under Section 35(1) of the 1999 Constitution is not absolute. It is a qualified right that can be lawfully curtailed…

The repeal of a law does not invalidate acts lawfully done and concluded while that law was in force. Although a repealed statute is treated as…

A cause of action arises from circumstances containing different facts that give rise to a claim that can be enforced in a court of law, and…

Principle Statement: Abuse of process of the court is defined as the improper use of the process and procedure of the court by a litigant. It…

It is ridiculous and unethical for a party to claim that it had not waived its diplomatic immunity when it agreed in a written contract that…

 A waiver by a corporate body of its diplomatic immunity must be supported by a resolution of its board of directors, and the waiver can only…

No court is bound to speculate on possible defences, but where evidence suggests a line of defence in a homicide trial, the court must consider and…

Where a plaintiff woefully fails to prove his case, the proper order is dismissal, not retrial. A retrial is not appropriate where the plaintiff failed completely…

Principle Statement: The rule does not provide for dismissal of a suit upon discontinuance; a court cannot introduce that. Dismissal is the greatest punishment a plaintiff…

An appellate court will interfere with a trial court's exercise of discretion where it is shown to be not exercised judicially and judiciously—that is, if it…