Legal Methods 2012 Study Supplement For LDC

MUGABE IVAN & ANKUNDA EMILY
STUDY SUPPLEMENT FOR LEGAL METHODS
This Study Supplement is intended to give you quick and efficient access to
keys items that you need to know for the Legal Methods section fo the
Lasw Development Centre’s Pre Entry Exam. It is not organized in
standard outline form. Instead it is a sequence of various topics and lists.
General concepts of legal methods
 Legal research is the process of identifying materials which govern an activity

and finding areas that explain or analyse that law.
 Sources of law in Uganda:
 Statutes
 Common law
 Local government and Central government i.e. by laws and through the 3
branches of the Central gov’t(Executive, legislature, Judiciary)
 Law reports
 Articles and periodicals e.g. pamphlets, law reviews and journals.
 Doctrine of precedent (stare decisis): let the decision stand, courts are bound
to follow earlier decisions.
 Law reporting: Reports of cases heard both in the country and abroad.
 Why some cases are reported?
 They introduce a new principle.
 They introduce a new rule of law.
 They materially modify an existing principle of law.

 They settle a doubtful question of law.
 They are usually cases of courts of record i.e. Supreme Court, Court of Appeal
and the High Court.
Hierarchy of courts in uganda
 Supreme court; it is headed by the chief justice and the justices of the Supreme
Court shall not be less than six meaning the total number is seven justices.
 Court of Appeal ; It is headed by the deputy chief justice and any number of
justices not being less than seven.
The court of Appeal also sits as the constitutional court.
 Constitutional Court; The quorum for the constitutional court is five members.
It deals with any questions that regard the interpretation of the constitution.
 The High Court of Uganda ; It consists of the principal judge and such number
of justices as may be prescribed by parliament.
 Magistrates courts
Basics of the Ugandan Courts System
All courts of law in Uganda derive their power from the constitution.
The Constitution provides for the establishment of the courts of judicature under
Article 129.
Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is provided for in Article 130 and it is headed by the chief
justice and the justices of the Supreme Court shall not be less than six meaning the
total number is seven justices.
The Supreme Court is duly constituted or its quorum is an uneven number nt

being less than five members of the court.
When dealing with appeals from the constitutional court the Supreme Court shall
consist of a full bench of all members of the Supreme Court and incase one is not able
to attend, the president shall appoint an acting justice for that purpose.
The Chief Justice is supposed to preside at every sitting of the Supreme Court
and incase he is absent the most senior member of the court shall preside.
The Supreme Court shall be the final court of Appeal.
The Supreme Court may depart from its previous decisions when it appears to it
right to do so and all other courts are bound to follow its decision.
The chief justice is the head of the judiciary and is responsible for its supervision
and administration of all courts in Uganda.
Incase the chief justice is absent; the deputy chief justice shall perform his/her
duties.
The chief justice of Uganda is called Benjamin Odoki.The previous chief justice
was called Wako Wambuzi.The first chief justice was called Sir udo udoma.The first
black chief justice was called Benedicto Kiwanuka.
The chief justice is appointed by the president with the recommendation of public
service and the approval of parliament.
The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction to handle presidential election

petitions.
Court of Appeal
It is headed by the deputy chief justice and any number of justices not being less than
seven.
The court of Appeal also sits as the constitutional court.
The quorum of the constitutional court is three members.
Incase the deputy chief justice is absent ,his/her functions shall be performed by a
justice of the supreme court or a justice of appeal designated by the president after
consultation with the chief justice.
The deputy chief justice of Uganda is Mrs. Mpagi Bahingeine.The former deputy chief
justice was called Mrs. Leticia Kikonyogo.
Constitutional Court
The quorum for the constitutional court is five members.
It deals with any questions that regard the interpretation of the constitution.
The High Court of Uganda
It consists of the principal judge and such number of justices as may be

prescribed by parliament.
Other terms
A court martial is an adhoc military court convened under military authority to try
someone accused of violating the uniform code of military justice.
Court of Exchequer is a former English superior court responsible primarily for

adjudicating disputes about the collection of public revenue.
A jury is a group of persons selected according to law and given power to decide
questions of fact and return a verdict in the case submitted to them.
A retrial is a new trial of an action that has already been tried.
Repeal is an abrogation of an already existing law by legislative act.
Repugnancy is an inconsistency or contradiction between two or more parts of a

legal instrument.
A deferred judgment is a judgment placing an accused on probation, the

successful completion of which will prevent entry of the underlying judgment of
conviction.
Prerogative of Mercy may be defined as the powers given to the president to

pardon prisoners who have been convicted for capital offences. There is advisory
committee on the prerogative of mercy and is headed by the Attorney General and six
prominent citizens of Uganda appointed by the president.
Judicature is the action of judging or administering justice through duly

constituted courts.
A trial judge is a judge before whom a case is tried.
A visiting judge is a judge appointed by the presiding judge of an administrative

region to sit temporarily in a given court.
A judgment is a court’s final determination of rights and obligations of the parties

in a case.
An appellate court is one with jurisdiction to review decisions of lower courts or

administrative agencies.
A civil court is one with jurisdiction over non criminal cases.
A commercial court is a court that hears business disputes under simplified

