A minor/child (person below 18 years) can only sue in his or her name through a "next friend" as per Uganda's Civil Procedure Rules.
A next friend is individual that acts on behalf of another individual without the legal capacity to act on his or her own behalf.
Minors cannot sue personally because the law presumes that they generally do not have capacity to contract, sign documents, hire an advocate or understand legal proceedings.
In practice, a next friend is usually someone with responsibility over the child for example the parent or guardian; who must be an adult person of sound mind without an adverse interest to that of the child.
For more information, refer to the report by by Child Rights International Network (CRIN) which can be accessed at https://bit.ly/2GbhNUg
A minor/child (person below 18 years) can only sue in his or her name through a "next friend" as per Uganda's Civil Procedure Rules.
A next friend is individual that acts on behalf of another individual without the legal capacity to act on his or her own behalf.
Minors cannot sue personally because the law presumes that they generally do not have capacity to contract, sign documents, hire an advocate or understand legal proceedings.
In practice, a next friend is usually someone with responsibility over the child for example the parent or guardian; who must be an adult person of sound mind without an adverse interest to that of the child.
For more information, refer to the report by by Child Rights International Network (CRIN) which can be accessed at https://bit.ly/2GbhNUg
