Uganda’s Supreme Court has ruled that the government must pay over Shs 1 billion in compensation to Uganda Motors Limited, following a protracted legal battle over disputed land in Banda, a suburb of Kampala.
The decision overturns previous rulings by both the High Court and Court of Appeal, which had dismissed Uganda Motors’ claims related to the loss of a 5.5-acre piece of land. The land was lost following a series of disputed transactions and court decisions dating back to 2000.
In a lead judgment delivered by Justice Catherine Bamugemereire, the Supreme Court found that the failure of the registrar of titles to register a caveat on the land contributed directly to Uganda Motors’ loss.
“It is not enough for an individual to have a duty of care and then breach that duty by not living up to the standard of conduct expected of them,” Justice Bamugemereire wrote. “The officers in the Lands ministry are largely responsible for the loss of land occasioned by their omissions.”
Uganda Motors had attempted to secure its interest in the land by filing a caveat with the registrar of titles on 12 July 2000. Despite being received, the caveat was never recorded, and the land was subdivided and transferred on the same day to multiple parties. These transfers ultimately led to a legal entanglement with various new owners, including Emmanuel Mwebaze, David Mugume, Abraham Arapundiwa, and Arthur Mukwatanise.
An earlier case filed by Directel (U) Ltd, demanding a Shs 7.6 million payment for advertising services, had led to Uganda Motors losing the land through a summary court process. Although a subsequent out-of-court settlement saw Uganda Motors reinstated as proprietor, this was later challenged by one of the new buyers, Mukwatanise, who succeeded in overturning the consent judgment.
Uganda Motors filed a compensation suit against the Attorney General in 2006, blaming the government for the registrar’s failure to block the transfers. However, both the High Court and Court of Appeal found the loss was due to court decisions rather than government negligence.
Justice Bamugemereire disagreed, criticising the appellate court for failing to evaluate critical evidence. She ruled that the registrar’s omission played a decisive role in the land loss and that the judiciary had not fully considered this.
“The learned justices of appeal shared the same view as the trial judge… This reasoning is not backed by fact,” she noted. “Had the learned justices of Appeal critically examined the evidence on record, they would have found that the failure to register the caveat on the title was a material fact.”
The court awarded Uganda Motors Shs 900 million in special damages with 10% interest from 2006, and Shs 100 million in general damages with 10% interest from the date of the Supreme Court ruling.
The judgment was supported by a panel comprising Justices Percy Night Tuhaise, Elizabeth Musoke, Steven Musota, and Monica Mugenyi.