procedures designed to expedite the trials.
A consular court is a court held by the consul of one country within the territory of
another. They are created by treaty and their jurisdiction is usually limited to civil cases.
Court of competent jurisdiction is a court that has power and authority to do a

particular act; one recognized by law as possessing the right to adjudicate a
controversy.
A court of equity is a court that has jurisdiction in equity, administers and decides
controversies in accordance with the rules, principles and precedents of equity and
follows the forms and procedures of chancery.
A full court is a court session that is attended by all the courts judges.
A court of limited jurisdiction is a court with jurisdiction over only certain types of
cases.
Court of last resort is a court having the authority to handle the final appeal of a
case.e.g the Supreme Court.
A kangaroo court is a self appointed tribunal or mock court in which the principles
of law and justice are disregarded.
A local court is a court whose jurisdiction is limited to a particular territory such as

a state, municipal or county court.
Military court is a court that has jurisdiction over members of the armed forces
and that enforces the code of military justice.
A trial court/court of first instance/court of instance is a court of original jurisdiction

where the evidence is first received and considered.
The duty of assessors is to assess and advise. They assess or weigh the
evidence as a whole and decide whether the accused is guilty or not in the light of their
special knowledge as to the habits, modes of thought.
Major figures and concepts in jurisprudence
Theories of knowledge
1. Materialism and Idealism

Idealism: It refers to the practise of forming and believing in ideas even when this is not
realistic. . The belief that ideas are the only things that are real or about which we can
know nothing. The proponents are Hegel, Emmanuel Kant.
Materialism: This is the tendency to be more interested in material rather than spiritual
things. The proponents are Karl Marx, Fredrick Engels and Lenin.
2. Rationalism and Empiricism.
Rationalism: It states that all streams of behaviour should be based on reason and not
feelings or religious belief. The proponents are Rene Descartes, Plato.
Empiricism: It states that all knowledge is from experience. The proponents are
Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, George Berkeley and David Hume.
3. Existentialism and Pragmatism.
Existentialism: It states that knowledge is the personal experience which a person is

emotionally and passionately involved.
Pragmatists: It state that raw materials to be processed by intelligence and the mind so
as to derive knowledge that provides solutions to life’s problems
Theories of law
1. Natural law theory: It states that true law is right reason in agreement
with nature. The proponent is Cicero.
2. The social contract theory of law: It means that a group is overlapping,
related concepts and traditions in political theory. The proponent is
Thomas Hobbes.
3. Positivist theory of law: It states that our knowledge of matter is derived
only from what we have experience of. The main proponent is Jeremy
Bentham.
4. Kelsen’s Pure theory of law: It entails the concept that an acceptable
theory of law should be pure. That is logically supporting and not
dependent upon any extra-legal value and other beliefs for example
morals.
He established the grundnorm from which other norms are derived.
He established the doctrine of revolution. It states that, ‘where there is an
illegal change to the legal order and the change is successful, it is called a
revolution. However the mode of change must not be contemplated
5. The realist school of law: It states that law is not a rule but judicial
behaviour which legal prepositions predict. The proponents are Oliver
Holmes, Benjamin Cardozo, and Jerome Frank.
6. Sociological School of jurisprudence: It analyses the study of law in its
socio historic context. The proponents are Von Jhering, Von Erlich, and
Roscoe Pound, Leon Duguit.
7. Historical and Anthropological jurisprudence:
Historical jurisprudence: It is propounded by Prof. Frederick Carl Von

Savingy. It states that that the understanding of history was the key to
jurisprudence and an analysis of its development.
Anthropological School: It was propounded by Henry Maine.
It States that:
I. The legal history of people and society showed patterns of evolutions which
recurred in social orders and in similar circumstance.
II. Early society was governed by rituals, in the second stage it was governed by
rule and commands.
III. In the third stage it was marked by codification of customs.
IV. In the fourth stage it consisted of the codification of strict codified law.
The Marxist theories of law and the state
The main proponent is Karl Marx who also borrowed ideas from Hegel.
Major concepts of the Marxist theories

a) Materialist conception of History: It states that in analysis of society,

regard should be had to history and material conditions of man.
b) Concept of dialectics: It states that the art of discovery and testing by
discussion and logical argument.
c) Concept of law: Classes are located in the process of production. That is
proletariats, capitalist, and land owners.
d) Base and Superstructure metaphor: The superstructure is the (i) legal and
political form and (ii) the ideology of dominant class. The superstructure is
erected upon the base. The base is the economic structure.
e) Ideology: This is a system of beliefs characteristic of a class or group of
people.
f) The concept of the state and the law: The state like the law is and
expression of class and relations. The law arose as an instrument of class
domination with the rise of classes in society. That there was no state before
the emergence of classes of social differentiation.
g) The concept of communism and weathering away of the state.
That the abolition of classes under communism, the power of the state would
disappear and government functions would be transformed into simple and
administrative ones.
JUDICIAL TITLES
 MR - Master of the Rolls – the judge who presides over the court of appeal in
England.
 QC - Queen’s counsel
 LC - Lord Chancellor – a member of the government and cabinet who
presides over the debates in the House of Lords, is responsible for the
administration of justice, plays an importing role in appointing judges and who is
the most important judge in England.
 LCJ - Lord Chief Justice – the chief judge of the QBD of the High Court and
second most important judge after the Lord Chancellor.
 LJ - Lord/Lady Justice – the title given to a judge who is a member of the
House of Lords
 LP - Lord President
 KC - King’s Counsel- when monarch is male
 PC - Privy Counselor
 LJC -Lord Justice Clerk
 LJJ’ - Lords Justices – used in reference to more than one judge
JUDICIAL TITLES FOR UGANDAN COURTS

