[2018] UGCC 2

[2018] UGCC 2

The court held that the principles governing taxation of costs in public interest constitutional petitions require that instruction fees and professional costs be nominal, to avoid deterring future litigants and stifling constitutionalism. The Registrar's award of over Shs. 12 billion was manifestly excessive, unjustified, and contrary to established jurisprudence. The court substituted the instruction fees with Shs. 20 million for lead counsel and Shs. 12 million for assisting counsel, allowed only reasonable disbursements, and disallowed VAT for lack of proof. The total allowed was Shs. 32,716,500, reduced by one third (as only two-thirds of costs were awarded), resulting in a final...

Citation
[2018] UGCC 2
Parties
Applicant: Twinobusigye Severino; Respondent: The Attorney General
Court
Constitutional Court of Uganda
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Judgment Date
30 April 2018
Case Number
Constitutional Reference No. 27 of 2013
Procedural Posture
Taxation Reference / Ruling
Outcome
bill_of_costs_substantially_reduced
Judges
Kakuru, JA
Legal Topics
Taxation of Costs, Public Interest Litigation, Instruction Fees, Costs Award Discretion, Nominal Costs, Access to Justice
Source Language
English
Civil Procedure Constitutional Law Taxation of Costs Public Interest Litigation Instruction Fees Costs Award Discretion Nominal Costs Access to Justice

Case Brief

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Parties

Twinobusigye Severino

Applicant

The Attorney General

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Taxation Reference / Ruling

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the award of Shs. 12,992,003,500/= as costs by the Registrar was manifestly excessive and contrary to the principles governing taxation of costs.
  2. 2 Whether instruction fees in public interest constitutional petitions should be nominal and not punitive.
  3. 3 Whether the Registrar erred in awarding costs without considering the public interest nature of the petition and the chilling effect of excessive costs.

Ratio Decidendi

The court held that the principles governing taxation of costs in public interest constitutional petitions require that instruction fees and professional costs be nominal, to avoid deterring future litigants and stifling constitutionalism. The Registrar's award of over Shs. 12 billion was manifestly excessive, unjustified, and contrary to established jurisprudence. The court substituted the instruction fees with Shs. 20 million for lead counsel and Shs. 12 million for assisting counsel, allowed only reasonable disbursements, and disallowed VAT for lack of proof. The total allowed was Shs. 32,716,500, reduced by one third (as only two-thirds of costs were awarded), resulting in a final...

Court Disposition

bill_of_costs_substantially_reduced

Orders

  • The award of Shs. 12,992,003,500/= as costs is set aside.
  • Instruction fees substituted with Shs. 20,000,000/= for lead counsel and Shs. 12,000,000/= for assisting counsel.