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Bankshire Africa Limited v Registered Trustees of Makerere University Retirement Benefits Scheme (Miscellaneous Application 737 of 2024)

High Court · [2026] UGHCCD 145 · 2026 Application Granted — Matter Referred to Arbitration AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to dismiss civil suit for lack of jurisdiction and enforce arbitration clause
Decision
Civil suit struck out and dispute referred to arbitration

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Where parties have entered into an agreement containing an arbitration clause, and a dispute arises that falls within the scope of that clause, the court must refer the matter to arbitration under Section 5 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act. The appropriate remedy is to strike out the civil suit rather than dismiss it or stay proceedings, allowing the arbitrator to determine the merits. The court struck out the civil suit and referred the dispute concerning an agency agreement to arbitration.

Outcome

Civil suit struck out and dispute referred to arbitration

Facts

The parties entered into an agency agreement dated 18 September 2020 containing an arbitration clause at Clause 22. The respondent paid UGX 90,980,000 to the applicant, but the applicant allegedly failed to honour its obligations to secure buyers for the respondent's land at Ivory Estate. The respondent filed Civil Suit No. 75 of 2022 in the High Court. The applicant then brought this application seeking dismissal of the suit for lack of jurisdiction and enforcement of the arbitration clause. The respondent's affidavit in reply agreed that the dispute should be referred to arbitration and that proceedings should be stayed.

Issues

  1. Whether the dispute between the parties should be referred to arbitration.

Orders

  • Pursuant to Section 5 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act Cap. 5, the dispute between the parties regarding the agency agreement dated 18 September 2020 is referred to arbitration.
  • High Court Civil Suit No. HCT-00-CV-CS-0075-2022 is struck out.
  • The costs of this application shall abide the outcome of the arbitration proceedings.

Rules and key headnotes

Arbitration & ADR — Referral to Arbitration — Mandatory Referral Under Section 5 of Arbitration and Conciliation Act
Where parties have entered into an arbitration agreement and a dispute arises that is subject to that agreement, the court shall refer the matter to arbitration unless the arbitration agreement is null and void, inoperative or incapable of being performed, or there is no dispute between the parties with regard to the matters agreed to be referred to arbitration.
Arbitration & ADR — Remedy Upon Referral — Striking Out Rather Than Stay or Dismissal
When referring a matter to arbitration under Section 5 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, the appropriate remedy is to strike out the civil suit rather than dismiss it or stay proceedings, as striking out allows the merits of the dispute to be determined by an arbitrator while dismissal would preclude consideration of the merits and a stay serves no useful purpose after referral.
Civil Procedure — Costs — Costs to Abide Outcome of Arbitration
Where a court strikes out proceedings and refers a dispute to arbitration, it is appropriate to order that the costs of the application shall abide the outcome of the arbitration proceedings.

Legislation cited (1)

Cases cited (4)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Bankshire Africa Limited v Registered Trustees of Makerere University Retirement Benefits Scheme (Miscellaneous Application 737 of 2024) [2026] UGHCCD 145 (4 May 2026)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.