 CJ - Chief Justice
 JJSC – Justices’ of the Supreme Court
 DCJ – Deputy Chief Justice
 JSC – Justice of the Supreme Court
 JA – Justice of Appeal
 PJ – Principle Judge – a title given to the judge who heads the High Court of
Uganda
 J – Justice
 CM – Chief Magistrate
 G 1 M – Grade One Magistrate
 G 11 M – Grade Two Magistrate
List of abbreviation and citations
1. AC.……………………………………………………………..Appeal Cases
2. ALLER (Comm)…………………………………………..All England Reports (Commercial cases)
3. ALLER (EC)…………………………………………………All England Reports (European cases)
4. ALLER D……………………………………………………..All England Reports Digest
5. ALLER Rep………………………………………………….All England Reports
6. ALLER…………………………………………………………All England Reports
7. ALLNR…………………………………………………………All Nigerian Reports
8. ALR……………………………………………………………..African Law Reports
9. ALR……………………………………………………………..American Law Reports
10. Atk……………………………………………………………….Atkins’s Chancery Reports
11. B & Ald…………………………………………………………..Barnwell & Alderson Reports
12. BCLR…………………………………………………………….Butterworths Constitutional Law Reports
13. CB…………………………………………………………………Common Bench Reports
14. CCR……………………………………………………………….Criminal Cases Appeal
15. Ch App…………………………………………………………..Law Reports Chancery Appeals
16. Ch D……………………………………………………………….Chancery Division Law Reports

17. Ch…………………………………………………………………..Chancery Law Reports
18. Cl&Fin…………………………………………………………….Clark and Finnelly’s English House of Lords
19. Co. Rep…………………………………………………………..Coke’s Reports
20. Cox C.C…………………………………………………………..Cox’s Criminal Cases
21. CP…………………………………………………………………..Law Reports, Common Pleas
22. CPD………………………………………………………………….Law Reports, Common Pleas Division
23. Cr.App.R…………………………………………………………..Criminal Appeal Reports
24. CtCP…………………………………………………………………Court of Common Pleas
25. CWLR……………………………………………………………....Common Wealth Law Reports
26. E.R…………………………………………………………………….English Reports
27. EA………………………………………………………………………East African Law Report
28. EACA………………………………………………………………….East Africa Court of Africa
29. EALJ……………………………………………………………………East African Law Journal
30. EAPLR………………………………………………………………..East African Protectorate Law Reports
31. East……………………………………………………………………East King’s Bench Repots
32. ECHR…………………………………………………………………European Court of Human Rights Cases
33. ECR…………………………………………………………………..European Court Reports
34. EHHR………………………………………………………………...European Human Rights Reports
35. EWCA………………………………………………………………..England and Wales Court of Appeal
36. EWHC………………………………………………………………..England and Wales High Court
37. Ex D…………………………………………………………………..Exchequer Division
38. Ex………………………………………………………………………Exchequer Reports

39. F………………………………………………………………………..Family Division
40. FCR…………………………………………………………………...Family Court Reports
41. H&C…………………………………………………...........Hurlstone and Cottman’s Exchequer Reports
42. H&N……………………………………………………………Hurlstone and Norman’s Exchequer Reports
43. H & Tw………………………………………………………………Hall and Twell’s Chancery Reports
44. HCB………………………………………………………………High Court Bulletin
45. HCMB………………………………………………………….High Court Monthly Bulletin
46. HCR……………………………………………………………...High Court Reports
47. HCTLR……………………………………………………………High Commission Territory Law Reports
48. HL………………………………………………………………….House of Lords
49. HLC………………………………………………………………..Clark’s House Of Lords
50. HRLR………………………………………………………………Human Rights Law Reports
51. ICC…………………………………………………………………..International Criminal Court
52. ICJ…………………………………………………………………….International Court of Justice
53. ICTR………………………………………………………………International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
54. ILR……………………………………………………………………...International Law Report
55. IP&T……………………………………….Butterworth’s Intellectual Property and Technology Cases
56. IRLR……………………………………………………………………..Industrial Relations Law Reports
57. ITLR……………………………………………………………………...International Tax Law Reports
58. Johns &Hem………………………………………………………….Johnson and Hemming’s Report
59. KB………………………………………………………………………….King’s Bench
60. KBD…………………………………………………………………….…King’s Bench Division

