Bukenya v Hermis Coffee Factory Uganda Limited (Miscellaneous Application 1588 of 2021)

Observed later treatment

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

Holding

The High Court Commercial Division granted the applicant unconditional leave to appear and defend a summary suit for recovery of money. The court held that the applicant disclosed bonafide triable issues of fact and law, including whether the defendant was indebted to the respondent in the sums claimed, whether money was paid to a third party, and the legality of the transaction. The court is not required to determine the merits at the leave stage and must give the applicant opportunity to prove questions of fact or law at trial.

Outcome

Applicant granted leave to defend; matter to proceed to trial

Facts

In June 2021, the respondent entered into an oral contract with the applicant for supply of twenty metric tonnes of Robusta coffee from Tanzania and paid a deposit of UGX 138,000,000. The applicant claimed to have paid UGX 285,000,000 to Link Power Tanzania Limited for the coffee purchases. The applicant delivered seven metric tonnes which were accepted by the respondent. In August 2021, the respondent terminated the oral contract and demanded return of the purchase price. The respondent claimed the applicant failed to comply with the agreement and that the parties executed a refund agreement dated 20 August 2021 which the applicant violated. The respondent filed Civil Suit No. 744 of 2021 claiming UGX 96,880,000 as refund balance. The applicant applied for leave to appear and defend, asserting he was not indebted and had a plausible defence.

Issues

1. Whether the Applicant disclosed sufficient grounds to merit the grant of leave to appear and defend the suit?
2. What remedies are available?

Orders

• Application allowed.
• Applicant granted unconditional leave to appear and defend in Civil Suit No. 744 of 2021.
• Applicant to file written statement of defence within 10 days from the date of this order.
• Costs of this application to be in the cause.

Rules and key headnotes

Legislation cited (5)

• Civil Procedure Act Cap 71 s.98
• Judicature Act Cap 13 s.33
• Civil Procedure Rules SI 71-1 Order 36 Rules 3 & 4
• Civil Procedure Rules SI 71-1 Order 52 Rules 1 & 3
• Civil Procedure Rules SI 71-1 Order 15 Rule 3

Cases cited (5)

• Maluku Interglobal Trade Agency Ltd v Bank of Uganda [1985] HCB 65
• Kotecha v Mohammed [2002] 1 EA 112
• Geoffrey Gatete and Another v William Kyobe (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 7 of 2005)
• Saw V Hakim 5 TLR 72
• Ray v Barker 4 Ex DI 279

Cases citing this judgment (1)

How later Ugandan judgments in the Wakilii corpus have cited this case. Treatment labels come from Sequitur — Uganda’s citator — each backed by a verbatim span from the citing judgment, and are not an assertion that this case is, or is not, good law.

• International Projects Limited and Another v Zinunula Coffee Company Limited (Civil Miscellaneous Application No. 1588 of 2021)

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