17. In the same vein, this Court is not clothed with appellate
jurisdiction over the decisions of national courts. Article 23(3) of
the Treaty specifically designates it as a Court of First Instance in
matters of Treaty interpretation.
18. Without prejudice, therefore, and subject to more intrinsic
arguments at the hearing thereof, we are not persuaded that
Reference No. 2 of 2015 raises matters of Treaty interpretation. To
that extent, we are not persuaded that the said Reference raises
serious questions for determination by this Court. However, we
would not go so far as to hold that we have been satisfied to the
required standard of proof by either party’s position on this issue.
We do, therefore, deem it necessary to determine the questions of
irreparable injury and balance of convenience.
19. The decision in E. A. Industries vs. Trufoods [1972] EA 420 that was
referred to in Giella vs. Casman Brown (supra) is quite instructive in
this regard. In that case, it was held (Spry VP):
“There is, I think, no difference of opinion as to the law
regarding interlocutory injunctions, although it may be
expressed in different ways. A plaintiff has to show a prima
facie case with a probability of success, and if the court is in
doubt it will decide the application on the balance of
convenience. An interlocutory injunction will not normally be
granted unless the applicant for it might otherwise suffer
irreparable
injury,
which
would
not
adequately
be
compensated by an award of damages.”(our emphasis)
Reference No. 5 of 2015
Page 11