61. KLR………………………………………………………………………..Kenya Law Reports
62. LJKB…………………………………………………………………...…..Law Journal King’s Bench
63. LJQB………………………………………………………………………..Law Journal Queen’s Bench
64. Lloyd’s Rep……………………………………………………………..…Lloyd’s Law Reports
65. LQR………………………………………………………………………….Law Quarterly Review
66. LRAC……………………………………………………………………..Law Reports Appeal Cases
67. LRC……………………………………………………………………....Law Reports on the Common wealth
68. LRCh.D………………………………………………………………….Law Reports Chancery Division
69. LRCP……………………………………………………………………..Law Reports Common Pleas
70. LREq……………………………………………………………………..Law Reports Equity Cases
71. LRKB……………………………………………………………………...Law Reports: King’s Bench
72. LRKBD…………………………………………………………………...Law Reports: King’s Bench Division
73. LRPC……………………………………………………………………...Law Reports Privy Council
74. LRQB……………………………………………………………………..Law Reports: Queen’s Bench Division
75. LRQB……………………………………………………………………...Law Reports: Queen’s Bench
76. LT………………………………………………………………………….Law Times Reports
77. M&W…………………………………………………………….........Meeson & Welsby’s Reports
78. Macq…………………………………………………………………....Macquuen’s Scotch Appeal Cases
79. MLR………………………………………………………………………Modern Law Review
80. Mod……………………………………………………………………..Modern Reports
81. NSWLR………………………………………………………………..New South Wales Law Reports
82. P&D…………………………………………………………………….Perry & Davinson’s Reports

83. PCIJ…………………………………………………………………..Permanent Court of International Justice
84. PH……………………………………………………………………...Prentice Hall Law Reports
85. Pr……………………………………………………………………….Price’s Reports
86. QB……………………………………………………………………...Queen’s Bench
87. QBD…………………………………………………………………….Queen’s Bench Division Reprint
88. Russ&Ry……………………………………………………………….Russell & Ryan’s Reports
89. SA…………………………………………………………………………South African Law Report
90. SACR…………………………………………………………………….South African Criminal Reports
KEY DISTINCTIONS IN THE LAW

 Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments;
Acts of Parliament refer to legislation through which the government of the day
carries into effect its principal policies, while, Statutory Instruments refer to
delegated legislation that add detail to the legislative framework created by the
Acts of Parliament.
 Advocate and Solicitor;

Advocate refers to a person who assists, defends, pleads or prosecutes for
another, while a solicitor refers to a lawyer, in the United Kingdom, who consults
with clients and prepares legal documents but is not generally heard in the High
Court or Court of Session unless specially licensed.
 Bar and Court;

Bar refers to a whole body of lawyers qualified to practice in a given court of law
or jurisdiction, while, court refers to a governmental body consisting of one or
more judges who sit to adjudicate disputes and administer justice.
 Appeal and Slip rule;

Appeal refers to a proceeding undertaken to have a decision reconsidered by a

higher court or authority, while a slip rule refers to the rule that allows a court to
revisit the matter and change its decision where there is new evidence which the
court did not know of by the time it gave its decision.
 Bill and Law;
A bill is legislation that has not yet been passed by a legislative body so as to
become law while a law is a bill that has been passed by the legislators and
assented to by president of the relevant authority.
 Binding/ Mandatory precedent and persuasive precedent;

a binding precedent is one that must be followed by a court in a latter case
even if the judges do not agree with it while a persuasive precedent is one that
need not be followed but is worthy of consideration. Examples of persuasive
precedent include dissenting judgments, decisions from courts in other counties
and obiter dicta
 Common law and civil law;

Common law is a body of law derived from judicial decisions rather than from
statutes and constitutions while civil law is a body of law imposed by the state as
opposed to moral law or the law of private rights.
 Custom and customary law;

A custom is a practice that by its common adoption and long unvarying habit
has come to have a force of law while customary law consists of customs that
are accepted as legal requirements or obligatory rules of conduct, practices and
beliefs that are so vital and intrinsic a part of the social and economic systems
that they are treated as if they were laws.
 Date of assent and Date of commencement;

Before any law is inaugurated into the laws of Uganda, it must be assented to by
the president. The day a president assents to the legislation is the date of
assent. The commencement date is the date when the Act is to come into
effect. Some statutes state that the commencement day shall be as subscribed
by the minister.
 Hostile Attorney and Hostile Witness;

Hostile attorney refers to where the task of zealously representing a client lends
itself to vigorous action which may become counterproductive to the orderly
presentation of evidence during the hearing, while hostile witness refers to a
witness who is biased against the examining party, who is unwilling to testify or
who is identified with an adverse party.
A LIST OF KEY LATIN TERM IN THE LAW

 Actus Reus:
Actus Reus is a Latin term that refers to a guilty act. An Actus Reus may be an
action taken or the failure to take a required action that results into a crime.
 Actio personalis moritur cum persona:

