The case by the Court of Appeal of Tanzania, decided on 15 October 2025 clarifies a critical rule about what happens to a lawsuit when a party dies, specifically in a defamation case.
The Appellants (Original Plaintiffs): International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines (GALVmed). They sued because their reputation was hurt.
The Respondent (Original Defendant): Dr. Guiseppe Di Giulio. He was a veterinary practitioner. The Dispute: ILRI and GALVmed sued Dr. Di Giulio for defamation. Dr. Di Giulio had sent emails and uploaded videos to the internet accusing the appellants of fraudulent vaccination and supporting the illegal importation of vaccines, allegedly causing the death of up to 90,000 cattle.
Trial Court: Found Dr. Di Giulio guilty of defamation and awarded the appellants substantial damages (TZS 120,000,000).
High Court (First Appeal): Overturned the trial court's decision, finding that Dr. Di Giulio's statements were justified and qualified as a legitimate criticism or qualified privilege because he was exposing illegal vaccination activities.
The Court of Appeal Issue: While appellants appealed to the Court of Appeal, Dr. Guiseppe Di Giulio died. The central question became: Does an appeal for damages over defamation continue after the person who made the defamatory statements dies?
The Court of Appeal ruled that the appeal abated (ended) upon the death of the respondent, Dr. Di Giulio. The Court's reasoning was based on the nature of the claim, defamation is "personal tort" (a personal wrongdoing). The right to sue for defamation is personal to the defamer and does not survive their death. The legal maxim for this is actio personalis moritur cum persona (a personal action dies with the person). Legal heirs or representatives cannot be held responsible for a wrong committed by the deceased in their personal capacity.
This case sets a clear precedent for Tanzanian courts regarding personal injury claims on appeal: The right to sue for defamation damages is a personal action that does not survive the death of the deceased party. This is based on the proviso to Section 9(1) of the Law Reform (Fatal Accidents and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, which explicitly excludes defamation from causes of action that survive death.
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