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The Commercial Case Law Index is a collection of judgments from African countries on topics relating to commercial legal practice. The collection aims to provide a snapshot of commercial legal practice in a country, rather than present solely traditionally "reportable" cases. The index currently covers 400 judgments from Uganda, Tanzania, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa.
Get started on finding judgments that are relevant to you by browsing the topic list on the left of the screen. Click the arrows next to the topic names to reveal a detailed list of sub-topics. Most judgments are accompanied by a short summary written by subject-matter expert postgraduate students from the University of Cape Town.
Abia State Government v Hon. Nwoko (CA/A/19/2012)[2016] NGCA 93 (23 March 2016) (CA/A/19/2012) [2016] NGCA 93 (22 March 2016); 
CL Index Jurisdiction International law Human Rights Behaviour of Legal Practitioner Legal Profession Legal Professional and Judicial Conduct Specific Performance Performance of contract Contract LawContract Law – payment of money – specific performance Civil procedure – jurisdiction - ratio decidendi
Asare v Attorney General and Another (J1/1/2016) [2017] GHASC 25 (22 June 2017); CL Index Behaviour of Legal Practitioner Legal Profession Legal Professional and Judicial Conduct Locus Standi Parties Civil ProcedureThe court exercised its original jurisdiction to interpret constitutional provisions relating to the right of the General Legal Council to introduce examinations and interview as requirements for admission into the practical component of the law course.
The defendants raised a preliminary objection disputing the jurisdiction of the court claiming there was no issue of interpretation and also claimed that the plaintiff lacked locus standi (standing to bring the matter before the court). The court held that the matter was of public interest thus the plaintiff did not have to demonstrate personal interest. The court determined whether the imposition of the new admission requirements was unconstitutional. It was held that the council had the authority to do so but it was unconstitutional since the new requirements were implemented without legal backing (regulations). Secondly, the court determined whether the council’s failure to specify alternative places and modes of instruction for students who qualified to join the school of law was unconstitutional and held that the plaintiff was unable to prove the same. Accordingly, the matter succeeded in part and the court declared that the new admission requirements that led to exclusion of qualified persons were unconstitutional and that the Council’s policy on reviewing examination scripts and quota violated the constitution.
Meis Industries Limited & Ors v Twiga Bankcorp (Misc Commercial Cause No. 243 of 2015) [2016] TZHCComD 17; (18 February 2016) Setting Aside of Dismissal Notice Civil Remedies Behaviour of Legal Practitioner Legal Profession Legal Professional and Judicial Conduct CL IndexThe main case was dismissed because a party did not appear in court when it came up for hearing. The case dealt with an application to set aside the dismissal order of the court. The court held that an application to set aside a dismissal order must be based on sufficient reasons and the court has absolute discretion where sufficient cause is shown. What amounts to reasonable or sufficient cause has not been defined because the court should have the discretion to decide based on the circumstances of each case.
In this case, the applicant claimed they were not aware of the dismissal order. The court held that sufficient reasons were not shown and the court dismissed the application to set aside the dismissal notice because the lawyers were simply negligent.
Sadru Mangalji v Abdul Aziz Lalani & Ors (Misc Commercial Application No. 126 of 2016) [2016] TZHCComD 34; (16 November 2016) Want of Prosecution Conduct of proceedings Civil Procedure Behaviour of Legal Practitioner Legal Profession Legal Professional and Judicial Conduct CL IndexA court can dismiss a matter for want of prosecution where the person who initiated the court action does not take active steps to pursue the case in court such as not appearing in court. The court dealt with a case where the lawyer did not appear before court on the date for hearing. The case was thereafter dismissed for want of prosecution. This case was an application to set aside the order to dismiss the original court suit for want of prosecution.
To set aside an order that a court suit be set aside for want of prosecution, the applicant must give sufficient grounds that must balanced against the interests of justice. In this case, the lawyer for the applicant did not appear because he was unwell on the court hearing date. The court held that this constituted a sufficient reason to set aside the notice to dismiss the case. In the interests of justice and the compelling reasons, the application to set aside the notice to dismiss was granted.