This is a Latin term, which means that, “a personal action dies with the person”.
 Autrefois convict:
This is a plea, in which a defendant can claim that s/he was charged and
convicted of the same crime under substantially same facts.
 Ab inition
This is a Latin term meaning “from the beginning”.
 Autrefois Acquit:
This is a plea made by a defendant who is charged of a crime or misdemeanour
to the effect that s/he was tried earlier for the same crime under the same facts of
the case and was acquitted as he was not found guilty.
 A fortiori:
A fortiori is the Latin for “with even stronger reason”, which applies to the
situation in which if one thing is true then it can be inferred that a second thing is
even more certainly true.
 Animus manendi:
This is a Latin maxim, which means the intention of remaining. In order to
establish or acquire a domicile an individual should have his/her residence at that
place and she/he must have the intention to remain there for unlimited period.
.
 A priori:
Latin term meaning “from the cause to the effect”. A priori is a term of logic used
to denote that when one generally accepted truth is shown to be a cause,
another particular effect must necessarily follow.
 Caveat emptor:
This is a Latin term meaning, “ let the buyer beware”. It is a general rule of law
that a purchaser assumes the risk of his/her purchase.
 Ejusdem Generis:
This is a Latin term for “ of the same kind or nature”. Where a law lists specific
classes of persons or things and then refers to them in general, the general
statements only apply to the same kind of persons or things specifically listed.
 Ex parte:
This refers to a motion or petition by or for only one party.
 Habeas corpus:
This is a Latin term meaning “ you have the body”. It is a writ (court order), which
directs the law enforcement officials who have custody of a prisoner to appear in
court with the prisoner in order to determine the legality of the prisoner’s
confinement.
 In flagrante Delicto:
This is a latin phrase which means “in the very act of committing an offense.” The
term is used to indicate that a criminal has been caught in the act of committing
an offense.
 Locus standi:
This means the right to bring an action, to be heard in court, or address the court
on a matter before it.
Guide to Legal Resources
The following are decriptions of some key legal resources and publications
Corpus Juris Secundum (a.k.a. C.J.S.), is an encyclopedia of United states law,

complete restatement of the entire American law as developed by all reported cases. It
contains alphabetical arrangement of legal topics as developed by united states federal
and state cases. It provides a clear statement of each area of law including areas of law
that are evolving and involves footnoted citations to case law and other primary sources
of law.
Halsburg is Laws of England covers a whole spectrum of English laws and is divided
into alphabetically arranged titles making it convenient to use and enabling quick and
early research into any area of law.
All England Law Reports are described as books with a long running series of law
reports converging a court system in England and Wales. They are commercially
produced alternatives to the official reports produced by the incorporated council of law
reporting.
East Africa Law Reports are published reports of appellate court decisions from Kenya,
Tanzania and Uganda.
Glanville Williams; Learning the Law 13th edition is a book first published in 1945 and
has been introducing students to the foundation skills needed to study law effectively for
the for the last 61 years. This book has proven to be a key source of questions in prior
LDC Pre-Entry Exams. Students preparing to take the LDC Pre-Entry Exam are well
advised to read this book. An outline of the materials in Learning the Law can be found
at the conclusion of this document.
The Blue Book; a uniform system of citation a style guide prescribes the most widely
used legal citation system in the United States.
Archbold’s Criminal Pleading Evidence and Practice, is the leading practitioners’ text for
criminal lawyers in England and Wales and several other common law jurisdictions
around the world and it has been supporting judges, barristers and practitioners with
authoritative and comprehensive coverage of practive and procedure of the crown court.
Non-Latin legal terms
Accessory: A person who aids or contributes in the commission of a crime.
Accomplice: A person who is in any way concerned with another in the commission of
a crime whether as a principle in the first or second degree or as an accessory.
Accusator: A complainant in a criminal prosecution
Accused: A person who has been blamed for wrong doing.
Acts of parliament: is a statute commonly called a law enacted as primary legislation

by a national or sub national parliament.
Administrative process: The procedure used before administrative organizes.
Adversary proceedings: A hearing involving a dispute between opposing parties.
Agreement: A mutual understanding between two or more person but about their
relative rights and duties.
Apprendre: This is a French term meaning “for taking or for seizure.” It is most often
used in the phrase “profit apprendre.” Profit aprendre is a right to enter another’s land
and take something of value off the land of another person. The thing taken must be
something taken out of the soil.
Bail: To obtain freedom by paying some money to court as security.
Bar examination: A written test that a person must pass before being licensed to
practice law.
Bar: The whole body of lawyer qualified to practice in a give court or jurisdiction.
Bill: A formal written complaint, such as a court paper representing some specific action
for reasons alleged.
Case law: The collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given
jurisdiction.
Censure: An official reprimand or condemnation or harsh criticism.
Chancery: A court of equity, collectively; the court of equity.
Civil rights: The individual rights of personal or liberty guaranteed by the Bill of right
and by 13th, 14th, 15th and 19th Amendments as well as by legislation such as voting
Right Act.
Clerkship: A type of internship in which a law student or resent law school graduate
assist a lawyer or judge with legal writing, research and then facts.
Common: is law developed by judges through decision of courts and similar tribunals
rather through legislative statutes or executive branch action.
Constitution: The fundamental law of a state containing the principles upon which the
government is founded and regulating the division of the sovereign power.
Custom: A practice that by its common adoption and long, unvarying habit has come to
have the force of law.
Customary law: law consisting of customs that are accepted as legal requirements.
Defendant: A party (ies) who is used in a personal action.
Estoppels (Doctrine of): This is a legal doctrine that prevents a person from adopting
a position, action, or a right, or attitude, asserting a fact or a right, or prevents one from
denying a fact inconsistent with an earlier position if it would result in an injury to one
else.
Force majeure: This is a term that generally refers to an irresistible force or overcoming
power. It affects someone’s ability to do something and may be used as a legal excuse
for not having carried out the terms of a contract. it is a form of the impossible defense.
In some cases, the defense may not apply; such as when there are terms requiring a
backup or contingency plan to be in effect.
Golden rule: This is a statutory rule that allows for a departure from the literal rule
when the application of a statutory word in ordinary sense would be repugnant or even
when it would lead to what court considers being an absurdity.
Habeas corpus: A writ employed to bring a person before a court, most frequently to
ensure that the party’s imprisonment or detention is not illegal.
Headings: Statutes usually have headings prefixed to section of statute. The headings
of sections may be looked at to explain doubtful provisions in the statute but not qualify
their meaning. The headings are sometimes equated to the preambles of older statutes.
Hearing: This is the process in which a lawyer presents his or her case before the open
court.
Impeachment: The process of calling a witness’s testimony in doubt.
Injunction: An official order from a court of law preventing somebody from doing
something.
Internal aids to construction: Where the enacting provision of a statute themselves

