Administrative

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1961

Principle established: The court has jurisdiction to review an acting Governor's statutory recognition powers, and statutory power to recognise 'any person' as tribal headman is limited to persons belonging to that specific tribe.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1961

Principle established: The court has jurisdiction to determine whether the Governor acted within statutory powers, and statutory authority to recognise a tribal headman extends only to members of that specific tribe.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2023

Principle established: Commissions of Inquiry established under the Constitution have the mandate to examine the assets of former public officials to determine if they were acquired lawfully.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2016

Principle established: A party refused leave to appeal by the High Court may apply directly to the Court of Appeal for leave to appeal against an interlocutory ruling.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1973

Principle established: An applicant seeking letters of administration under the Mohammedan Marriage Act must prove he is the deceased's eldest brother, and the Administrator-General acting bona fide is entitled to costs out of the estate.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1973

Principle established: An Administrator-General appearing in an official capacity cannot be made personally liable for costs due to an irregularity in appointment, and an error of law justifies an appellate court reversing a costs order.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1972-73

Principle established: Leave to appeal against an order for costs may be granted when a question of public importance is involved, such as where a public officer is ordered personally to pay costs.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1972-73

Principle established: An error of law affecting costs justifies an appellate court in setting aside a costs order, and an Administrator-General acting officially cannot be made personally liable due to an appointment irregularity.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 2014

Principle established: The Supreme Court's original jurisdiction is invoked to determine if a political party's internal organization complies with democratic principles mandated by the Constitution.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1999

Principle established: Section 133(1) of the 1991 Constitution abolished the procedural requirement for obtaining a fiat or petition of right to commence legal proceedings against the Government of Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 2015

Principle established: The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction to determine whether the internal organization and programs of a political party conform to the democratic principles prescribed by the Constitution.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1962

Principle established: Electoral returning officers exceed their jurisdiction by inquiring into the validity of a nominator's consent, and a nominator has no legal power to withdraw an already submitted nomination.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1962

Principle established: Returning officers lack jurisdiction to investigate the circumstances of a nominator's consent or permit a nominator to withdraw a nomination once submitted.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 2021

Principle established: Judicial review may be sought to quash decisions or orders of a lower court where there is a jurisdictional error, procedural impropriety, or a breach of fundamental rights.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1921

Principle established: A public officer does not ratify an unlawful subordinate arrest merely by briefly detaining the person to prepare a summons and arranging lawful conveyance.

United Kingdom · 1947

Principle established: A court may quash a public authority's decision if it is so unreasonable that no reasonable authority could have ever come to it.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: General words in a later statute do not repeal or derogate from earlier specific statutory provisions without a clear indication of a particular legislative intention to do so.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: General statutory language in later legislation will not impliedly repeal or derogate from an earlier specific enactment absent a clear intention to do so.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: General words in later legislation do not impliedly repeal earlier specific statutory provisions unless an intention to alter the special law is clearly indicated.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1960

Principle established: The Summary Jurisdiction Act applies in Sierra Leone, but a prosecution cannot be dismissed as time-barred without proof on the record of when the complaint was made.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: A magistrate acquiring jurisdiction to try an indictable charge summarily under section 18 of the Summary Conviction Offences Act must show on the record consideration of circumstances and expediency.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: To acquire summary jurisdiction under section 18 of the Summary Conviction Offences Act without a preliminary inquiry, the record must reflect that the magistrate considered it expedient having regard to the circumstances.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1961

Principle established: Selling a single copy of a newspaper does not constitute dispersing it under the Newspapers Ordinance, but selling one copy while possessing others for sale amounts to an attempt to disperse.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1961

Principle established: Selling an isolated copy of a newspaper does not constitute dispersing or assisting in dispersing a newspaper under the Newspapers Ordinance.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1964-66

Principle established: Notice terminating the appointment of a judicial officer cannot be backdated and takes effect only on or after the date it is actually given.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2021

Principle established: An appellate court may allow the introduction of new evidence if it is relevant, credible, and could not have been reasonably obtained during the original proceedings.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2019

Principle established: An election petition must be filed within the strict statutory time limits, and jurisdictional objections regarding the timing of the filing should be determined before proceeding to other applications.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1983

Principle established: A procedural requirement to file a notice of appeal within one month of a decision means one calendar month calculated from the decision's date, not from the first day of the subsequent month.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 2018

Principle established: The court considered whether an application for stay of execution of a magistrate's judgment could be entertained when the underlying judgment was not currently on appeal.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 2018

Principle established: The court considered whether an application for stay of execution of a magistrate's judgment could be entertained when the underlying judgment was not currently on appeal.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1961

Principle established: The President of a Native Administration Court is engaged in the public service and immune from action for acts performed bona fide pursuant to orders of a District Officer.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1950-56

Principle established: An instrument appointing a Deputy Governor that confers authority in wide terms to exercise all powers vested in the Governor satisfies the constitutional requirement that such powers be specified.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1963

Principle established: Under section 6(2) of the Fisheries Act, a licensing officer has the statutory power to impose conditions that restrict a licensee's right of navigation.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1973

Principle established: Under the Workmen's Compensation Act, magistrates' courts have jurisdiction to entertain claims of any amount, but the court's power to award compensation is strictly limited to the statutory maximum.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1972-73

Principle established: Magistrates' courts have jurisdiction to hear workmen's compensation claims of any size, but their statutory power to award compensation is restricted to the prescribed monetary limit.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2023

Principle established: An application for a stay of execution pending appeal is considered based on whether the appeal has prospects of success and whether the applicant would suffer irreparable harm.

Malawi · 2024

Principle established: Courts possess inherent jurisdiction to protect their procedures against abuse and may reject claims that fail to supply necessary facts or legal basis for the alleged violation of rights.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2023

Principle established: The establishment of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the conduct and assets of former high-ranking public officials is a valid exercise of constitutional authority.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 2018

Principle established: The court considered preliminary objections regarding the procedural regularity of an originating motion challenging the termination of a university lecturer's employment under statutory provisions.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1920-36

Principle established: Rules made by public authorities under statutory powers must be reasonable, otherwise they are ultra vires and unenforceable.