are ambiguous, assistance may be obtained from other parts of the statute to ascertain
the meaning of the provisions.
Interpretation clauses: This is usually an interpretation clause that is part of the

statute.
Issue: This is a point in dispute between two or more parties.
Judgment: This is courts final determination of the rights and obligation of the parties.
Jurisdiction: The legal authority of court to hear and decide a certain type of case.
Jurisprudence: The study of law and legal systems.

LEGAL RESEARCH
Legal resources are resource from which laws are derived and books in Ugandan Law
libraries are books the Ugandan law library entails which are listed as follows; starting
with the legal resources,
Law library is where books are located in te cells of the law library.
Legal data bases following a list of online legal data base researchers will need to use
a combination of these book researchers will need to use a combination of those online
resources and paper resources as described in the section of the books.
Law journals, this is a list of journal resources useful for African legal research, finding
books and articles on international foreign law and indexes are to be considered.
Legal resource indexes such as Wilson’s via the law library electronic, is the indexes,
databases, [periodical and treaties indexes. The law library electronic is the computer
where legal information is obtained through researching on internet.
Cyber law encyclopedia, according to its description is the computer ad information

technology law reference source fro example, source; Alan M. Gahtan (1997-08-10).
Uganda online law library, database is available to George to un law community, but
you must sign with the library password.
Statutes and legislation. The most recent consolidated edition of the statutes of
Uganda was published in 2000. To find more recently enacted laws, you must research
legislation that is; constitution of Uganda.
SUMMARY OUTLINE OF THE KEY POINTS IN LEARNING THE LAW BY GLANVILLE

WILLIAMS
1. THE DIVISIONS OF THE LAW.(CRIMES AND CIVIL WRONGS)

• The distinction between the two lies in the legal consequences that
follow the act or omission and not in the nature of wrongful act.
• A Crime is an act or omission capable of being followed by criminal

proceedings.
• A Civil wrong is an act or omission capable of being followed by civil
proceedings.
• If it’s capable of being followed by both, then it can be both a crime
and civil wrong.
Classification of criminal offences

• Indictable offences: these are the most serious crimes triable by
judge and jury of the crown.
• Summary offences: these are triable magistrates.
• Triable either way: these can be tried either by crown or
magistrates’ court.
Classification of criminal offences

• Indictable offences: these are the most serious crimes triable by
judge and jury of the crown.
• Summary offences: these are triable magistrates.
• Triable either way: these can be tried either by crown or
magistrates’ court.
• Application for judicial review: this means proceeding against
government or public authority.
• Mandatory, prohibiting or quashing order: these are remedies
against government.
• Relief in a family case: dissolution of marriage which results in
divorce.
Criminal law terminology

• Prosecutor/ defendant: these are the parties in a criminal case.
• Conviction: this means that the prosecution is successful.
• Guilty: the defendant was found liable for committing the offence.
• Relief is purnishment: this includes fines, life imprisonment, release

on probation, custody, discharged without purnishment.
Mistakes or misnomers
• Criminal action or civil offence: it is supposed to be a criminal
offence and civil wrong.
• Claimant prosecuting or criminal defendant being sued: it is
supposed to be claimant suing and criminal defendant prosecuted.
Public and private law

• Public law: this is the law governing the state and can be enforced
by anyone.
• Private law: This is the law governing individuals and can only be
enforced by individual who have been affected by its infringement.
For example contract and tort.
Common law, equity and legislation

• Legislation: these are written laws made by parliament through
which the government brings into effect its policies. This includes
Acts of Parliament also called statutes or primary legislation and
delegated legislation also called statutory instruments.
• Common law: this refers to law that is not a result of legislation
and equity but is created by Judges and custom of the people in
England.
• Equity: these are rules applied by court of chancery in England
and became law based on natural justice.
2. MECHANISM OF SCHOLARSHIP
Law reports
• N.R: Nominate Reports
• L.R: Law Reports
• Q.B: Queens Bench Division
• Fam: Family Division

• A.C: Appeal Cases
Electronic Sources / Citation

Court of Appeal
• EWCA Civ: Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
• EWCA Crim: Court Appeal (Criminal Division)
High Court
• EWHC No (QB): Queens Bench Division
• EWHC No (Ch): Chancery Division
• EWHC No (Fam): Family Division
• EWHC No (Admin): Administrative Court
• EWHC No (Comm): Commercial Court
• EWHC No (Amnlty): Admirality Court
• EWHC No (TCC): Technology and Construction Court
• EWHC No (Pat): Patents Court
Interpretation
William V Davies [2001] EWCA Civ. 10 at (59): this is interpreted as William V

Davies the tenth numbered judgment of the year 2001 in the civil division of the
Court of Appeal at paragraph 59.
• W.L.R: Weekly Law Reports

• W.N: Weekly Notes
Structure of a Law Report

• Catch words
• Head note
Commercial and Specialist Law Reports

• ALLER: All England Law Reports
• T.L.R: Times Law Report
• L.T: Law Times Report
• Cox: Cox Criminal Cases
• C.A.R or Cr.App.R: Criminal Appeal Reports
• Cr.App.R.(S): Criminal Appeals Reports Sentencing
• J.P: Justice of the Peace Reports.
Two reference pages

• (1892)1 QB 273,291: The first page denotes the beginning of
the case and the second page denotes the particular passage.
Square and Round Brackets

• Square Brackets: They mean that the date is important for
reference and has no volume number. It also means that is the
date when the case was reported.
• Round Brackets: They mean that the date is not very important
but rather the volume number is.
Titles of Cases
In Criminal cases
• Trials on indictment are in the names of the king (Rex) or
Queen (Regina). e.g Rex V……….. , Reg V………… , R V………….
• In summary trial in Magistrates Court, the name of the actual
prosecutor is used before the V.
• In the House of Lords the official prosecutor was mentioned i.e
Director of Public Prosecution or DPP.
In Civil cases
• Names of the parties are mentioned.
• If the Queen or King is part, Queen or King V …….. will be

mentioned or Rex V ……….
In interpretation of wills
• Re before the name: Re Smith
Applications
• Ex.p (Exparte): on application of Smith, it is Ex.p Smith
3. TECHNICAL TERMS
• En ventre samere: unborn child
• Loco parentis: in place of the parent
• Fructus naturales: perennial plants
• Animus revertendi: intention to return
• Obiter dictum: by the way or passing remark
• Ex parte: without notice or on the part of one side only
Legal Abbreviations
Judicial terms
• B: Baron of the Exchequer
• C: chancellor of the High Court of England
• C.B: Chief Baron (Head of the former Court of the Exchequer)
• C.J or L.C.J: Lord of Chief Justice
• J.A: Justice of Appeal
• L.C: Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain
• L.J: Lord Justice or Lady Justice
• M.R: Master of Rolls (Member/President of the Court of
Appeal)
• P: President either of family division or criminal division of the
court of appeal
• V.C: Vice Chancellor (Head of the Chancery Division)
• V.P: Vice President of the Court of Appeal
Citation and References

• Ibid (ibidem): in the same place
• Op. Cit: The book or work previously cited.
• Loc.Cit: the page previously cited in the book previously.
• Passim: Everywhere in the book.
• Per: Statement by e.g per Lord Miller
• Per curiam: Statement that is made by the whole court.
• Per incuriam: A Judge’s remark that was made by mistake.
• Semble: It seems that.
• Aliter and Secus: otherwise
• Contra: An authority contradicting what one has first said.
Example:
“Semble the phrase ‘carcass or portion of a carcass’ in this statute doesnot
include a sausage. See per Trippe L.J, obiter in Sage V Onions, CA; Contra, Ham V
Eggs, Div ct; aliter if the sausage meat is not yet minced.”
4. Case law technique

• Doctrine of precedent: courts are obliged to follow previous
decisions within more or less well defined limits.
• Ratio Decidendi: the part of a case that is said to possess
authority i.e material facts of the case plus the decision
thereon.
Hierarchy of authority
• Lower courts are bound by decisions of the higher courts.
• Reversal of case: this is when the same case is decided the
other way on appeal.
• Over rule as case: this is when a case in a lower court is
considered to be wrongly decided when taken on appeal.
5. INTERPRETATION OF STATUTES
Parts of a statute
An Act of Parliament includes:
• A Short title
• Long Title
• Date of Royal Assent
• Enacting formula
• Sections
• Subsections
• Marginal notes
• The Citation
• The commencement
• The definition section
• Savings
• Repeals
• Schedules
Pepper V Hart, court permitted use of the parts of statute to shed light on
the meaning of a statute.
Importance of context
• Look at the ordinary meaning of the word. This can be
done by referring to the dictionary.
• ‘Noscitura sociis’: A word may be known by the company it
keeps. ( Regard must be had to the context)
• Later statutes to see the meaning Parliament puts on the
same words in a similar context.
Definition section and interpretation statute
Interpretation in light of policy

Courts try to determine the intention of the legislature or

the meaning of what parliament has said.
Literal rule
The words must be applied with nothing added and
nothing taken away.
The mischief rule/ purpose approach/ rule in Heydon’s

case
This bids the court to look at common law/ legal position
before the Act, and the mischief that the Act was intended
to remedy, the Act is then construed in such a way as to
suppress the mischief and advance the remedy.
The rule in Pepper V Hart

Held: In certain situations and for limited purposes the
parliamentary record can be consulted for purposes of
ascertaining the intention of the legislature.
The golden rule/ interpretations to avoid absurdity

• It states that a sstatute may be construed in such a way as
to avoid absurdity.
• It allows court to prefer a sensible meaning to an absurd
meaning, where both are linguistically possible even
though the absurd meaning is the more natural meaning.
Presumptions
They are background of legal principles against which
against which the act is viewed. For example:
• The traditional notions of justice e.g the rule that a statute

is not supposed to be retrospective.
• Reflect what was certainly the intention of parliament e.g
an act of parliament e.g an act applies only Uganda unless
otherwise.

Legal Methods 2012 Study Supplement For LDC

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Legal Methods 2012 Study Supplement For LDC

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MUGABE IVAN & ANKUNDA EMILY

STUDY SUPPLEMENT FOR LEGAL METHODS

General concepts of legal methods

 Legal research is the process of identifying materials which govern an activity

 Sources of law in Uganda:

 Articles and periodicals e.g. pamphlets, law reviews and journals.

 Why some cases are reported?

 They introduce a new principle.

 They introduce a new rule of law.

 They materially modify an existing principle of law.

 They settle a doubtful question of law.

Hierarchy of courts in uganda

The court of Appeal also sits as the constitutional court.

Basics of the Ugandan Courts System

The Supreme Court is duly constituted or its quorum is an uneven number nt

The Supreme Court shall be the final court of Appeal.

The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction to handle presidential election

The court of Appeal also sits as the constitutional court.

The quorum of the constitutional court is three members.

The quorum for the constitutional court is five members.

The High Court of Uganda

It consists of the principal judge and such number of justices as may be

Court of Exchequer is a former English superior court responsible primarily for

A retrial is a new trial of an action that has already been tried.

Repeal is an abrogation of an already existing law by legislative act.

Repugnancy is an inconsistency or contradiction between two or more parts of a

A deferred judgment is a judgment placing an accused on probation, the

Prerogative of Mercy may be defined as the powers given to the president to

Judicature is the action of judging or administering justice through duly

A trial judge is a judge before whom a case is tried.

A visiting judge is a judge appointed by the presiding judge of an administrative

A judgment is a court’s final determination of rights and obligations of the parties

An appellate court is one with jurisdiction to review decisions of lower courts or

A civil court is one with jurisdiction over non criminal cases.

A commercial court is a court that hears business disputes under simplified

Court of competent jurisdiction is a court that has power and authority to do a

A local court is a court whose jurisdiction is limited to a particular territory such as

A trial court/court of first instance/court of instance is a court of original jurisdiction

Major figures and concepts in jurisprudence

1. Materialism and Idealism

2. Rationalism and Empiricism.

3. Existentialism and Pragmatism.

Existentialism: It states that knowledge is the personal experience which a person is

Historical jurisprudence: It is propounded by Prof. Frederick Carl Von

Anthropological School: It was propounded by Henry Maine.

The Marxist theories of law and the state

Major concepts of the Marxist theories

a) Materialist conception of History: It states that in analysis of society,

JUDICIAL TITLES FOR UGANDAN COURTS

List of abbreviation and citations

2. ALLER (Comm)…………………………………………..All England Reports (Commercial cases)

3. ALLER (EC)…………………………………………………All England Reports (European cases)

4. ALLER D……………………………………………………..All England Reports Digest

5. ALLER Rep………………………………………………….All England Reports

6. ALLER…………………………………………………………All England Reports

7. ALLNR…………………………………………………………All Nigerian Reports

8. ALR……………………………………………………………..African Law Reports

9. ALR……………………………………………………………..American Law Reports

10. Atk……………………………………………………………….Atkins’s Chancery Reports

11. B & Ald…………………………………………………………..Barnwell & Alderson Reports

12. BCLR…………………………………………………………….Butterworths Constitutional Law Reports

13. CB…………………………………………………………………Common Bench Reports

14. CCR……………………………………………………………….Criminal Cases Appeal

15. Ch App…………………………………………………………..Law Reports Chancery Appeals

16. Ch D……………………………………………………………….Chancery Division Law Reports

17. Ch…………………………………………………………………..Chancery Law Reports

18. Cl&Fin…………………………………………………………….Clark and Finnelly’s English House of Lords

19. Co. Rep…………………………………………………………..Coke’s Reports

20. Cox C.C…………………………………………………………..Cox’s Criminal Cases

21. CP…………………………………………………………………..Law Reports, Common Pleas

22. CPD………………………………………………………………….Law Reports, Common Pleas Division

23. Cr.App.R…………………………………………………………..Criminal Appeal Reports